When inside designer Ann Lowengart was approached about updating the interiors of a pair’s conventional Arts and Crafts–type cottage simply north of San Francisco, she realized rapidly that the chance meant with the ability to incorporate the brilliant colours and daring patterns which were her trademark for the previous 20 years.
“I’ve a ton of enthusiasm for what I do, and this undertaking was such an exquisite collaboration,” Lowengart says. “The owners cherished the whole lot I got here in with, they usually actually mirrored that enthusiasm.” To start with, the thought was for a fundamental refresh that included refinishing the flooring, brightening the partitions, and including a couple of new design parts to enliven the place the place her shoppers most take pleasure in internet hosting family and friends. “They’ve a number of houses—one down on the Peninsula, one in Carmel, and one other in Hawaii—however that is the place [the wife] raised her children, and a number of their pals are nonetheless on this space,” the designer explains. “[My client] wished to spruce it up however didn’t actually perceive what it may appear to be.”
Inbuilt 1941, the almost 6,500-square-foot three-story cottage is nestled amongst old-growth oaks on a hill within the charming city of Ross, which contains a sweeping view of the valley under. Nevertheless, not a lot had been performed to the house over the previous 25 years. In 1995, simply after it was bought, native architect Shay Zak—who had simply opened his namesake agency—was employed to rework the property. “He did an amazing job,” says Lowengart. “The casework was merely lovely, however the home was darkish—the partitions had been painted brown, the flooring and cabinetry had been honey-colored—and it felt very dated.”
It turned obvious, as Lowengart received to know her shoppers higher, that they actually wished an entire inside overhaul. Taking inspiration from her shopper’s love of colours—from wealthy blues and greens to dramatic shades of pink and yellow—the designer pulled out all of the stops by incorporating vivid and dramatic wallpapers, window remedies, and paint colours she’d been dying to make use of. “The Galbraith & Paul Sumi material for the lounge window remedies was the very first thing I selected—it’s one in all my favorites and I’ve wished to make use of it for the longest time,” she says. Constructing upon the colours discovered within the linen drapes, she had a chesterfield-style couch and two Barbara Barry for Baker Furnishings armchairs {custom} upholstered to coordinate and anchor the primary gathering area.
The {custom} Fromental wallpaper within the formal eating room was one other of Lowengart’s private favorites. “I’ve wished to [work with] this sample for years—it’s a contemporary tackle a basic [weeping willow] motif. We knew we wished to proceed with the blue-and-green theme, but it surely needed to undergo a number of iterations till the blooms stopped popping out trying like pimento-stuffed martini olives,” she says with fun. A pair of sq. lanterns from The City Electrical Firm, a double-pedestal eating desk from Dos Gallos, and a mixture of custom-upholstered chairs from Gregorius | Pineo and Marcali assist full the light-drenched area.
One of the crucial dramatic transformations passed off within the library, for which Lowengart satisfied the owners that high-gloss pink could be a superb thought. “Her favourite coloration to put on is pink,” she explains. “We’d been speaking about her wardrobe—she loves [clothes by] Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera—and the colour is actually emblematic of her type and who she is as an individual.” With its south-facing view of Ross Valley, the room is a selection spot for the bibliophile couple and their company.
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Simply off the library is a powder room the place the designer was in a position to incorporate complementary colours and lacquered parts. “I wished the areas to circulate very well. The depth of the magenta within the Thibaut Daintree wallpaper works so superbly with the darkish pink simply outdoors, and the pop of inexperienced pairs properly with the prevailing brown marble counter tops,” Lowengart says. The marble additionally prolonged to an adjoining bar. “The gorgeous leaded glass was already there too, so we wished to have fun each with the high-gloss chocolate brown paint and provides a little bit nod to their love for studying with the Pheasant bookbinding wallpaper from Twigs.”
Benefiting from the backyard and pool views from the breakfast room and kitchen, Lowengart saved the areas open and brilliant. “There are these fabulous lemon timber dotting the pool space, so I selected two of my different favourite materials: Schumacher’s Citrus Backyard for the draperies and one other from Sister Parish for the Roman shades—it felt like the correct mixture of freshness with a little bit of a Sixties vibe.” She launched different cool tones by gray-washing the oval Knowlton Brothers eating desk and Hollywood & Dwelling eating chairs as a way to modernize the area with out departing from the house’s roots.
“The emphasis for the design was not solely on magnificence but in addition on performance—[the homeowners] have six kids between them with rising households, and love having pals over—so it was necessary to strike that stability,” Lowengart provides. “It provides them a number of pleasure to come back to a house that really displays their type, and the place they will entertain effortlessly.”
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