Debbie and Preston Dye mince no words in their reaction to what their house used to look like, with its paneled walls, blue carpet and blue paint.
"It was unreal," Mr. Dye said.
"It was a mess," Mrs. Dye added.
The structure was solid and the amenities were undeniable selling points, though, so they bought the house on the 7-acre lake in Camelot subdivision in Evans 12 years ago, and made it fit for a king.
"What sold us was the layout, the shop, the pool and the lake," Mrs. Dye said. "We had all that to work with."
And work they did. They knocked down one wall, added another, finished some rooms, repainted others and infused their personalities and their styles into the space.
"When you decorate, you need to decorate around your personality," Mrs. Dye said.
Outside, the Dyes have manicured the lawn, refurbished the pool and enlivened the lakefront area.
"We wanted to make it as good as the inside," Mrs. Dye said.
Considering where they started, Mr. Dye said, they have overcome a lot of obstacles to create a home that is both comfortable and attractive.
"It came out pretty nice," he said. "Of course, there wasn't any way not to win."
AT HOME WITH
THE FAMILY: Debbie and Preston Dye, who purchased the house 12 years ago. Mrs. Dye is the owner of the Augusta Youth School of Dance, and Mr. Dye is a retired U.S. Army officer.
THE HOME: Vacation-style, 3,700-square-foot home with four bedrooms and three baths, a pool, a 7-acre lake, a 2,000-square-foot shop and dance studio
IT'S A FACT: Despite the amount of work the home needed, the Dyes were able to get their house refurbished in about four months.
