When Ayesha Sikandar and her husband walked into
the 1960s ranch-style house in San Mateo, it had the signs of an angry
exit _ walls with holes that looked as though someone kicked them in.
Neighbors told them the owner had lost his job, his relationship, his
health and finally, in foreclosure, his home.  The house had become an
eyesore.
But this couple from Pakistan, who had studied and worked in the Bay
Area for a decade and saved for so long, finally found a house they
could afford.
“It’s not a good feeling to go into someone’s house who has gone
through that,” she said. “But the time and price were right for us and
we made it our own.”
The single-story, 1,350-square foot tract home needed a lot of work, but had a nice floorplan that opened to a south-facing backyard. They saw potential .
So they took it upon themselves to turn this house of sorrow back into a happy home.
First, the budding designer and her husband, Musa Sayyed, an artist who designs games for LucusArts in San Francisco, had to agree on a style.
“I’m very modern. My husband likes warm and traditional,” she said. “He was a tough client to please.”
And they needed to stay on budget, which meant many do-it-yourself projects that had them working side-by-side past midnight.
They tackled the big projects first — new handscraped hardwood flooring and double-paned windows. A straight replacement would have meant customizing windows to fit in the spaces. Instead, they made the openings a bit smaller to accommodate standard-size windows.
They also ripped out a kitchen wall and hanging cabinets that separated the kitchen from the big dining and living rooms, creating an open, entertaining space. From Ikea to Lowe’s and Home Depot, they found rolling coffee tables, modern pendant lights and peel-and-stick, rectangular metal plates to add a contemporary dimension to the kitchen backsplash — as well as the corners of her dining room table legs.
A huge brick fireplace separating the dining and living rooms was also given a new look, with a creamy stucco finish.
Sikandar, who has launched her own Maddimensions design firm, embraced a bold, modern palette of black and white, but also introduced warm gold and orange hues to satisfy her husband’s aesthetic. Travertine was used in the bathroom and bands of warm-hued glass mozaic tiles were used to add sparkle and depth to the kitchen and fireplace.
Sikandar’s favorite design element, and by far the cheapest, was the swirling stencil pattern she used on several walls throughout the house to unify the rooms and add a signature element.
They also re-landscaped the back yard to give themselves a bigger lawn and removed the corrogated green roof from the trellis to bring more light into the house.
“My husband and I had our moments,” she said. “But at night, when we sit by the fire, we think we did alright and we’re happy.”
The neighbors are happy, too. Often through the summer, they would stop by with gifts of fresh vegetables from their garden.,
“This was a milestone for us,” Sikandar said. “We’ve come a long way.”

Here’s the complete slideshow:

When De Mattei first bought the property, the house was even smaller — 1,300 square feet, and faced the busy University Avenue. To take full advantage of the corner lot, he lifted up the house, built a new foundation and turned it to face Town Terrace.
From the outside, you appreciate that this little house retains all its charm –including original arched windows at the front. But every inch, inside and out, is maximized. The front garden, designed by Tamura Designs of San Jose, with gravel pathways in a lovely geometric pattern with pea gravel and planting beds makes me want to do the same in my yard. I love the big urn as a centerpiece in the middle with herbs and vegetables growing in the beds –in the front yard no less.
A side yard leading to the sidewalk and busy street was also put to best use with a deck right off the dining room. A
One of the tricks to making a small space seem large, De Mattei said, is to keep spaces open. From the front entryhall, you can look right through the living room, dining and kitchen to see the lovely back courtyard. Wide wooden floors run the length of the house, fooling your eye to think the floorplan goes on and on.
Instead of dividing living spaces with walls, different ceiling treatments do the trick, from a flat 8-foot-ceiling in the living room, to a higher, beamed-ceiling in the dining room.
And you can always count on Sunset to have beautiful decor, from handmade tiles in the kitchen to my favorite thing: the gray trefoil tiles in the masterbath. (Those might be lovely in my pending bath renovation!) Room and Board supplied most of the furnishings, and Anteo Home in Los Gatos brought in the dining room chairs and special pieces.
If you want to see the house for yourself, it’s well worth it. Here’s the skinny:

