The 1906 Craftsman sits on its eucalyptus-covered, five acre lot in the hills above historic Dominican College – a centennial icon, an American classic. The impressive home provided a most suitable stage for “Country Elegance,” this fall’s Marin Designers Showcase, which benefited the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership of Marin (CVNL.org). Completed just prior to the San Francisco earthquake, the three-story home is an excellent example of the California interpretation of the Arts and Craft movement where even such an elaborate bungalow rests naturally within its wooded surroundings.
More than 30 interior and landscape designers from throughout the Bay Area contributed their talents to update the 6,500 square-foot residence that had originally been built as a rural retreat for relaxed living by San Francisco financier George T. Page. Taking their cues from the early 20th century Craftsman aesthetic, the designers kept the color palette natural with many soft hues of tranquil greens, blues, browns and creams. In staging the showcase this way, they came full circle to the home’s original design purpose that still epitomizes Marin’s trademark style today – refined, informal living.
Marin Designer Showcase president Alma O’Malley says the Craftsman was the perfect choice for this year’s event.
“We had been doing Tuscan, contemporary style homes (for past showcases),” O’Malley. “We chose this home because it’s an older architectural style, and we thought that would be a nice change.”
Jennifer Hershon and JoAnn Hartley of Hershon Hartley Design in San Anselmo created a soothing entry and living room using sea-glass green with a gold-yellow hue and lots of texture.
“Since this house is about American architecture, we wanted to give a nod to all that was American,” says Hershon. “We selected upholstery pieces by Thomas O’Brien and Mariette Himes Gomez for Hickory Chair, an American company. Beyond that we were looking for the room to be a soft, quiet room and designed with some restraint and a light hand.”
Hershon Hartley covered the worn, flanking bookcases with custom-made door panels etched in a leaf pattern. Chinese area rugs from Medallion Rug Company, infused with the same quiet colors, pulled the pieces together on the original parquet-patterned oak floor.
While the living room received a gentle makeover, the kitchen was torn down to the studs.
“The only things we saved were the floor and the wall color,” says Sandra Bird of Sandra Bird Designs. Bird and co-designers Linda Nave and Heidi Kertel worked with the owners to recreate a kitchen worthy of its Craftsman heritage.
As requested by the owners, the light, sage green color, “Gray Mirage” by Benjamin Moore, was retained for the kitchen walls to compliment the floor of white oak with a mahogany band. Bird’s team designed custom white Superior Cabinets milled in Indiana to match the trim color in the house. Costa Esmeralda Extra granite countertops were chosen in rich tones of gray-green.
“We built a new (range) hood using the moldings that run around the butler’s pantry,” says Bird. “We designed a china cabinet with linen storage, added a recycling bin and better storage, like knives and tray storage and half lazy-Susans that pull out.”
The designers added a Sub-Zero refrigerator, a 24-inch Marvel cook’s preparation refrigerator under the counter, and two Meiele cooking appliances – a steam oven and a speed oven that provides microwave, conventional, convection and broiling capability all in one.
The kitchen sitting area has full-length views of the large deck and woods beyond, and Bird describes their design of it as “over-the-top.”
“The table is from Brazil, a weather-beaten, maroon-colored wood,” says Bird. “The chairs are old French chairs with spider web backs finished in silver metallic paint. And we used an antique mirror at the end of the table to reflect the beautiful garden.”
Upstairs the bathroom adjacent to the master bedroom was also torn down to the studs.
“The bathroom was very '70s looking and definitely needed updating,” says Debora Crosby of Lamperti Contracting & Design. Crosby and colleagues, Jane Aryoshi and Beth Laughlin, brought the room’s design back to the period of the house with its remodel.
“We started with the pedestal tub,” says Crosby. “We used heirloom quality plumbing from Rohl that will last for generations.”
The designers chose amazing, eye-catching silk chandeliers by Ron Cordova, as well as green products, such as low-VOC paint, linen and CaesarStone for the countertops. The latter is an eco-friendly quartz that is not quarried like marble and granite.
Scott Cunningham and Mimi Cribbin from Cunningham Designs created an eco-styled sitting room. The two designers went for glamour with dramatic 17-inch bolster pillows on the two chaises upholstered in a Swedish recycled fabric, hand-painted water lilies on the walls, and a chandelier Cunningham created out of renewable products. For inspiration, Cunningham used the warm umber overtones in an Asian screen from his home.
“That is the basis of the room,” says Cunningham. “The water lilies are not in the screen but fit the luxury that we were going for and the drama, especially with my idea of being green and renewable without looking like it.”
The only room in the house that has retained all of its original dark wood was the dining room, which the owners requested be left intact. Designer Lynn Amon of Sausalito lightened up the room with sumptuous, hand-painted silk draperies at the bay window where she had a banquette and upholstered divan installed, and she created a champagne silk tablecloth to puddle around the dining room table. The draperies additionally served as inspiration for paintings on the ceiling’s coffered wood.
“The banquette is the beauty of the room, and the beautiful leaded glass windows give the room a baronial feel,” says Amon. “I enjoyed working on this house that has withstood the test of time. It has a flow for entertaining and raising a family; it has gorgeous spaces with beautiful views. I think we were all inspired by the house.”
For more information on the 2007 Marin Designers Showcase fundraiser and the Heart Tug recipients – Helen Vine Detox Center, Marin Services for Women, and the Ritter Cente – , visit Marindesignersshowcase.com.
