Kate Connelly and her father were busy on the morning of her wedding in 2021 when they saw a For Rent sign. It was attached to the door of a brick building in Old Town, Philadelphia. Kate and her partner, James Connelly lived next door and she ended up taking over the ground floor of what turned out to be a hundred-year-old machine shop. At the time, Kate was a Pilates instructor who was out of work due to the pandemic and rented her first gym.
When the building’s tenant left, the couple took over the second floor, too—they said, mostly, to protect Together Athletics, Kate’s growing business (“we didn’t want to complain about the noise,” she said). The four-story shell of the building was rough but original (scroll to the end to see it as it was). The previous occupant had set up a rudimentary kitchen and there were bathrooms available, so Kate and James—a former lacrosse player turned artist/photographer—moved in. “It was decorated enough,” he said.
A year later, they were in the right place where the owners of their house, two sisters whose grandfather and father had built engines on the property, were ready to sell and the Connellys were able to buy it outright. Knowing their living spaces well and loving the beauty of painted floors, they had some plans, right down to the Reform kitchen cabinets they wanted. After putting together their deck and interviewing several design/build firms, they hired architect Kevin Kaminski and designer Alexis Pew, a talented local couple with their own firm and a willingness to collaborate. Join us on the journey of results.
Photo by Daniel Isayeff, courtesy of Kaminski + Pew (@kaminskipew).
Above: The four-story, 2,600-square-foot building was used as a machine shop for decades—as well as a produce store, art gallery, and clothing store among other things, but the upper floors sat empty for a long time. It is located just around the corner from the Liberty Bell and the Betsy Ross house.
As the couple looked for ways to cut costs, Kaminski + Pew suggested they start with the exterior envelope—repointing brick and remodeling and replacing the roof and windows—with James overseeing the work. “The outside was in bad shape,” Kevin said. “We introduced James to some of our favorite subcontractors and answered questions as they asked. This allowed them to continue to occupy space and save a little.” The local manufacturer duplicated the existing window profiles and installed new thermally efficient glass. James also oversaw the installation of plumbing and electricity.
Above: Kaminski + Pew remodeled the storefront and introduced chicken glazing for privacy. Kevin explains that Philadelphia is very strict on replacement windows in the historic district “the style and sight lines had to match the existing windows.”
Ground floor: Check-in and Future Boutique
Above: Kate and James wanted a vestibule that was elegant and functional. Thinking of one day having children, they asked for it to be big enough to hold a cart.
Above: The designers were able to deliver the requested mudroom. Tiled in Terra Rosa and Burnt Sugar zellige from Zia and painted Sherwin-Williams Reddened Earth.
A formal end bench from the window; like all the built-ins, it’s white sawn oak custom made to a Kaminski + Pew design by local cabinet makers Summus Studio. If you look, there’s even a dog and bike bed and a trash can.
Above: “Since it’s a high-use area, we wanted to use a material that looked good but could also stand up to wear,” explains Alexis of zellige.
The space down the hall—once home to Kate’s Pilates studio—is being reinvented: she and James plan to turn it into a store that sells favorite homewares, James’ artwork, and the growing Together Athletics clothing line. Together Athletics, meanwhile, now has two nearby Philadelphia locations with a third on the way.
Second Floor: Art Studio and Living Area
Above: The second-floor temporary apartment is now James’ fully finished studio. A self-taught artist, he calls himself the Son of the Grinch—he was known as the Baby Grinch during his lacrosse days—and specializes in what he calls “modern hieroglyphics.” He takes commissions for murals as well as product designs and logos while producing his work.
James and Kate left during the six months of construction but came in every day to oversee the work and troubleshoot. They went back this spring and report that Kieran, their general contractor from MCL Carpentry and Construction, has become one of their dearest friends.
Above: Walls on all upper floors are painted White Swan from Sherwin-Williams. The Hyllis galvanized steel shelving for the studio is from Ikea.