Friday, Saturday and Sunday
July 23 – August 15, 2010 Time:10:00 am – 5:00 pm Tickets (purchase on-site):$15 adults
$12 seniors 65+ Fridays only
$5 children 12 and under Location:100 Towne Terrace
Los Gatos, California 95032

Here’s the complete slideshow:

I’d drop him off at the airport and race home to start my project. I knew what the project would be weeks ahead of the trip. Husband would ask “What are you planning this trip”? I’d always reply “Oh nothing much. Just taking care of the kids.”  But he knew better. He just didn’t know what project I was scheming in my head.  I have ripped out  carpets and  sanded the floors and don’t forget that fresh scent of varnish.  Years of wallpaper stripped and walls painted in the course of a week of focus groups. Over the years I’ve tried my hand at just about every home improvement. Some have been successful and others not so much, but there is nothing like diving in and getting dirty.  My husband’s business partner was dropping him off from a short trip and I had a dresser and a nightstand on the front porch drying after I had stripped and repainted, he asked my husband when I was going to fix the roof?  Yes, it became the office joke. But I didn’t care and now, the husband doesn’t travel as much–until next week! He’s going to be gone for 4 days. My mind is struggling to figure out the what to do first. The list is getting longer and longer. I need to prioritize!   I want to do as much prep before so the minute that door closes I can work work work!

Stay tuned–I will be posting my escapades here!  Maybe even a video–Do I dare incriminate myself???  Of course–why wouldn’t I???

*** UPDATE***Darn that husband read this post–Glad I didn’t give any details away!

After: Here's my new Asian bamboo motif end table: Can you spot the other changes I've made in the living room?

Before: This retro bar cart was deemed too lightweight for the space. What else is different in this room from the top photo?

It took three tries, but I finally found an end table that’s a keeper. I was drawn to it the minute I saw it at Move It Elsewhere in San Jose: gold metal frame with a bamboo motif and glass topped.  It replaced the retro bar cart that I loved but seemed too flimsy on plastic wheels for the heavy lamp. The nesting tables still have a lightness in my smaller living room with the heavy leather sofa. And I’m a sucker for the bamboo look. Thanks for all your comments and suggestions on my dilemma. I hope you like it. There is actually a third, smaller nesting table I put in my den. (and that’s another upcoming story once that is complete!) Just for fun, take a close look at my before and after photos. Can you spot the changes I’ve made in the living room since I had the bar cart as an end table?

Courtyard Makeover With Wine Bottle Barrel and Vintage Mirror

The front courtyard of the lovely Mediterranean home clearly had potential. A charming gateway led to it from the driveway. Two Spanish-style arches lined it heading to the front door, and a lovely picture window from the dining room framed the space.

Before Makeoever: Overgrown plant blocks window

After: New plantingsfreshen fountain; vintage bust frames window

After:This courtyard is ready for cocktails!

Before: A lonely bench sits empty.

When they do, this courtyard is ready.

For years, the old structure in the back yard was known as the “haunted shed.” When Rebecca Sweet was a girl growing up in her parents’ Los Altos ranch-style house in the 1970s, even her bravest friends couldn’t make it through a slumber party there.

The roof was caving in. The floorboards creaked. Cobwebs covered old storage boxes. Spiders had taken over every inch. When Rebecca returned to her childhood home 11 years ago and moved in with her own family, the wood shed had only deteriorated further. Her daughter and friends would have Halloween parties and terrify each other over stories of the the eerie presence of the “shed monster.”

But over the last few years, with her husband, Tom Urban, taking the lead, the old shed has been given a new life and new purpose. Gone are the cobwebs and creaks. The structure is now a charming cottage and work studio for Rebecca, who is a landscape designer. As with the rest of the backyard garden once tended by her mother, who comes from a maternal line of avid gardeners, the shed was restored and decorated to maintain the family’s gardening legacy.

The roof on the 18-by-12-foot shed was pitched and decorative wood beams added to create an airy feeling and rustic charm. Her husband replaced the old aluminum windows with vintage cottage windows. He plastered the walls and painted them a buttery yellow. A long counter was built on the far end, stretching across the back, to lay out design plans. The shelves underneath store the family’s earthquake supplies, but are hidden by lovely linen curtains.

