Garden

Craftsman Home Gets Three Major Remodels

Sunday, August 8th, 2010

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The first time the Los Gatos house got a makeover, Betsy and Dan “Whizzer” White just needed a bigger house for their growing family. The house they bought in 1977 was 900 square feet and with one child and another on the way, they added a second story in 1984. In 1991, they did a major kitchen/family room remodel. Then on New Year’s Eve 2003 while Whizzer and Betsy were at a party, they got a call from a neighbor: “Your house is burning.”

4846048651_a2c6fdfcbd_b[1]A lit candle left  on her daughter’s bedroom desk had destroyed nearly the entire house. With the help of architect Phoebe Bressack of Bressack and Wasserman Architects in Los Altos, ) Chateau Construction (theirr builder for 30 years), interior designers Ann Sonnenberg of Palo Alto and Susan Hoffman from Los Gatos, the house was redesigned, rebuilt and redecorated. With all the loss, chaos and rebuilding, Betsy said, “The day I cried was when I found I could have the same tile in the kitchen,” that she had loved when she remodeled it in 1991.

As much as she loved her house before the fire, the third incarnation has it’s benefits. Along with increasing from a three bedroom, two bath, the house –built in a Bernard Maybeck craftsman style and shingled — now has four bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths. They reconfigured the downstairs space to add an office and laundry room. All the bonuses came inside an extra 400 square feet.

4846048825_18d2cd225d_b[1]The stair railing also saw an upgrade, from what Betsy affectionately called “barnyard chic” to an elegant iron railing with a leaf motif modeled after the magnolia tree outside the window. The couple enjoyed weekends at garage sales and antique shops to replace their furnishings and collected Mexican pottery and other crafts from one of their favorite destinations: San Miguel de Allende.

The house sits on nearly a third of an acre and the grounds are gorgeous, from a shady patio  in front to a lush vegetable garden in the back.

While Whizzer’s wife considers her husband a “farmer,” because of his 60 tomato plants, chili peppers and other fruits and vegetables, Whizzer simply considers himself a “foodie.”

With his heirloom tomatoes, “I  freeze 50 pounds a year for cooking and give away about 200 pounds,” he said.  He’s also proud of his “pimientos de padron,” a chili pepper made famous by writer Calvin Trillin that is popular in Spanish tapas.

 Whizzer is well known in Los Gatos for supplying the enormous squash for the annual march of the “Cucuzza Squash Drill Team” in the town’s Christmas parade. “We’re the successors to the Pigmy Goat Herders that were kicked out a few years ago,” he said. “They got too outrageous.”

And while Betsy still finds herself “going for light switches in places that were there for 20 years,” she loves the third makeover of her home. The couple have no plans to do it again.Julia Looking Left - Lookiloos Knock on wood.

Here’s the complete slideshow:

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Sunset Dream Remodel:Living Large in Small Space

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

IMG_6629When I think of a Sunset house, I usually picture something a bit grand, perhaps on a hillside overlooking California oaks. So when I drove by the latest Sunset Dream Remodel in Los Gatos, I almost passed it. It’s small — a 1,550 square foot Mediterranean bungalow on the corner of a somewhat busy street. But the whole idea, in these tough economic times, is to showcase the wonderful things you can do in a small space. And when you look at it that way, this house really measures up.
IMG_6655“This project shows how big a small space can live if done right,” said San Jose builder, Mark De Mattei, who marks his sixth Sunset house with the renovation of this Los Gatos bungalow.
The Sunset Dream Remodel opens to the public on July 23 through Aug. 15, 2010, only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. But here at Lookiloos, we love nothing better than to give a sneak peek, with a full slideshow, of some of the great ideas and products.

IMG_6650When 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.
IMG_6654A 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!) Julia Looking Left - LookiloosRoom 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:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Looki: I Did It Myself

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010
Strawberry lemonade never tasted so sweet!

Strawberry lemonade never tasted so sweet!

Ten years ago we remodeled our cute little home, because the duct tape we were using to hold it together was starting to peel. I never really gave too much thought about a front porch—but thank goodness my fabulous architect did! When we got the first round of plans, I loved the front porch. I could hardly wait to be sipping my first cup of coffee while perusing the morning paper on MY front porch. Now, funny thing is it never was MY front porch. It belonged to the skateboards, freebords, roller blades, razor scooters, bikes, the very stinky hockey gear and the random welder (don’t ask). Yes, I have 4 active boys and the front porch was the proof. I needed a space that I could call my own without tripping over all the hazards.

