Kalyn, Wayne (Stephen) 1951–

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Kalyn, Wayne (Stephen) 1951–

PERSONAL: Born August 17, 1951 in Jersey City, NJ; son of Stephen and Doris (Brueck) Kalyn; married; wife's name Theresa; children: Scott, Holly. Education: Syracuse University, B.A., B.S., 1973.

ADDRESSES: Home—5 Hamilton Ave., Cranford, NJ 07016-2447. Office—East-West Network, 34 E. 51st St., New York, NY 10022-6801. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Creative Homeowner, 24 Park Way, Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458; fax: 201-934-8971.

CAREER: Writer, editor, and home-improvement specialist. Family Health magazine, New York, NY, editor, 1976–76; World Tennis, New York, NY, execu-tive editor, 1976–87; Vis a Vis, senior editor, 1987; Men's Journal, senior editor; Reader's Digest, editorial director of health books.

MEMBER: American Society of Magazine Editors.

WRITINGS:

Design Ideas for Basements, photography by Phillip H. Ennis, Creative Homeowner (Upper Saddle River, NJ), 2004.

1001 Ideas for Trimwork, Creative Homeowner (Upper Saddle River, NJ), 2005.

Contributor to periodicals, including Esquire, People, Good Housekeeping, Cooking Light, and Reader's Digest.

SIDELIGHTS: Wayne Kalyn is a freelance writer, editor, and home-improvement expert who has served on the editorial staff of several major U.S. magazines. With Design Ideas for Basements he offers a compendium of practical home improvement advice for a traditionally troublesome and underutilized area of the typical American house.

Basements, Kalyn notes, present a number of significant design and construction problems. Basements are usually open spaces with few walls or area separators. Windows are generally small, if they exist at all. Basements can often have problems with moisture and seepage, which can lead to mold; in severe cases, moisture can gather into standing water and general dampness that destroys carpets, furniture, paper, electronics, and other costly items. Exposed pipes and conduits, heaters and furnaces, appliances, and other necessary but unattractive infrastructure can challenge a basement refurbishing project. Despite these obstacles, redoing a basement can cost about half the price of adding another room above ground, which makes reworking below-ground spaces a more practical option for many homeowners.

Kalyn addresses these problems and provides "a wealth of ideas for converting basements" into useful, well-designed living spaces, noted a reviewer in Bookwatch. He discusses how to divide a basement into a wide range of practical rooms, including a home office, family room, workshop, laundry room, media room, and extra bedroom. He covers up-to-date product and design trends as well as materials and techniques for waterproofing, soundproofing, and ventilation. A detailed resource guide directs readers to relevant products, fixtures, lighting, doors, finishing materials, and furnishings. More than 200 photographs illustrate Kalyn's advice and techniques, and a detailed index and glossary help readers keep up to date on terms and concepts. Library Journal reviewer Gayle Williamson remarked that Kalyn provides the "knowledge and design sense" that will allow readers to convert their basement into "a magnificent, stylish area."