The owner of Tollison & Co. Construction renovated an Isle of Hope home for her family and as a model of what she can do for potential clients.
Written by MARY CORNETTA
Photography by KATHRYN ANN WALLER
Styling by JIM LYNCH
AS THE FOUNDER OF TOLLISON & CO. CONSTRUCTION, Tracey Henry Tollison has dedicated herself to building homes that align with her clients’ lifestyles and needs. In 2023, it was finally her turn to do the same for her own family.
Tracey, her husband, Trip, and their two kids — son Hank and daughter Lula — have lived on Isle of Hope since 2004. She built their first home there when Hank was 1 and she was pregnant with Lula, then renovated it over time so it evolved with them. She came to understand the demands of a growing household through both her line of work and her lived experience.
That first house on Isle of Hope had a rotten floor system, Tracey explained, “and we ended up tearing it down. I always said I would enjoy building that same house again — knowing what I know now. And thinking about not just current needs but the needs of when your family changes and as the kids grow up.”
As their family matured, so, too, did their needs, but the Tollisons didn’t want to leave their beloved neighborhood. They patiently waited for the right property, and in October 2023, bought a 2,687-square-foot 1950s home around the corner that had been sitting vacant for three years. “This house always intrigued me,” says Tracey. “I wanted to find something with old bones and the right space but that needed a total overhaul,” she says.
With the help of her team and her artistic daughter, Tracey set out to create a space that would not only be comfortable for her family but could also serve as a showcase for future clients. After a major renovation, the home now boasts around 3,500 square feet, with the addition of a bedroom and bathroom area converted out of attic space.
The home features elements that are signature Tollison & Co. Construction style, such as hidden doors, a tongue and groove ceiling, and exposed beams. Her vast knowledge of home building trends is evident in every curated detail, including the most sought-after countertop materials, cabinet styles, and paneling.
Until now, she had helped clients make design decisions using inspiration boards and examples from her past projects. Allowing them to walk through her very own home adds a personal touch to the process, something that Tracey prides herself on. “Rather than just looking at what’s on paper,” she explains, “I want to think about how someone is going to use and live in a space.” She asks her clients questions uncommon of a builder, such as what brings them joy, how old their kids are, and how many pets they have.
One of the most family-friendly re-envisioned spaces is a room off the kitchen. Previously, this area had been empty and under-used, with only a utility sink, washer, and dryer. Tracey turned it into a combination mudroom, laundry room, storage room, and pet lounge, where the family’s two chocolate labs, Tuck and Bacon, and a tabby named Jack, can eat, sleep and relax. There’s an entrance to the garage, but it’s the door leading into it from the kitchen that Tracey loves most.
“We had a true Dutch door in the other house and it would contain the dogs in the mudroom yet not close them in completely. This room needed to have a pocket door, so that posed a challenge,” she explains. At first, her project manager doubted her suggestion to design a Dutch pocket door but, in the end, they made it happen. Tracey jokes, “Boy, did I love proving him wrong, only because that never happens!”
The entire Tollison family appreciates the outdoor screened porch, which is a new addition to the original home. Dual fans hang from its haint blue ceiling, while mounted heaters make the space comfortable year-round.
With that additional outdoor living space, Tracey decided they could do without the formal living room that originally faced the front of the house. In an unconventional move, she turned it into a dining room with a view. Aside from extending the front porch and converting the windows into double mahogany doors, there was the dated, sunken-floor style of the room to contend with. In the end, she chose to elevate it by pouring four inches of concrete.
“At first, we thought it kept a little of the quirkiness but ultimately decided that it was one, a hazard, and two, we could not add the doors on the front of the house unless we raised it,” Tracey explains. “We initially thought the existing fireplace would look squatty when we raised the floor, but by trimming it out with panels the way we did, no one would even know we changed it.”
What had been the home’s original dining room off the kitchen is now an enviable space that serves as an enormous pantry, bar, and scullery, with an entrance from the kitchen as well as a hidden door built into the molding (one of three hidden doors in the home), granting access to the new dining area. Lula, an avid baker, spends the most time here. She stores her supplies in custom-built cabinets, a few of which include outlets for her multiple KitchenAid mixers and pull-out shelves that create extra counter space when needed.
In addition to baking, Lula, a student at Savannah Arts Academy, has diverse interests and hobbies, including painting, sewing, and playing the drums. Most of her art supplies are organized upstairs, in the dreamy, fit-for-a-teenager TV lounge off to the right at the top of the staircase. The area is one of the biggest attractions of the renovation.
“There was a ton of attic space available to expand,” explains Tracey. “And we wanted to add another bedroom and bathroom to the house. The back-to-back masonry chimneys posed a design problem, as they sat right next to the living space. We ultimately used it to our advantage and made a vestibule to the bedroom and bathroom which allowed for additional closet and storage space. It is like a second master suite!”
The rest of the upstairs consists of a second bathroom, a guest bedroom, and Hank’s room. For Hank, Tracey came up with a cavelike aesthetic that he can enjoy while on break from his classes at the University of Georgia.
“I wanted to create a handsome, manly retreat,” she says. “Keeping the original paneling and using high-gloss Benjamin Moore Hale Navy on the walls, trim, and ceiling achieved everything I was hoping it would.”
Hank and Lula had originally helped inspire Tracey to start her own business despite some of the challenges that can come with being a minority in the building industry. Prior to launching her own company, she worked as a project manager for a commercial construction company that also did high-end home builds and renovations in Sea Island, which is when Tracey admits to catching the “residential bug.” That, coupled with the desire to have the flexibility of working for herself, was what drove her to found Tollison & Co. Construction. That flexibility became even more helpful once Trip took his current job; he travels often.
Tracey definitely took the lead on finding and rebuilding the family’s home. But Trip and the kids thoroughly enjoy their new space, and it’s given Tracey the opportunity to put herself in her clients’ shoes. “I treat clients’ money like it’s my money,” she says. “I won’t let them make bad financial decisions while they build or renovate their home.”
But beyond budget, Tracey got to flex her skills in transformation. “When I walk through a home, I always look at what is there, and then I squint and imagine what it could be. That’s my thing — and I love it.”
DETAILS
- Homeowners: Tracey and Trip Tollison
- Neighborhood: Isle of Hope
- Year built: 1952
- Year purchased: 2023
- Timeline of renovation/construction: 7 months
- Number of bedrooms: 4
- Number of bathrooms: 3.5
- Architect: Lynch Associates Architects
- Interior designer: Homeowner, with help from many of her designer friends.
- Builder/contractor: Tollison & Co. Construction
- Landscape: Hester & Zipperer
- Kitchen design: Tracey Tollison
- Bathroom design: Tracey Tollison
- Paint: Knights Painting
- Tile/flooring: Garden State Tile and Adams Tile
- Lighting: Visual Comfort & Co.
- Windows/doors: Coastal Sash and Door
- Art: Bellamy Murphy (marsh painting in dining room), Catherine Lovett (pelican painting in dining room), Lula Tollison (butterfly painting in scullery)