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I decided to clear out all the “gear” and reclaim my space. My first thought was French Country. Maybe a Toile in a cheery yellow for the seat cushions. White and blue for accent pillows. I thought they would go so nicely with 2 wicker chairs that I recently painted black. I headed to Home Goods and wandered the rows of chair cushions and pillows—nothing in yellow, but these coral patterned cushions caught my eye and I never looked back. Next, I found a solid Ralph Lauren ($14.99) pillow and a cream based embroidered with a coral pattern pillow ($16.99).

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The only thing I needed now was some sort of fabric to re-cover the ratty sea grass ottoman. I hit the jackpot when I found this Tommy Hilfiger duvet cover for a whopping $29.99. And, I only needed half of it.

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Once the color scheme was in place, I headed to Summerwinds Nursery to pick out my perfect posies. I have to admit I love walking through the nursery. It’s never a quick trip for me—ahhhh, wandering the aisles. Getting back on track, I loaded up the convertible with a few jumbo packs, a couple of daisies and impatients and a gerber daisy.

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I loved putting it all together. I got the tray from Soltice, the orange vase came from Summerwinds, the bird house was a true find at the Alameda Antique Fair and the watering can was left behind when we bought the house. One of my favorite things on the new front is that old watering can–that doesn’t hold water anymore. I’d like to take credit for putting that gerber daisy in it, but I got the idea from another blog Hoosier Homemade. My only big purchase was the aqua pot and the hydrangea—for just under $70. But, I’m a sucker for hydrangeas and that aqua color was to perfect to pass up.

Impatients and the very stinky hockey gear!

Impatients and the very stinky hockey gear!

Now, it’s been a whole week and all that “gear” has stayed away. OK, one exception has been made—the very stinky hockey gear is staying—but at least it is much neater. And, that I can live with. Sipping my first glass of strawberry lemonade with my feet up on the ottoman was pure heaven. We have spent nearly every evening out there—pure bliss.

My front porch does seem a little on the girlie side, but in my defense I do live with a lot of testosterone and a balance was needed. Now MY universe is balanced!

I’m linking up with Show and Tell Fridays and The Shabby Chic Cottage.

Desiree Looking Left - Lookiloos

Here’s the complete slideshow:

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From Beige to Bright: Backyard Makeover Gets Colorful

Monday, June 28th, 2010

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With a number of summer parties planned, from a graduation to a school fundraiser, Kristin Savini wanted her backyard to look beautiful. But when she gazed outside, “everything was beige and brown.”  She loved her pool. patio and brick fireplace, but her flowerbeds and the cushions on her outdoor furniture  seemed overwhelmingly  “blah.”

4737066453_eaf7da62dc_bSo she called in the pros. First, Steve Gilbert from Willow Glen Home and Garden suggested using the color of the pool as inspiration. He brought in bright turqoise cushions for the furniture and no fewer than 11 ceramic urns. To Kristin, it all looked “elegant and fun.” But that was a lot of urns to plant. So she called in her friend and container gardener Dhelia Fahrner of La Jardiniere.

With the bright cushions and pots, she knew the plants needed to be one thing: saturated with color. “It couldn’t be pale,” she said. At Summerwinds Nursery in Campbell, she and Kristin pulled out bright orange-gold “Easy Does It” standard roses and a big chartreuse ginger plant for height in the middle of some of the taller pots. They also added purples, fuschias 4737702286_689981c562_band oranges with geraniums, lantana, verbena, petunias and alyssum of various heights and textures.

The results were spectacular. Here are some tips for vivid container gardening from La Jardiniere:

1. Before going to the nursery, take measurements of your pots, both width and height, to figure out how many plants are needed to fill each pot and how tall the plants should be to balance the size of the pot. At the nursery, find an empty corner to arrange your chosen plants to see how they would appear together in the pot.

2. Know the sun exposure so you know whether to get sun-loving or shade-loving plants.

4737065369_c6b58609ba_b3. Choose a style — tight, loose, abundant, minimal — to fit your style or the architecture of your home.

4. If you’re planting several pots, purchase some “foundation plants” that are perennial and can last from season to season. Buy colorful annuals in six-packs that are less expensive to replace.

5. Use quality potting soil and fertilizer and water, water, water.

To see what Dhelia did to her own backyard and another project open these:

Dhelia’s Dahlias

Before and After:Spanish Courtyard Gets Makeover

Julia Looking Right - Lookiloos

Here’s the complete slideshow:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Looki What I Found: Garden Stakes

Wednesday, June 9th, 2010

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I’ve been anxiously watching my salsa garden grow – tomatoes, cilantro and jalapenos. While my garden is tiny, been thinking about how to spruce up the containers as my garden grows – Garden Markers! Take a looki at these unique stakes I found on Etsy.com.  Perfect gifts for the gardner in your life or an homage to your tomatoes, ’cause everyone (even your veggies!) can use a little bling.  (more…)

Looki What I Found: Urban Farmgirls

Monday, May 31st, 2010

IMG_9195I spied a cool exhibit at the Willow Glen Home Tour earlier this month–Urban Farmgirls. Love the name and the pots they create are so lovely, full of texture and earthy colors.
IMG_9196The pots look like they have been carved out of stone. Urban Farmgirls uses cement, perlite and reclaimed fibers to create that wonderful faux stone feel. The pots are surprisingly light weight. So as I get ready to re-do my front porch, I will need to pick up a few of these. Pairing them with succulents seems too perfect.

