Your dishwasher wasn’t built to run three times a day. Your couch wasn’t designed to be an office. And your dining room wasn’t decorated like a playground. You never noticed the crooked patio steps or your leaning chimney because you never spent any time in the yard. It may feel like things are falling apart around you, but there is a silver lining to these trying times. Remember when you used to have to schedule a four-hour window to wait at home for the repair guy? Now you’re always there! So make your honey-do list and get cracking. You may have 49 problems, but finding an expert who can restore your water-stained Second Empire Napoleon III-style side tables ain’t one.
A Leaning Limestone Turret
Architectural Stone Company, 1900 Preston Rd., Ste. 267-100, Plano | 214-207-3956
A turret needs someone with a bit of history to look after it. Mark Johnson, who presides over Architectural Stone Company, is a fourth-generation mason, so he certainly qualifies. He can also handle the custom design and installation of flooring, façades, flagstones, and fountains.
A Hail-acious Roof
Precision Construction & Roofing, 7625 Davis Blvd., North Richland Hills | 817-519-8985
If your slate or clay tile has been hit from above, go to this specialty firm. They have shops all over the country, but the company is still a family-run operation overseen by three generations of Hunters from right here.
Scratched Stainless Steel
Stainless Refinishing, 302 Denton Dr., Roanoke | 214-869-8223
John Green and his crew can make that silver surface look like new. So if your Sub-Zero has taken a tough swipe, don’t cry, “Wolf!”
Weather-Worn Wooden Windows
Hull Millwork, 201 Lipscomb St., Fort Worth | 817-332-1495
You could do a lot worse than hiring the guy who restored windows at the Texas Capitol. Let’s rephrase: you cannot do better than Brent Hull, who has built a national following while rebuilding and restoring wooden windows for almost 30 years.
A Really Big Mess
First Onsite, 14403 W. Beltwood Pkwy., Farmers Branch | 972-417-1111
When nine tornadoes ripped through the heart of North Dallas in late 2019, First Onsite (formerly Interstate Restoration) crews deployed to more than a dozen businesses and schools to assess and begin remediating the damage. That’s the kind of cleanup work the Fort Worth-based company, which expanded into Dallas in 2016, specializes in: big messes like crime scenes, industrial accidents, floods, and environmental disasters. They send crews into vulnerable areas before hurricanes and help businesses navigate complex loss recovery processes. If it’s the kind of disaster you can’t plan for, they’ve got a plan.
A Cluttered Closet
Sorted Out, 2300 McDermott Rd., Ste. 234, Plano | 214-383-9985
When Tonia Tomlin founded Sorted Out, in 2004, she was one of five professional organizers in the city. Seventeen years later, she has a crew of 11 and is hiring even more. Through virtual consultations or hygienic hands-on visits, they’ll help declutter your home or office and simplify your life. Moving or remodeling? They can help with that, too. And if you think you’re one of the chronically disorganized, beyond salvation, think again. Tomlin and her team have developed a specialized process to bring order to those with ADHD and ADD, using color coding and labeling systems to help focus the effort.
Avoid These Closet Pitfalls:
- Don’t shop for supplies before you assess the problem. “Many people start by going to Target or The Container Store or Bed Bath & Beyond. They buy a bunch of stuff and don’t end up using it, because they didn’t know what they needed before they started purging.”
- Don’t empty everything onto the bed. “People are inspired to take everything out of the closet, and they say, ‘I’m going to get organized.’ But they don’t have rolling racks or a process or a system. They end up going to bed with a big mess.”
- Don’t box yourself in. “People tend to over-organize the closet, and then they are not able to maintain it. They need to keep the plan simple and flexible.”
- Don’t keep what you don’t wear. “When you are in doubt, it is time to take a picture and get rid of it.”
A Cattywampus Pool
Riverbend Sandler Pools, 4016 W. Plano Pkwy., Plano | 972-596-7393
It’s leaking. It’s algae-infested. It’s unsightly. Whatever the problem with your cement pond, they can fix it (or even install a new one, if that’s your most wonderful getaway pandemic wish).
