Meet the Packers

Take one look at Nigel Packer chasing his boys through their Atlanta kitchen and it’s hard to believe that less than six years ago, he was a bachelor and this cheery 1920s bungalow was a chopped-up duplex inhabited by him, his roommates/tenants, and a whole rec center’s worth of arcade games.

Thanks to Mark, a dining room now resides where the pool table once was, and adjacent is a new eat-in kitchen. The 280-square-foot existing space was hardly gigantic, but his strategic layout made it feel just right. “Knocking down the wall between the kitchen and dining room and raising the door frame between the kitchen and breakfast nook gave the space a lofty feeling that isn’t typical of this house’s age and style,” he says.