Step into this townhouse and the cool serenity washes over you. It’s exactly the feeling the homeowner wanted as she begins her knew life in a home half the size of her 4,200 square-foot home in the east San Jose hills.
Instead of the brightly-colored French country look that once suited her and her old house, the homeowner wanted a modern hotel look and a calming spa feel in her new three-story townhouse.
“I wanted a different look and part of that was that this is a new beginning,” she said, “and I wanted it to be tranquil.”
So she turned to interior designer Kathi Fanelli Mann to help her start a new chapter with a new pallette.
Where the old house had “lots of prints and patterns,” Kathi suggested “very tone on tone” with ivories and caramels, aquas and limestone greys.
The project was also budget conscious, so instead of starting over, they used mostly what the homeowner already had — and that was all high-quality custom furniture.
“You want to incorporate things that have meaning — things purchased 15 years ago that were custom and that are beautiful,” Kathi said. “You make it work with the new look.”
And that meant saving half the furniture from the old house and restyling and reupholstering with a “modern sensibility and a clean-lined look,” Kathi said.
In the case of the living room couch, that meant off with the fringe and the broad, rolled arms, and in with simple welding on the cushions and a more-tapered silhouette. What had been blue club chairs became creamy.
A few new things were added, including drapes from Restoration Hardware and a sleek bar cart from Willow Glen Home and Garden.
A retreat room was what the homeowner was looking for in her master bedroom. The walls are soothing aqua and the bedding is crisp white. At the foot of the bed is a recovered loveseat that has the look and feel of a hotel’s plush white bathrobe.
“I love it,” the homeowner said. “My life is simpler. Everything happens for a reason and I’m thoroughly enjoying this.”
Kathi can be reached at kathi@fanelli-mann.com.
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