A Builder’s Approach to Timeless Renovation in his 2025 Southern Living Showcase Home

For his Southern Living Showcase Home, custom builder Collier Bashara, owner of Collier Custom Homes, took on a renovation that pushed him outside his comfort zone. The result is a thoughtful, deeply personal renovation that honors history while embracing modern living. Bashara approached the project not as a typical spec build, but as a chance to showcase craftsmanship, collaboration and timeless design.

For Bashara, building has always been about more than structure. It’s about relationships, intention and delivering homes that perform as beautifully as they look. “I don’t see how you can be a relationship builder if you’re building ten houses and never see the client,” Bashara says.

That philosophy defines his approach. With a deliberately small team and a focus on a limited number of projects at a time, Collier Custom Homes is known for highly customized homes and meticulous renovations.

Located in the city of Olmos Park, the showcase home began with an unexpected connection. It was once the home of Bashara’s childhood math teacher. In a neighborhood known for consistency—where many homes share the same floor plan—the design challenge was clear: to respect the home's original character while adding modern livability. This helped ensure the home felt authentic to its roots and indistinguishable from its additions. 

Bashara explains, “The goal is that you don’t walk into the house and say, ‘Oh, I just walked into the addition.’ It should all feel original.” To improve the function of the home while keeping its familiar charm, Bashara and his team did several key things: 

• Preserved original rooflines and footprint to keep it true to the neighborhood
• Salvaged and repurposed original stone elements, including historic windowsills
• Matched beautifully reclaimed white oak flooring to blend the old and new
• Carefully stepped and articulated the front elevation to avoid looking flat

The resulting home feels cohesive and of the neighborhood. “So many people walked in and said, ‘This is our house.’ That’s exactly what we were aiming for,” states Bashara.

Throughout the home, windows and doors play a central role in how the home feels and functions. Bashara selected period-appropriate double-hung windows with divided light grilles on the front elevation to nod to the home’s heritage. “We want the home to feel right from the street—but once you get to the back, it’s about light, openness, and how people live today,” he says.

The rear elevation features modern Pella Lifestyle Series casement windows and a Pella Reserve multi-slide door with no grilles and expansive glass to maximize natural light and indoor-outdoor living. Thoughtfully proportioned openings improve access to the backyard, enhancing flow and inviting natural light deep into the home. Factory-prefinished interiors and durable aluminum-clad exteriors help the long-term durability of all the windows and doors throughout the home.

Located between the scullery and the backyard entertaining area, a pocketing multi-slide window creates a seamless connection between the indoor prep kitchen space and the backyard. “The pocket window in the scullery made people giddy,” Bashara explains, “You just don’t see that application very often.”

When open, the window panels disappear into the wall, transforming it into a pass-through that makes serving food and drinks feel effortless. It's a modern convenience that supports the way families entertain today while maintaining the home's timeless character.

Preserving the character of the Olmos Park home meant navigating complexities rarely found in new construction. While the goal was to create a seamless living experience, achieving that vision required careful engineering and problem-solving at every stage.

One of the home’s biggest surprises was in the beloved keeping room, formerly the sunroom. Instead of traditional framing, the room had structural stone walls supporting a six-inch concrete floor upstairs where a bathroom was being added. As the heart of the home, the room was carefully restored and reimagined into a conversational gathering space. The stonework is laid in a traditional, random pattern rather than a contemporary linear style. This keeps the room warm and inviting while making it feel like it has been there for decades.

As a member of the Southern Living Custom Builder Network for the past four years, Bashara viewed his Southern Living Showcase Home as an opportunity to demonstrate what thoughtful design, quality craftsmanship and exclusive industry partnerships can achieve.

Every selection—from finishes and materials to windows and doors—was made to create a cohesive experience while highlighting products that enhance the home's performance and design.

The result: a home that sold before the showcase events even began. Blending old and new through reclaimed materials, carefully matched finishes and a floor plan that respects the original architecture, it instantly feels like home. From salvaged stonework to period-appropriate windows and modern indoor-outdoor connections, the project reflects Bashara’s guiding philosophy: renovations should look like they’ve always belonged.

Pella is the exclusive partner of the Southern Living Custom Builder Network.