The Thompson House — one room, three futures in wood

The Thompson House  ·  915 N. Dearborn  ·  Gold Coast, Chicago

Visions in Wood

Three futures for a Chicago landmark. One decision in light.

Begin the Study

Since 1888, the Thompson House has stood as one of the Gold Coast’s original masterworks. What follows is a private study — three fully considered ways of bringing its celebrated woodwork into the light, each rendered upon the rooms as they stand today, each addressed to the buyer most likely to call it home.

I

Styles

Three finishes. The same rooms. Move between them — and touch any image to draw the past aside.

No. 1

Dearborn Flax

The Grand Transformation

The most striking of the three transformations. The dark red mahogany is carefully stripped, bleached, and finished in a pale, sand-colored tone, with a soft white treatment worked into the grain so that every carving and panel detail remains in full view. This is true refinished wood — never paint. The rooms move from dark and formal to bright, calm, and open, a look found in the finest European homes and five-star resorts. The house photographs as if newly built, which is precisely what a listing needs after a long stay on the market.

No. 2

Gold Coast Greige

The Refined Middle Path

The refined middle path, and the strongest choice overall. The wood is stripped, gently bleached, and finished in a soft driftwood tone — a warm greige, lighter than before yet never stark. The house keeps its presence and its sense of importance while the heavy red disappears, and the result lands exactly where today’s market is moving: warm, natural, matte, and serene. If only one presentation is produced, this is the one.

No. 3

1888 Honey

The Careful Reveal

The most respectful of the three, and the most efficient. No bleach is used. The dark red-brown finish applied during the 2009 renovation is simply removed, and the bare wood is sealed in a clear matte coat. What emerges is the mahogany’s natural honey-gold color: noticeably lighter, far less red, and warm rather than heavy. The story tells itself — the wood was not changed, it was revealed, returning the house closer to how it appeared in 1888. It is also the only option swift and modest enough in cost to be completed before a closing.

The Entrance Hall

The Entrance Hall — Dearborn Flax
Dearborn Flax
The Entrance Hall — Gold Coast Greige
Gold Coast Greige
The Entrance Hall — 1888 Honey
1888 Honey

The Chef’s Kitchen

The Chef's Kitchen — Dearborn Flax
Dearborn Flax
The Chef's Kitchen — Gold Coast Greige
Gold Coast Greige
The Chef's Kitchen — 1888 Honey
1888 Honey

The Grand Salon

The Grand Salon — Dearborn Flax
Dearborn Flax
The Grand Salon — Gold Coast Greige
Gold Coast Greige
The Grand Salon — 1888 Honey
1888 Honey

The Bar & Wine Room

The Bar and Wine Room — Dearborn Flax
Dearborn Flax
The Bar and Wine Room — Gold Coast Greige
Gold Coast Greige
The Bar and Wine Room — 1888 Honey
1888 Honey

The Library

The Library — Dearborn Flax
Dearborn Flax
The Library — Gold Coast Greige
Gold Coast Greige
The Library — 1888 Honey
1888 Honey

II

Ideal Buyers

Each future speaks to a different buyer. Here is who answers.

The Global Aesthete

For Dearborn Flax

The Global Aesthete

An international or coastal buyer, typically in their 40s to 60s, with homes in cities such as London, Paris, or Miami, and a taste shaped by the best of Europe. Measured against those markets, Chicago is remarkably well priced — and they know it. This buyer would not consider the house as it stands today, but the Flax presentation speaks directly to them. They are the rarest of the three buyers, yet the most likely to pay full asking price, because they measure value against the world’s great cities rather than against the neighborhood.

The Rainmaker in Residence

For Gold Coast Greige

The Rainmaker in Residence

The most active buyer in today’s market: an accomplished Chicago couple in their 40s or 50s — leaders in finance, law, or business — back downtown four to five days a week and placing real value on a short commute. They purchase in cash or close to it, and they want exactly this location and floor plan. Their designer and their spouse share in the decision. They admire the staircase; the dark wood is what holds them back — and the Greige presentation removes that hesitation. This is our primary target, and the buyer most likely to bring an offer within sixty to ninety days.

The Heritage Steward

For 1888 Honey

The Heritage Steward

An established couple, usually 55 to 75 — longtime Midwestern wealth, civic leaders, museum and foundation patrons, often moving into the city from a North Shore estate. They are the only buyer who values the house more because it is an 1888 landmark, and they have no interest in anything that feels hastily done. The idea of removing the 2009 finish to reveal the true wood is exactly the kind of care they respect. They decide slowly and are rare, but they hold firm on value, negotiate graciously, and close quietly. Best cultivated as the patient third channel while Buyers 1 and 2 lead the campaign.

III

Renovations

The craft behind each future — its process, its cost, and its measure of care.

Dearborn Flax renovation process

Dearborn Flax

The Grand Transformation

This is the most involved of the three. Every wood surface is first stripped of its current lacquer by hand — carvings are cleaned with gel strippers and fine picks, never power tools. The bare wood is then treated with a two-part bleach that lifts the dark color out of the mahogany itself, followed by a tinted sealer that removes the pink cast mahogany leaves behind after bleaching. A soft white wax is then worked into the open grain and carved details, and the whole surface is sealed in a flat, no-shine protective coat.

  • Estimated Cost$1.2M – $1.5M
  • Timeline9 – 12 months
  • Crew6 – 10 master finishers
  • DifficultyThe highest — every step depends on the one before

For: the most dramatic transformation, the strongest photography, and the look most prized by international buyers. Against: the longest, costliest, and least reversible — once mahogany is bleached, there is no going back to dark without heavy re-staining.

Gold Coast Greige renovation process

Gold Coast Greige

The Refined Middle Path

The same careful hand-stripping comes first, but the bleach step is gentler — a single controlled pass that lifts the wood partway rather than all the way. The color is then set with a warm grey-taupe tinted finish, a light touch of off-white wax is brushed into the grain, and everything is sealed in an ultra-flat protective coat. Because the tinted finish does most of the color work rather than the bleach, this process is more forgiving: small variations between rooms can be corrected in the toning step.

  • Estimated Cost$800K – $1.1M
  • Timeline6 – 9 months
  • DifficultyModerate — with the most room to adjust
  • ConsistencyThe easiest color to hold across 13,000 sq ft

For: the best balance of impact, cost, and risk; squarely where buyer taste is today. Against: less dramatic than Flax, and the toned finish must be maintained by a professional if ever damaged.

1888 Honey restoration process

1888 Honey

The Careful Reveal

The simplest and most respectful process — and the only one with no bleach at all. The dark red-brown finish applied in the 2009 renovation is stripped away by hand, the bare wood is brightened with a mild wood-cleaning wash (oxalic acid, the traditional restorer’s choice), and the mahogany’s own natural honey-gold color is sealed under a crystal-clear matte coat that will not yellow with age. Nothing is added to the wood; something is removed from it.

  • Estimated Cost$350K – $500K
  • Timeline3 – 5 months
  • DifficultyThe lowest — straightforward for any qualified firm
  • NoteThe only option completable between contract and closing

For: fastest, least expensive, essentially risk-free, fully in the spirit of the landmark. Against: the most subtle change — it will not win over the buyer who wants pale and modern.