Rotted Siding
Davis-Hawn Lumber and Architectural Millworks, 1941 S. Beckley Ave. | 214-946-8123
If your historic Craftsman needs some TLC, you’ll find what you need, from shiplap to lap-and-gap, #105 drop to the elusive #117 double-teardrop siding.
A Fallen Chandelier
FPM Chandelier Restoration, 1523 Dragon St. | 972-523-3000
Your vintage Italian crystal chandelier seems to be missing a few pendants, and the bronze doré finish is scuffed. Send it here, and it’s La Dolce Vita again.
An Uneven Sidewalk
Strive Concrete Solutions, 5075 Elm Bottom Cir., Aubrey | 214-288-2594
Before you get out the jackhammer, it’s worth checking to see if you simply need a patented polyurethane foam injection to lift and level all things whomperjawed.
Dull Knives
Veiga Knife Sales & Sharpening, 2929 Gaston Ave. | 214-821-3240
Located in an easy-to-miss single-story building tucked behind Baylor University Medical Center, Veiga Knife Sales & Sharpening has been caring for the tools of the city’s top chefs and butchers since it opened, in the 1950s. Theresa Veiga runs the shop, where you can find yourself in a 20-minute conversation about the fine distinction between Japanese and German steelwork and craftsmanship. Your best blades will be brought back to life the old-fashioned way: by hand on whetstone.
A Stale Fresco
Louis Gloria Painting, 4819 Cash Rd. | 214-357-8400
For European-style gilding, glazing, painting, faux finishing, marbleizing, and Venetian plasters, turn to Louis Gloria. The first-generation American learned at the knee of his Italian father, who painted frescoes in Italy.
A Leaky Chimney
American Chimney Services | 972-303-1341
Russell Weiss started his company in 1979. He and his team can address all manner of chimney problems, including leaks that roofers can’t find. It’s a five-step, two-trip process. The joke around his office: roofers 0, Russell 300.
A Messy Garage
Green Army, 3151 Halifax St., Ste. 180 | 888-537-4555
Say goodbye to the crap you don’t really need. Have the rest organized and all stored in plastic bins. These folks offer some sanity.
Cracked Plaster
Casci Plaster, 2615 S. Good-Latimer Expwy. | 214-421-3390
Giovanni Primo emigrated from Italy and started this business in 1930. Now Mark Marynick and Porter Fuqua (son of noted architect Wilson) carry the mantle of one of the few plaster companies in the country. Call them for capitals, coffered ceilings, and crown moldings.
Chipped Paint
Barry A. Martin Paint Contractors, 2607 Bomar Ave. | 214-350-0723
For high-end work—whether pickling, glazing, fuming, antiquing, or gilding—you need a real pro. If your high-gloss ceilings need a bit more gloss, look no further.
Fallen Trees
JD’s Tree Service, 1018 Kessler Pkwy. | 214-946-7138
Dallas weather means at least one trunk-rattling windstorm a year. So why not call a tree service that will mill that newfound wood for you and turn it into a George Nakashima-inspired dining table or countertop or mantel? Maybe a bed or a cutting board or a fence. “The soul of the tree lives on,” as JD’s website says. (Unless you just want a stack of firewood. They can do that, too.)
An Unclean Washing Machine
Appliance Repair Specialist | 214-321-4228
Tony Casazza is a congenial New York transplant who will oftentimes show up the same day you call him and, while wearing his Bluetooth earpiece, will tell you a story about his mom while he gets your washer—or dryer or stove or refrigerator—back in working action.
Torn Upholstery
Cuellar Upholstery, 4763 Memphis St. | 214-948-3230
In lieu of a business card, David Cuellar has the vibrant orange and rustic tan banquettes that curve inside and out at Mi Cocina’s Monkey Bar. So now those frosty margs count as research.
