Team
Steve Wauson, Builder
Throughout Steve Wauson's 30 year career as a builder of high-end custom homes he has worked with many talented architects, designers and craftspeople on both residential and commercial projects. His hands-on-experience includes lots of cabinet making, stair and balustrade building, furniture making, trim carpentry, framing, installing hardwood floors, countertops, masonry, drywall, formwork, flatwork, irrigation, pond building, landscaping and gardening. He strives to help others achieve their vision while contributing to positive change in the homebuilding industry.
His work has taken him from the hills of Central Texas to the mountainous landscape of Seattle. During that time he has acquired a wealth of experience and faced a multitude of building challenges including limited access to materials, rocky and unstable soils, extreme heat, freezing cold, humidity and extreme rain, hurricane and flood risk, forest fires, high winds and tornado risk, landslides, and earthquakes. Washington was about basements and staying warm and dry; Texas is about keeping cool and dry. Despite their differences, both places were at the forefront of the green building wave.
Steve loves to build things. The more interesting and challenging; the better. Growing up in Houston, he worked in his father’s architectural office where he observed how his elder designed practical, easy to build, moderately priced homes. In 1975, fresh out of the University of Texas at Austin, he founded Dynamic Reprographics. Four years later it was the largest volume blueprint shop in Central Texas. Today, owned by Lisa Tipps and Dick DuBois, it still provides services to Austin’s best Architects and Engineers.
Steve has a great appreciation for the skills, knowledge, good humor and determination of the many craftsmen and tradesmen that he has had the pleasure and the honor to work with. He believes that a day spent on a busy site is always a good day. Go to work, change the world.
Mold and Asbestos
Steve gained incredible experience in dealing with mold and air quality issues while serving on two mold committees for Austin ISD. In 1999 he was an appointed member of the Health and Safety Bond Committee (HSBC) which successfully worked with district staff to establish a $50 bond package to correct mold and air quality problems in AISD schools. Later he served on the Citizens Oversight Committee, which monitored the administration of the bond package. All work was completed on time and on budget.
Nick Wauson, Carpenter and Cabinetmaker
Nick Wauson is Steve's son. Working alongside his father, Nick developed a love for woodworking at an early age. As lead carpenter, he supervises day-to-day operations of new construction and remodels. Nick does framing, timber framing, brackets, exterior and interior trim, windows, doors and siding installation. He is a first rate carpenter and cabinetmaker.
His custom furniture designs can be seen in Indigo Street home in Houston where he handcrafted beautiful mahogany bathroom vanities. He built all of the cabinetry as well as the the glass panel staircase that was built in Austin and transported and assembled in Houston. Nick was instrumental in the renovation of Cooper Lane Craftsman Bungalow, a 1920's structure that had to be lifted four feet above ground in order to place a new foundation. Nick also worked on the Buckeye house, the Wimberley wedding pavilion, the West Terrace project and the Stoneridge home.
Nick lives in Dripping Springs with his wife and two sons.
Trade Courses and Certifications:
Green Builder Certified, Humboldt Association
OSHA Required Certification for Hazardous Materials, houses built prior 1980 - Federal Law.
OSHA Safety Courses
Linda Wauson, Financier and Project Administrator
Linda Wauson is Steve's sister. She is the power behind the throne providing financing, keeping tight bookkeeping procedures and imparting common sense throughout each project.
Linda worked as an executive for a major international actuarial firm in Houston. As a UT alumna she loves Austin and comes here as often as possible. Financing the construction of a new Craftsman Homes of Austin's home, or costing a remodel job is at the heart of the business; it is there where Steve and Linda Wauson excel as a team. The success of every project relies on Linda's advice, continued support, and guidance.
Steve Gedeon, Carpenter and Accountant
Steve Gedeon graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Finance from the Red McCombs school of business. He has been a member of the Craftsman Homes of Austin team for over five years.
Steve has a wife and daughter.
Julia Dworschack, Designer
Julia Dworschack, has been featured on HGTV's show "Modern Masters." Her trademark artistry is evident in many projects from the large scale selection of color combinations, materials, finishes, and fixtures, to intricate details such as cabinet pulls and electrical cover plate finishings.
A skilled and experienced craftsperson and artist. She has extensively studied a multitude of decorative finishes and has applied them to walls and surfaces in some of Austin's finest homes. Her expertise includes concrete staining, marbling, wood graining, copper patinas, gold and silver gilding, Venetian plasters, classical ornamentation and trompe l'oeil. Her skills in furniture, frame and sculpture repair and restoration are highly sought after. Her past projects include the Buckeye home where she personally executed the gunite faux work in the grotto and more recently the Indigo Street home.
Julia was the colorist for the historic St. Mary's Cathedral restoration project in downtown Austin which received recognition from the Austin Heritage Society. She hand marbled the columns, restored and painted the plaster stations of the cross and statuary and designed and hand stenciled the wall patterns. She was responsible for the wood graining of plaster mouldings, and the gilding of the ornamentation. She obtained her BFA in Art Education from Iowa State University, her MFA in Graphic Design from the University of Illinois. Additionally she did two years of post-post graduate work at the Kunstgewerbeschule art school, in Basel, Switzerland. Before moving to Austin, 21 years ago, Julia specialized in gilding and fine decorative finishes in New York City.
Abby Wetzel
Abby graduated from Texas State University with a Bachelor's degree in Resource and Environmental Studies and a minor in Horticulture. She worked for Green Guy Recycling in the household hazardous waste department where she gained knowledge about the safe disposal of hazardous materials. She has a passion for the natural world and she lends her environmental expertise to every project she works on.
Kristin Wauson, Creative Director
Kristin graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science in Advertising. Along with maintaining the website and social media presence for Craftsman Homes of Austin, she is a one stop shop for all of our branding, graphic design and photography needs.
Previously, Kristin worked for the Texas General Land Office for 10 years as a graphic designer. She is currently a freelance children's book illustrator. To see her work or read her illustration blog, visit madmomstudio.com. You can also follow her on Twitter or Instagram: @kristinwauson