The Story
Adam Talianchich and Ashley Menger wanted to live in Austin’s French Legation neighborhood for years — some of the city’s oldest homes are in the area — but there was one big problem: The properties almost never come up for sale. The couple waited ... and waited … and finally, in 2015, when Ashley was eight months pregnant with their second child, a listing popped up for a small 1960s-era home. “It was in terrible shape, essentially a teardown,” says Adam. He and Ashley run a design-build company, Hatch Works, so they were up for the task. They demolished the structure and built a 2,500-square-foot modern Victorian that blends in with the older homes in the area but also stands out, thanks to bold colors and an eye-catching roofline. “We have a steep roof and dormers, which created a lot of pitched interior ceilings, and we just kept following that triangular theme,” says Ashley. “Adam had an idea to make some interior doors triangular, and we also added a triangular shower nook. Basically, whenever we had a design decision, we just ‘put a triangle on it.’ ”