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[/img-credit]A Shattered Vase
Fegan Fine Art Restoration, 1533 Prudential Dr. | 214-631-2920
You forgot to put the Marshmallow Shooter out of reach, and now your precious porcelain vase lies in sticky ruin. Trust Fegan Fine Art’s team of restorers (in business since 1975) to put the pieces back together again.
A Cracked Mirror
Oak Cliff Mirror & Glass Co., 2202 N. Beckley Ave. | 214-747-4875
You’ve probably noticed their sign (which has been granted landmark status) while driving west along I-30. From framed mirrors to mirrored walls, glass tabletops to shower doors, Oak Cliff Mirror & Glass Co. can replace what’s shattered.
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[/img-credit]A Persian Rug
Oriental Rug Cleaning Co., 3907 Ross Ave. | 214-821-9135
H.M. Amirkhan Sr., an Armenian born in Turkey, immigrated to the United States and opened his Dallas rug cleaning and repair shop in 1911. Since then, three generations of Amirkhans have cared for Dallas’ finest oriental and specialty rugs, delicate textiles, and tapestries.
A Damaged Painting
Helen A. Houp Fine Art Conservation, 2626 Lombardy Ln., Ste. 106 | 214-366-4700
Helen Houp began her career in the conservation department of the Kimbell Art Museum, working with one of Texas’ finest collections of old masters paintings. In 2001, she set up her North Dallas studio and began working directly with collectors, corporate collections, universities, museums like the Dallas Museum of Art, and historical bodies like the Texas State Preservation Board. Clients bring their art to Houp because she has experience with a wide range of artistic movements and eras—from “Rembrandt to Rauschenberg,” as she says—and brings to each project an artist’s eye and sensitivity.
A Severed Sculpture
Van Enter Studio, 1415 Fairview Ave. | 214-515-9948
Michael van Enter is the go-to guy for art restoration for Dallas museums, collectors, and historic preservationists. The South African moved to Dallas in 1999 and saved the deco mosaics housed in The Joule hotel, artist Octavio Medellin’s glass windows now on display in Moody Performance Hall, and José de Rivera’s steel sculpture A Wishing Star, at the Statler. He has also worked on the MoMA and Rachofsky collections. “Name any 20th-century artist of note, and I’ve fixed, cleaned, repaired, painted, welded, or bolted it back together,” he told D Magazine in 2016.
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[/img-credit]Tarnished Silver
Noles-Davis Antique Restoration, 2707 Manor Way | 214-358-1731
You’ve stared at your grandmother’s silver-plated tea service for a year now, but it has seen more tarnish than use. This four-generation business will replate the teapot and shine up that sugar shell spoon.
Twisted Wicker Chairs
Dallas Cane Rush & Wicker, 135 Pittsburg St., Studio A-4 | 214-518-7079
Bill Torell has been mending and replacing all manner of woven seating (wicker, yes, but also cane, rush, wood splint, Danish cord, and Shaker tape) for almost four decades. And he provides free estimates.
Blemished Wood Furniture
Antique Restoration Masters, 10203 Plano Rd., Ste. 114 | 469-432-341
Martin Norkowski will happily take time out from working on private collections to restore your water-stained Second Empire Napoleon III-style side tables to their former glory. But next time, use a coaster.
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[/img-credit]A Crotchety Grandfather Clock
Homestead Clocks, 9965 Royal Ln., Ste. 44 | 214-553-5677
Stephen Newsom carries on the tradition started by his father, Rex Newsom, in 1950. Services began with grandfather, mantel, and wall clocks and now include restoring heirlooms and preventive maintenance on new models.
A Shorted Vintage Appliance
Antique Appliance Restoration | 972-689-7907
Couldn’t resist that vintage Wedgewood range or Big Chill refrigerator you found at Round Top? Antique Appliance Restoration will re-chrome, re-wire, re-insulate, re-glaze, and fully restore it.
A Stained Sofa
Fiber-Seal, 9879 Chartwell Dr. | 972-889-8807
Now that you’ve sloshed red wine on both sides of the cushion, stop pretending you don’t have a problem. In addition to cleaning and protecting your sofa from future spills, Fiber-Seal can treat your rugs, wallcoverings, draperies, and leather furnishings, too.