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You can find these gems at the following shops:

Emily Joubert Home & Garden
3036 Woodside Road, Woodside, CA
Ph: 650.851.3520

Bunches
14 1/2 Santa Cruz Ave. Los gatos, CA 95030
Ph: 408.395.5451

The Playful Garden
1001 Caymus Street Napa, 94559 CA
Ph: 707-258-8880

The Gardener
1836 Fourth Street, Berkeley, CA
516 Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg, CA
One Ferry Building, San Francisco, CA
Ph: 510 548 4545

Desiree Looking Left - Lookiloos

Carmel hideaway with Big Sur Vibe:My fantasy

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

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If I were to pinpoint one house that truly made me a Lookiloo, it would be this Carmel hideaway. I first went through it in 2003 when it was on the market, and now, as I gasp for breath, it is for sale again. I saw it last weekend and have been obsessing about it ever since. It doesn’t look like much from the front — a brick wall spans across  — but it hides a midcentury modern masterpiece inside.  Enter through a gate, wander down a brick path and step inside the front door. Stand on the elevated landing and you look across a sunken living room to a wall of windows. Outside is a courtyard with three live oaks and a stone fireplace.

IFV_2903 This house actually has a Lookiloos provenance: I wrote about it in June 2003 in an essay about my open house obsession for the San Jose Mercury News. I wrote about Lookiloos like me — and this was some five years before I co-founded this website. (I’m true blue!)  In it, I wrote this: “A wall of windows overlooking a courtyard of a Carmel open house makes me imagine myself a famous novelist with a salon of literay friends who drive down to Nepenthe for inspiration.”  I called myself the “Walter Mitty of real estate.” Is it so hard to believe, I wrote, “that living in a great space can be inspiring and life-transforming?” I still believe that.

The house has an open staircase with one end attached to the wall and the other suspended by cables.  The whole house is less than 1,400 square feet, with one bedroom and a loft, plus a studio guest house. But with the open, airy feeling and 18-foot ceilings in the living room, it feels huge.

IFV_3033The house was designed by John Gamble, who designed a number of modern homes on the Monterey Peninsula.  And now it’s for sale again, for $1.29 million. If you buy it, please let me know. Maybe you can invite me over.

For more information about the house, contact Merritt  Ringer at Alain Pinel Realtors at mringer@apr.com.

And I’d love to know, if this house were yours, how would you decorate the living room?

You can also look at a couple of my other favorite Carmel and Big Sur house stories:

Big Sur’s Nepenthe Turns 60, But Log Cabin is still home

Dreaming of this Carmel Cottage Compound

Julia Looking Right - Lookiloos

Here’s the complete slideshow:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Willow Glen Cottage Remodel with Modern Flair

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

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Lately, I’ve become enamored with houses that are unassuming from the front,  but have a major ‘wow’ factor on the inside.

From the front of this white-washed Willow Glen cottage, you might expect a chopped-up floorplan.  The only feature on the facade that gives you a sense of what’s to come is the bright yellow front door. Walk inside and you’re flooded with openness and light. And you can see right through to the charming backyard.

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Homeowner Stephanie Angeli, an  ”empty nester” who moved from San Francisco,  first saw the house with her sister. “We did an ‘Oh my God,’ when we went through it,” she said. “Every room was perfect.”

The house had been remodeled by the previous owner who added space and lots of windows on the back of the house, looking out to the courtyard. The sisters got in their car, did a U-turn, she said, and went to the realtor’s office to put down a deposit. The house was featured on the Willow Glen Home Tour earlier this month.4612692834_70d0918c47_o

The kitchen is also a gem, with white Carrarra marble counter tops and a sink in the corner looking into the family room.

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And the interior decor is lovely, from the the little vignette of green stemware in front of al painting on the kitchen counter, to a nicely-appointed front guest room and office. Carmen Grande of Willow Glen Home & Garden on Lincoln Avenue helped Stephanie with the furnishings and Steve Gilbert added charm to the courtyard.

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Take a look at the slideshow and tell us what space you like the best. Julia Looking Left - Lookiloos

Here’s the complete slideshow:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Hanchett Park Home Tour Ticket Give-Away!