A wicker sofa dominates the seating area. Above it hangs a decorative screen made of branches from one of Rebecca’s favorite shops in Los Altos, Cottage Green. One of her most cherished possessions is a dainty painting of pansies done by her great-great grandmother.

Rebecca also likes to point out the old piece of wood siding that bears the carved named of Rebecca’s brother, Tim. He had been punished for defacing the shed at the time. But Rebecca made sure her husband kept it in its rightful place, next to the front door.

Sitting on nearly a third of an acre in a 1950s development of classic ranch-style houses, the shed was an ever-present backdrop to the garden, which was first tended by her mother and now her. Rebecca remembers expeditions to Lake Tahoe to collect rocks along the roadsides that had tumbled down from avalanches. Together, they would choose the prettiest and haul them back to San Jose where her mother would build curving borders for raised garden beds.

“I would watch her build this wall and tear it out because it wasn’t perfect,” Rebecca said. “It was her release.”

While she loves her mother’s stone walls, she has also made the garden her own by adding several sitting areas, curving pathways, fountains and an aviary. She writes about her garden and gardening tips on her blog www.gossipinthegarden.com.

When her mother visits, “she doesn’t come in the house. She goes around the garden first,” Rebecca said.

“We wander the garden and see what’s new. It’s a huge bond. It’s a personal garden, and I think it shows.”

Here’s the complete slideshow:

When Rick Partridge and Jack Black purchased the 1916 Arts and Crafts Bungalow in San Jose’s Hanchett Park in 2005, they finally found a home for the period Stickley furniture they had been collecting for more than two decades.

But the backyard was another story. An awkward triangular deck off the back bedroom was a safety hazard with steep stairs and an overgrown hedge along the driveway split the small backyard in two. The homeowners were big entertainers and wanted a space that worked for parties of 100, as well as an intimate space for two to lounge around the hot tub.

“Jack and I both grew up in the south, where you turn the AC on from March ’til October,” Rick said. Now that California was their home, they wanted to take advantage of outdoor living. (And they also wanted a place for their hammock.)

The solution? Bring in a friend and neighbor, architectural designer Steve Hinderberger of Hindesign. The first order of business was to rip out the hedges.

“That was the most dramatic,” Hinderberger said. “It opened up the space and you could see the potential.”

They decided to keep all the trees, especially the Chinese Pistache in the middle of the yard.

“It became a centerpoint and things radiate out around it,” he said. And that meant designing a series of outdoor rooms, from formal to casual.

He started by replacing the old deck at the back of the house with a new, larger one made of dense Ipe wood, and gave a sense of enclosure with brick planters. A few steps down is the semi-circular dining patio. Hinderberger unearthed some of the original stones that had sunken and re-used them for the patio.

Pavers were used along the driveway to make it feel more like a patio than a driveway, and a built-in barbecue was installed near the back kitchen door. (Another neighbor, interior designer Madeleine Randal, transformed the inside white kitchen from what Partridge called an “operating room” into an updated space with grey soapstone counters and seaform blue backsplashes.)

The focal point of the backyard is the arbor at the back corner of the yard surrounded by soft landscaping. During the Hanchett Park Home Tour in late May, Partridge and Black hung a bright red swing from the arbor (their answer to the hammock.) But the arbor also serves as a frame for an ever-changing feature.

“Even in the plans, we put ‘sculptural element here,’” Hinderberger said. “It becomes almost a stage to highlight something of interest. They change it at least once every year, so it’s kind of fun to see what’s going to be there.” Partridge and Black have swapped out a fountain, a sculpture and a large planted urn under the arbor over the years.

“It’s kind of fun when you have a design concept, but what becomes really great is when the client embraces that and lives that,” Hinderberger said. “We were very in sync.”

Perhaps the most meaningful focal point of all came when Partridge and Black exchanged wedding vows in a ceremony surrounded by friends. Under the arbor were framed the groom and groom.

Hinderberger, of San Jose, can be reached at stevehinderberger@att.net.