Wasteful Habits
Turn Compost
Reducing your environmental impact doesn’t mean you have to live off the grid in a yurt, however enticing that may sound. Take it slow and start in the kitchen. At least 30 percent of what goes into the city of Dallas landfill is food scraps and yard waste, but Turn Compost makes it easy to divert that compostable material from the dump. For most area ZIP codes, all you have to do is fill up the provided 5-gallon bucket, leave it on your front porch, and they’ll pick up and deliver the goods to local farmers and gardens. Monthly subscriptions start at $35.
A Sleepless Baby
Rest to Your Nest | 972-638-9974
Mary Cantwell’s struggles with her own newborn led her to become a certified sleep expert. She now offers consultation services for parents who are at their wits’ end. Or not. Sleep experts are the new lactation specialists, and many expectant mothers have realized that it is worth getting some advance training while they are relatively well rested. A virtual consult allows Cantwell to ascertain the issues (and screen for potential medical complications, such as a child’s breathing issues or restless leg syndrome) and come up with a custom plan, which includes routine follow-ups. “Families are working from home,” Cantwell says, “so now more than ever they need their children to sleep.”
A Bad Dog
K9 League Dog Training, 1237 Robin Dr., Keller | 682-651-7722
K9 League can help curb crimes and misdemeanors like jumping, lunging, chewing, play-biting, and counter-surfing. With one-on-one sessions to tackle aggression, anxiety, and walk-behavior overhauls, they’ll train you to help Trevor make better decisions.
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[/img-credit]A Torn Family Bible
The Book Doctor, 1320 W. Davis St. | 214-946-1760
Entrust those precious tomes, first editions, and tattered family albums with marbled endpapers to these experts, angels of restoration for more than 20 years. They’ll also turn your dissertation into a custom-bound book.
Misaligned Chakras
Enlumnia Energy Spa, 10300 N. Central Expwy., Ste. 281 | 214-810-4816
At Enlumnia Energy Spa, husband-and-wife team Kevin and Lisa Foresman—she’s hands-on; he does more hands-off work—will realign your energy and get you back on the right frequency. They offer vibrational sound therapy, reiki, massage, extensive chakra balancing, and hypnotism (go for past life regressions and spirit contact).
A Contentious Relationship
Millennial Life Counseling | 214-504-1512
The battle of who is loading the dishwasher correctly may very well plague every marriage until the end of time. For other quarrels, like how to argue (nicely!), build intimacy, or untangle an accumulation of niggling hang-ups, look to licensed marriage and family therapist Liz Higgins. She founded her Dallas practice to foster partnerships within the context of the modern age with its modern woes, like the increasingly elusive work-life-love balance.
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[/img-credit]Faded Photos
Lone Star Darkroom, 2731 Irving Blvd. | 972-591-1758
Memories, like photographs, fade, but Kristin Wright endeavors to restore both, artfully repairing and color correcting old photos in her Design District studio. She recently enlivened an image for a 50th wedding anniversary. When the couple saw it, Wright says, “they were legitimately crying and said, ‘We haven’t seen this picture in 40 years. We didn’t remember we looked like that.’ ”
Stacks of VHS
Action Video Service, 819 W. Arapaho Rd., Ste. 23, Richardson | 972-437-2021
They say “rescue your memories.” We say “unclutter that closet.” Bring those old tape formats to people who can tell you, in person, what is salvageable. They can give you digital versions that will put your mind and, yes, memories at ease.
A Smashed Phone
Phone-Fix.com, 9034 Garland Rd. | 972-587-7433
Brandon Noll runs a mighty little shop that will make your phone look new again, sometimes so quickly that you don’t have enough time to shop next door at Good Records.
A Discordant Piano
Bradfield Piano Restoration, 10755 Sanden Dr., Ste. 300 | 214-883-1885
Holt Deniger of Bradfield Piano has helped clients from the Winspear Opera House to Norah Jones, Bass Hall to the Van Cliburn Competition.
