Anthony Carrino Reaches the Finish Line (Part Four of Four)

After countless hours of physical labor and surprisingly few setbacks, Anthony Carrino achieved his ambitious mission of transforming a historic 1896 firehouse into the home he’s always desired. From pre-demolition to completed renovation, he always had his trusty Matterport Pro2 3D camera within arm’s reach to capture the entire process.

In-between turning the firehouse into a dream home, Anthony chronicled the down and dirty demolition phase and the painstaking process of capturing a digital record of the home’s every nook and cranny.

Anthony sits down with Matterport one last time to talk about the finished product, special tips for future home renovators, lessons learned along the way, and what’s next for the talented owner of TheBuild.tv.

Q. The finished product! What was your favorite part about capturing this final phase of The Firehouse in 3D?

Having worked in TV for a decade-plus, I have become very accustomed to sharing my final design with viewers at the end of an episode. I’ll never forget the first time I saw the beautiful tracking shots of a renovation I completed. There is a sense of pride there that is hard to put into words. 

That said, I have always gravitated towards educating homeowners wherever possible because “home” is such a big undertaking, and there is just so much to know and understand. To that end, capturing a 3D model of my finished renovation gives folks the ability to tour the space at their own pace, spend time in the areas that truly interest them, and dive deeper into the products they want to know more about. All of these are reasons why I love capturing all phases of my projects. 

Q. What are your favorite new features of the remodel?

Space planning is such a key factor in how you interact with your home. To have the floor plan work out perfectly, meaning I wouldn’t change the layout now that we have been living here for over a year, makes me feel like I spent the requisite time, considered all the options, and really nailed the plan for our lifestyle.

If I had to pick one thing, which is very much an “urban environment” thing, it’s having the outdoor space on the same level as our main living space. It removes all the work of outdoor entertaining, allows you to use the space so much more, and is really just an extension of our overall home. 

Q. Do you have any finishing touches, tips and tricks you would like to share?

Well, being the planning-focused guy that I am, I would definitely encourage people to think about their furniture requirements much earlier than they might think. Depending on the supplier, you can be looking at upwards of 12 weeks for a couch or other pieces of furniture, and the last thing you want to do is to be waiting an additional 12 weeks for furniture when you have just completed a renovation that you are excited to move into. 

Another tip I like to share is to pick something in a room to design around. Typically there is one thing you must have in a particular space. Use that thing as the anchor and choose other items that work with it, enhance it, or otherwise complement the space as a whole to create a cohesive environment. 

Q. It’s been amazing seeing all the different phases of this project in 3D. If you could go back and tell yourself one thing at the start of the project, what would it be?

Your diligence will pay off. 

Sometimes I think I’m over-communicating, or I’m driving this person or that person nuts, but people generally are busy, and the reality is the biggest mistake you can make on a renovation project is under-communicating or taking things for granted. 

If I confirmed a shipment for something and it was more than 10 days out, you better believe I’m reconfirming that shipment two or three days before the ship date I was given. If we went off the schedule on Friday, I’m gonna give you a little refresher on Monday. I found it was more appreciated than anything else because people have so much going on, and no matter how good your team is, there is no one your project is more important to than you. 

Q. What is next for you, and will you be using Matterport to help in any way?

I am currently renovating a 1965 stone house in the Catskill Mountains, and yes, of course, I’m using Matterport to capture the various stages. It will be season two of TheBuild.tv. The project page is already live, and I am releasing vlogs weekly. The full series will launch in the September-October timeframe.