(Photos by Desiree Northend)

Related stories:
Craftsman Bungalow Stays Tiny After Big Makeover
Spanish Style Bungalow Home
Gentle Remodel on Bungalow
Spanish-Style Bungalow Gets Soho-Chic Kitchen
Home with a Dining Room Fireplace
Rustic Kitchen Remodel
More Hanchett Homes on the Tour

Here’s the complete slideshow:

It would be difficult to find anyone who could say that Vicki Petulla’s backyard was ever anything but elegant and lovely. From the modern-lined furniture to the graceful urns and vintage outside mirror reflecting the patio, this was always a stylish spot. But exit the mobile chiminea and insert a sturdy stone fireplace and voila! Something extra special just happened.

“We created this to be an outdoor room because those French doors are open all the time,” Vicki said of the doors off her kitchen and breakfast room. (A minute after Desiree took this photo, the three of us were sitting here sipping a crisp white wine. Now this is my kind of yard!)

Here’s the before shot:

What a change! She and her family now have a dramatic focal point to their San Jose backyard, made of Monterey stone and built by Martin Delariba. And they have a mantel on which to place — get this — a big screen TV. She and her husband and school-age son have movie nights in the backyard where Vicki will bring out a plate of broken chocolate and marshmallows. Now how wonderful is that? Add red wine and I’m there! (again!) Vicki said that just recently, the family watched “It’s a Wonderful Life” outside. I concur.

Here’s another shot Desiree took last fall of the outdoor dining area just off the French doors. Now I’m surveying my backyard looking for a spot for an outdoor mirror. Isn’t it fabulous?

Want to see what’s behind those French doors? When Lookiloos visited Vicki last fall, we wrote a whole story and included a wonderful photo shoot. Take a look: A Decorator’s Daughter

Desiree also just compiled photos of her favorite outdoor fireplaces for www.hookedonhouses.net. Take a look here: Outdoor Fireplaces

Here’s the complete slideshow:

Jane Iki loves her home in Palo Alto and she wants to stay there as long as she can. “I like to call it aging in place,” said Jane. The problem was her bathroom. It wasn’t exactly friendly to someone wanting to stay in her home as long as possible. So, Jane called Case Handyman and Remodeling . Mike Brennan was the designer/planner on the project.

“This isn’t your Grandmother’s bathroom,” Brennan said. The design has an Asian flair and it functions with ease. The faucets from Grohe are sleeker.

“I can turn them on with one finger,” Jane demonstrated. “Look how easy it is.”

The drawers on the cabinet are self-closing. The low-profile shower is easier to step in and out of and the grab bars don’t look like the ones you find in medical facilities. The bathroom door was switched to a pocket door that allows a little more space with out a traditional door jam. It also resembles a Shoji screen, with a frosted glass center. The bathroom’s layout was changed to make for better use of the space and the project took a total of six months to complete.

“Everyone I show says ‘Wow!’” Iki said. “This turned out so well. I had Case Construction do my other bath”. Jane’s second bath is well under way.

Jane’s Resource List:
Wall tile:  Bambu Blanco 8X13
Floor tile:  Marmi Cemento Manhaton 12×12
Deco tile:  Mosaico Acero 1×1
Stainless Steel edging:  Pro-Mate 2 Inox 1/2×96
All from Porcelanosa

Paint color: Wild Oats from Benjamin Moore

Vanity/sink/countertop: Red Oak – Fairmont
Plumbing fixtures: Grohe
Grab bars / towel ring / tissue holder: Ginger
Toilet: Toto
All from Splashworks

Light fixture: Titanium-Access Lighting
From Galaxy Lighting

Here’s the complete slideshow:

The Problem: As lovely as my friend’s traditional living room is, with its sage green velvet sofa with subtle piping, and plein aire landscapes and classic female portraits, she felt it was getting a little staid. She had moved in a gilded mirror over her ornate side table, but still “I felt it was becoming too predictable.”

The Solution: A trip to the Oakland Museum of California’s annual white elephant sale. There, she found what she had been looking for for more than a year — a large scale piece of modern art. “I thought if I could mix in some abstract art, it would be a good beginning.” She’s still rethinking the ornate side table — maybe painting it or replacing it with something more sleek. But for now it’s clear: replacing the traditional mirror with a big modern painting makes for a stunning transformation.

You might also enjoy these stories:
An Art Lovers Living Room
From California Ranch to Mid-Century Modern
Carmel Artist’s Home and Studio
Passionate Collector Turns Home into Gallery
Bargains at the White Elephant Sale
Standing By My Vintage Female Portrait