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

mediterranean revival

Prairie style. Tudor Revival. American Four-square. Mediterranean Revival. You name it, the Hanchett Park Historic Home Tour in one of San Jose’s most charming and eclectic neighborhoods has it. They’ll be open for your indulgent pleasure this Saturday, May 22.

Lookiloos has just given away two tickets to two of our fans. I drew names from a bowl! Barb B. and Nancy M. were the lucky winners who each get to take a friend to five fabulous homes, plus a backyard boutique.

 And I’m telling you, as a voyeur from the next neighborhood over, these homes are Lookiloos-worthy! Two in particular resonate with me: one is the one-story Mediterranean revival (pictured above) with an interior courtyard that has always been the style for my fantasy home.

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The other is this Prairie style look that feeds my clean-lined-architect’s-daughter sensibility. And wouldn’t you know an architectural designer, Steve Hinderberger of Hindesign, owns it and has filled it with modern furnishings? Here are just a few of the famous pieces you’ll see: a 1928  le Corbusier lounge chair; 1925 Marcel Breuer Wassily chairs, a 1929 Eileen Gray breakfast tabl, a 1944 Noguchi coffee table  and two mid-century classics, an Eames lounge chair and ottoman and a Beroia diamond chair. The art collection is also a must-see, including an Alexander Calder.

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 This is another gem — a 1920 American Four-square completely remodeled down to the studs in 2008, with new landscaping last year. The home is decorated with luxurious, contemporary furnishings. 

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 This is another special home, built in 1924 for the owner of the old Pomeroy’s clothing store in downtown San Jose. Gilt wall sconces, crystal doorknobs, windows and floors are all original. Enjoy the batchelder tile fireplace and a gorgeous sun room

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And if you love a storybook cottage, here’s a charming Tudor Revival owned by artist Margaret Washington and her husband, Austin. It’s loaded with original details, including exposed beams and hardware — and even the original stove!

Hanchett Park Historic Homes Tour is one day only, Saturday, May 22, from 10 to 4.  You can purchase tickets for $20 in advance at Green Design, 1341 The Alameda, and at Willow Glen Home & Garden, 1123 Lincoln Ave. On May 22 tickets are $25 and will be sold on the corner of Hanchett and Sequoia avenues.

Julia Looking Left - Lookiloos

From Tudor and Art Deco to Zen, Willow Glen Home Tour Inspires

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

IMG_9067When four girlfriends and I escaped our kids for the afternoon, piled into my mini-van, and headed out for the Willow Glen Lifestyles Home Tour, we made a pact that we wouldn’t get green with envy by getting a glimpse into others’ beautiful living spaces. We’d be inspired.

There were many things to love about these homes, opened up by generous owners to benefit the San Jose Day Nursery. All were very different from each other ranging in style from Tudor to Art Deco to Southwestern Zen, and I walked away with several ideas. Some I can implement now, with not too much time and money, and some for later requiring more resources.

For my immediate inspiration, it turns out décor doesn’t have to be highbrow.  In more than one home, family photos were artistically photographed, framed and placed.  And in the wine cellar of Erin and Michael Craig’s 1929 home hung a shadow box containing a German 9mm Luger.

We all really loved Anna and Chris Pizzo’s Tudor, which I think had less to do with square footage and more to do with all the little details–like the faded IMG_9102stenciling in the hallway–and eclectic accessories, many of which came from the Vintage Flea Market in Alameda.

With a little more planning and money, I’d copy the Pizzo’s outdoor dining room exactly—an impressive arbor with a chandelier hanging from it. I’d add a concrete couch decorated with colorful pillows like the Hermosa home along with concrete raised garden beds painted bright colors. I’d turn myTV into art , and if I ever purchase bunk beds for my boys, I’ll wire a light switch high on the wall so you can reach it without getting out of bed.

With a much bigger budget, I’d add on to the front of my house and not worry about the fact that I just remodeled my kitchen with a corner sink overlooking the yard. Because in Stephanie Angeli’s home, such a kitchen sink overlooks the family room that was an add-on and it turned out uniquely great.

IMG_9249If I had a bigger lot, I’d consider a swimming pool with different lounging levels and contrasting materials like Kris and David Gambelin’s home. If couldn’t get such a lot and wanted to get really creative (or crazy), I’d move next to my sister, tear down the fence between us, and create one big, shared, drought resistant landscape like the Gilliand home. This was the home gave me the case of the envies. I’m not sure if it was the Japanese soaking tub, the utility room bigger than my bedroom, or the calmness that permeated the air, but I didn’t want to leave that space.

I guess for now, I’ll pull up a cushion in some quiet corner of the house and dream. Thanks to the tour, I have some images to reference.

Kim Koooyers is a freelance writer in San Jose and blogs at gratitude365.

Also, keep coming back for more indepth stories and slideshows of the six homes on the tour!

Here’s the complete slideshow:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer