When my contractor invited me to an open house to view his latest
project–a renovation and addition to a 1927 Spanish Colonial home in Palm
Haven –I jumped at the chance to legitimately snoop around one of the most
historic, eclectic neighborhoods in San Jose.
A neglected two-bedroom one bath in disrepair when acquired by John
Ammirato of Ammirato Construction is now a four bedroom, two and half bath
dream home. While it has all the modern creature comforts, including an impressive
master suite, renewable resource cabinets, solar panels, and data networking
throughout, painful efforts were made to preserve the home’s original
architecture.
Like re-roofing the composite roof with reclaimed vintage clay tiles.
And keeping many of the home’s original features: the living room sconces,
fireplace mantel, arched doorways, built-in hutch, and coved ceilings.
“The living room hasn’t changed,” said Rita Strena, whose family owned
the home for more than 60 years before selling it to Ammirato. “But John
improved it. It has a new life now.”
Ammirato worked extensively with Stonelite Tile–which has been in
business in San Jose since the 1920s–to design the detailed tile work
throughout the house. Some of it was hand pressed and painted using
original plates and molds from the early 1900s.
Ammirato, who has built several Spanish-style homes in Palm Haven, made
design decisions along with his wife, Linda, referencing books like Red Tile
Style, California Romantica, Casa California, and George Washington Smith:
An Architect’s Scrap Book.
The result is modern, stylish living while honoring the home¹s historic
past down to the gutters and porch brackets.
By Kim Kooyers, a freelance writer and blogs at gratitude365 and SpiroChicks.
Here’s the complete slideshow:
“We wanted to open it up with more light,” Hillary said. And she wanted it to be more modern, “but consistent with the principles of the house.”
The couple love clean lines and neutral colors. In the kitchen, they installed white Caesarstone countertops with translucent, white glass subway tiles, then added red-topped stools for a splash of color. They opened their home to the Rockridge Kitchen Tour last fall.
Pam was shocked that he would even consider giving up his dream because she wasn’t happy. “To me that was one of the most romantic things he ever said to me,” Pam said. For Pam, it was a turning point. “When he said that, I said, ”No way. Of course we’re going to finish this.’ I became almost as obsessive as he was.”
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Then she saw it, an eight foot angel with golden wings, a long white robe and bursts of cobalt blue. Translucent. Brilliant. Mesmerizing. Once the adornment for a San Francisco mortuary, it was now stored in a Richmond warehouse. Lisa quickly realized it was too big for the bathroom, and, quite frankly, almost too beautiful for it.
After 15 years of marriage, Craig has learned to trust the fantastical vision of his artist wife. As usual, however, the vision would come with a price. The new home for the angel would be the south-facing bay window in the great room — and that would not only mean a new design concept for the room, but a major re-engineering of the bay window to hold its weight.
But Lisa had originally designed the great room that opens to the kitchen to have a retro David Hicks style with a geometric circle motif. And that would no longer work with the leaded glass window. So she has ditched the idea of using Kraftmaid kitchen cabinets that had a circular overlay as well as the splashes of hot pink she was planning in the family room furnishings.
“You know me, I get so bored, it’s sad,” she joked. Before Thanksgiving had even arrived, she was already anxious to start her Christmas decor.
In her dining room, leave it to Vicki – the daughter of a decorator — to turn a liquor basket she keeps on the side board into a Christmas floral display with succulents, pink cabbages, white hydrangeas and lemons on the branch. It’s an unexpected display with surprising bits of sparkle as she tucks in vintage ornaments here and there.
Visiting Vicki’s home is always a treat, no matter the season. Thanks Vicki for opening up to us again! We want to come back!
She does it because that’s what the previous owner of the house, Eloise Martin, did with her children — and Sue is so grateful that she and her husband, Rob, were able to purchase this house from her 10 years ago, that this is her way of paying homage to those that went before her.
The couple completely relandscaped the back yard around the pool, adding a hot tub, fireplace and tiki bar. They also remodeled the kitchen opening into a bar area. “I love everything about my home,” Sue said. “I love the fact that the best people in the world trusted in us enough to have it.”
For the Shefflers’ table, while he celebrated the Asian inspiration by using wooden Geisha statuettes and delicate orchids, he honed in on a simple yet whimsical concept: Chinese take-out.
2. Add tall, wispy orchids in clear glass or simple vases to add height.
The home was built by the Gallagher family, who owned Gallagher Fruit Co. when the area was known as the “Valley of Heart’s Delight.” One of Carol’s favorite pieces is a tile serving tray she keeps in the kitchen that shows the Gallagher’s pear packing label with their company name on it — a gift from her daughter-in-law, Rita.
It has become a favorite game room for all three of their grandchildren and a place for Tom to read since retiring as vice president of Argo Systems.
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