Above: The Flight Dining Table and Sunday Field Stools are used for meetings with clients. The slatted wooden bowling chair is from Stickball, an antique store just a few doors away. The new floor is white oak, taken by the contractor from his dealer.
Note the door: Kaminski + Pew introduced new doors with reed glass in the middle to let the light in.
Above: James says he has long dreamed of having a proper place to clean his brushes. The Stainless Steel Work Table with Sink and Faucet is from the Webstaurant Store—“it was the most affordable item in the house,” says Kate. Their Koala Sofa Bed makes the space double as their living and guest quarters.
Third floor: Dining area and kitchen
Above: “We both don’t like clutter,” says James by way of description of their custom shelves used to display a changing inventory of books and art (Kate adds, “since we don’t have a dresser, we plan to hang our Christmas stockings here”). Summus Studio stained the shelves to match the Sunday Plane Dining Table and Frame Bench.
Above: Kevin set up a kitchen at the front of the building—”repeatedly creating space where it didn’t exist,” says James. The couple got their cabins at Reform Basis and the island. They’re finished in Mushroom linoleum and topped with Caesarstone in Rugged Concrete Quartz (“we love the look of concrete but Alexis and Kevin said we’d hate the keeper and suggested this as an alternative,” says Kate).
The Oko Mirror, a light art piece by Oskar Zieta, helps “soften straight lines,” says Alexis. “We also like to put mirrors above the sink, so you can see the space behind you.” Wall ovens by Wolf. The custom metal hood was created by Summus Studio.
Above: Kate, 34, and James, 35, are both Philly natives and met at one of her Pilates classes. Their espresso machine is a La Marzocco.
Above: Heath Tumeric tiles and a Concretti Newport basin with a Newport Brass East Linear Wall Mount Lavatory Faucet in the powder room.
Fourth Floor: Bedrooms and Bath
Above: The hall off the top two bedrooms doubles as a dressing area. Custom white oak cabinets provide the couple with plenty of storage space and many of the walk-in closets feature their own washer/dryer. Alexis notes that the wooden pulls were “inspired by the set Le Corbusier designed for the Unité d’Habitation.”
“Philadelphia’s row buildings are notoriously dark in the middle,” says Kevin of New Sky. “We added one at the top of the stairs to draw light, one in the hall closet, and one in the bathroom—a bathroom without a window is too oppressive.”
Above: A large beam hangs from the top floor in place of a couple’s bed. The exposed beams are original—the contractor sandblasted them and preserved them. The Thin Metal-Frame Oversized Floor Mirror is from Rejuvenation.
Above: Inspired by this hotel vanity,Kate asked for a place to stay and get ready in the morning. Kaminski + Pew came up with this custom design and Kate found the wavy cabinet pulls on Etsy, Shades of gray tiles are White Pumice from Heath.
Before You Continue
Above: “Decades of deferred maintenance, water damage, and general vandalism left the brick in poor condition,” says Kevin. “A lot of the work was just re-pointing (with a good cleaning), but a few small parts needed replacing or removing and re-bricking. The builder was able to remove historic brick from that period to put in where it was needed.” The sign in the window appears during the Together Athletics pilates sit-down.
Above: The couple’s unconventional lifestyle was inherited from a former employer. James looked into saving the wood floor and tin roof but says it was too far: “there were all holes and pieces.”
The empty spaces, and the basement, provided the couple with valuable storage space. During the construction, they were able to receive and hold goods and materials, which is rare for James to show in such an urban environment.
Above: This is what James’ former art studio, on the third floor, looked like.
Above: The start of demolition.
Above: The top floor continues with the skylight frames. Kevin says: That’s the old pulley in the corner (yes, they kept it).
Other industrial changes:
- 24 Hour Art: Jeff Feld’s Quarter Live Performance and Gallery in a Converted NYC Warehouse
- Cool Factor: Coal Plant Turned Industrial Flat in Chicago
- Indoor-Outdoor Living in Paris: Windowless Warehouse Turned into Family Home, Courtyard Included