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    At Home: Living and working Downtown

    Most people have some kind of lifestyle change after their children are grown. For Diana and Tommaso Ciaffoncini, that change was moving out of Worthington, the neighborhood where they had lived in four different homes and raised their family, and moving into Downtown.

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    Diana and Tommaso Ciaffoncini.

    They had looked at a few buildings but really fell in love with the Brunson Building.

    “It was a drastic change,” says Tommaso. “Cement. Steel.”

    “We were one of the first people to sign on [to live in the building],” says Diana. “We have everything we used to in a smaller version. I’m very happy here.”

    When the opportunity arose to move their business Origo Branding Co. to the ground floor, the couple did it without hesitation. It gave them the chance to really have all of their life Downtown.

    “I love the fact we live where we live,” says Diana. “We walk everywhere and live entirely right here. We enjoy all of the restaurants in the area, the parks, the riverfront, everything in the Short North…it’s great to be a part of developing this community.”

    Tommaso appreciates the diversity that Downtown offers. “It’s easy to make friendships here.”

    The couple designed the 2100 square foot, 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo themselves. Tommaso had a Murphy bed built into the wall in the library to accommodate guests. The glass walls allow light to pass through yet provide privacy when guests are visiting.

    The Murphy bed hidden in the library wall.

    The living room with punches of color.

    Tommaso has done much of the artwork throughout the home, including this portrait of Diana.

    The main bedroom is a peaceful retreat.

    The guest bedroom.

    In nice weather, they love to spend time on the balcony. A sitting area looks over the east side of Columbus and provides a wonderful view of the sunrise. When the weather is hotter, they are able to open windows on both ends of the home to provide a cooling breeze.

    A large painting by Tommaso anchors the sunroom.

    Some of the best views of the city are from their sunroom.

    They have plenty of space to entertain friends and love to do so. Cooking is a passion for Diana. She volunteers for Dress for Success and put together a cookbook that promotes eating healthy and economically.

    The couple are particularly fond of the way architect Jonathan Barnes blended old and new in his redesign of the building. “The contrast is what we like,” says Tommaso. It reminds him of they way buildings are designed in Paris.

    At Home is a monthly column on Columbus Underground focused on urban home remodeling and style as well as older home renovations and unique homes in Columbus. If you would like to have your home featured in the At Home series, please send me an email at [email protected].
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    Anne Evans
    Anne Evanshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-evans/
    Anne Evans is the Co-Founder and Director of Operations for The Metropreneur and Columbus Underground. She regularly contributes feature stories on both sites, as well as Mega Weekend each week. She has started and grown businesses, created experiences, forged community partnerships, and worked to create opportunities for others. She loves meeting new neighbors and those making an impact in our community. Want to connect?
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