A Broken Violin
Fiddle and Bow Music Company, 7989 Belt Line Rd. | 972-458-2980
[img-credit align=”alignright” id=” 842585″ width=”330″]
[/img-credit]Stepping into Fiddle and Bow Music Company feels like walking into a medieval store in Salzburg. Violins, cellos, and guitars are strewn everywhere, sometimes with their guts hanging out. At the center of this musical mess is Rob Case, a former Southwest Airlines pilot who now focuses full-time on the instrument repair shop he opened with his brother Lewis in 1998. Rob likens the shop to a stage set, with an endlessly rotating cast of characters filing through, like the cellist whose instrument was damaged on a plane en route to a performance at the Meyerson. Or the tiny old man who came in clutching a family heirloom that turned out to be a violin crafted by Nicolò Amati, Stradivari’s teacher. “They tell a story, and their instrument tells a story,” Rob says. “And they are not always the same story.”
A Gutless Guitar
Dallas Guitar Repair, 5635 SMU Blvd., Ste. 207 | 214-724-3789
Whether you want to replace your pickups or re-fret a worn-out Martin, you can’t go wrong with Dan McCarthy, the guy to whom Buddy Guy, Motorhead, Toadies, Al Di Meola, Jack Ingram, and St. Vincent have trusted their axes.
A Fuzzy Amp
Slemmons Music Services, 3003 Commerce St. | 214-747-1090
So you pulled your uncle’s 1963 Fender Deluxe Reverb out of the attic during quarantine, plugged it in, turned it up to 11, hit the on switch, and then—oops—you blew all the tubes. You can’t bring an antique like this to any Joe Blow tech at your neighborhood music store chain. You need an expert with the soldering iron who knows how to finesse the finicky, half-century-old electronics that make this kind of gear sing. Since 1989, Terence Slemmons has serviced gear for North Texas’ top musicians, including Ken Bethea of the Old 97’s and songwriter and producer Salim Nourallah.
Clothing Stains
Dee & Hattie Specialty Cleaners, 6147 Sherry Ln. | 214-361-0557
Luxury designers send their clients here for special treatment. They test on swatches, work carefully around beadwork, and once, after a garden wedding, picked gnats out of a tulle skirt with tweezers.
A Tortured Wedding Ring
Sergio’s Jewelry, 9440 Garland Rd., Ste. 170 | 214-320-2007
This Casa Linda treasure is no longer a mom-and-pop shop. Sergio passed away in 2019, but wife Jeannie and son Kahl carry on his legacy. Specializing in vintage and delicate jewelry repairs, they are equipped with CAD and 3D printing capabilities.
Busted Bluejeans
Dallas Denim Repair, 420 W. Davis St.
Designer Javier Tellez-Garfias employs turn-of-the-century machinery to mend and extend the life of your trusty pair of jeans. He can even stitch up denim “crotch blowout” (he says that’s a technical term).
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[/img-credit]Sketchy Sneakers
Exclusive Sneaks Shop, 417 N. Bryan-Beltline Rd., Ste. D, Mesquite | 214-914-6704
Vintage is the hot sneakerhead trend right now, with some old Jordans and Dunks going for several thousand dollars. Or this place can bring your treasured beaters back to life, with a few packages to choose from, all under $40.
Broken Glasses
All Pro Eyeglass Repair, 2033 N. Town East Blvd., Mesquite | 972-682-9500
This little hut in a strip-mall parking lot is heaven sent if you have a kid who regularly snaps his specs. They can reassemble almost all frames—even the ones other places say are beyond repair—usually same day, for around $50. (There is also a location in Richardson.)
Unheeled Louboutins
Deno’s of Highland Park, 62 Highland Park Village | 214-521-1070
Did your adorable new rescue dog rend your red soles? Harry Yianitsas, the son-in-law of founder Deno Velis, now runs the family biz, which can salvage your favorite pair (and your Birkin bag, too).
