Wearing a child-sized apron and a chef’s hat, Lana Shapiro stirred a tiny spatula around an empty miniature pot.
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Lana who is “almost 3” prepared her pretend meal while sitting on the soft grass in her backyard in Spring Garden. Her dog, Blue, was stretched out nearby.
But, much like Lana’s cooking, the grass was not real. Her parents Maddy and Andrew Shapiro had installed a kid- and pet-friendly stretch of artificial lawn across their rowhouse backyard.
The adjacent cement patio is furnished with a round white table — for real dining — and two black metal chairs, as well as a moss green couch, a beige coffee table, and two green and white patterned ottomans.
The outdoor space is festooned with white containers filled with flowers and greenery, including coral-colored Cannas, pink carnations, pale purple Hydrangeas, yellow creeping groundsel, mint, basil, rosemary, and oregano.
When the Shapiros purchased their three-story rowhouse in 2022, brick steps led to a brick backyard. It was all sharp angles and moldy surfaces that were hard to clean, Andrew said. He and Maddy replaced the brick with the cement patio and nontoxic, lead-free synthetic grass from SGW-Fresno. Andrew washes the grass with vinegar and soap and water.
He made repairs to the original fence, power-washed it and added a baseboard around the grassy area.
Recently he and Maddy’s stepfather, Jimmy Lee, power-washed flaking white paint off the cement wall dividing the Shapiros’ house from their neighbor’s. “We did it twice,” Andrew said, but white swirls remained on the beige wall.
He and Maddy decided they liked the “patina,” and the wall has become the focal point of the small yard. A new awning and a neighbor’s tall evergreen provide shade.
A rose bush from the original backyard was replanted in the narrow flower bed across the front of the house along with lilac, crepe myrtle, hosta, and rhododendron.
Inside the home, the previous owner had taken down walls on the first floor for an open floor plan with a white-cabineted kitchen, an expansive living area, and an exposed-brick party wall.
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The second floor has a bathroom, a guest room, Lana’s moss green bedroom, and an office for Andrew, who works in retail sales for Masienda, a specialty food company.
In addition to replacing the brick backyard, the Shapiros added a vestibule and reconfigured the third floor as a primary bedroom, dressing room, and bathroom with a soaking tub and walk-in shower. They painted the vanity in the powder room gray and papered walls with a leafy gray and black pattern.
The vestibule, which keeps out cold drafts, and the decorative wood carvings on the staircase would have been features in the house when it was built in 1859.
Maddy, a nurse-practitioner, has decorated with items from several sources. A coffee table and couch came from Pottery Barn and an end table belonged to her parents. An Oriental rug and runner were purchased on Craigslist and a mirror from Anthropologie. Two vintage tan leather armchairs came from upstate New York.
Blue’s black-and-white striped bed is positioned in front of the gas-lit fireplace. Nearby is a small green chair with “Lana” embroidered in white.
The sleek dining table, crafted by woodworker George Nakashima, belonged to Andrew’s grandmother, Ellen Shapiro. Dining chairs and a buffet came from West Elm.
A Nakashima side chair in the primary bedroom also belonged to Ellen. The Shapiros hired Osborne Construction in Northwest Philadelphia to renovate the third floor and Jim DeMarco of Tri-State Property in South Philadelphia to install the grass and cement backyard.
Maddy and Andrew, who married in 2022, met as students at Florida State University. Maddy grew up in Florida and Andrew grew up in Chester County. They were living in New York City when COVID-19 struck and decided to move to Philadelphia to be closer to family.
After Lana finished her faux meal preparations she played peek-a-boo with Maddy under the bed covers in the guest room. She then ran to her bedroom to ride on the wooden rocking horse with a yarn mane and tail, which belonged to her mother as a child.
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