Bedroom

A Look Back! Living The Dream In 1996

November 10, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi 10 Comments

Look what I found!

I was on a delightful television program in 1996! It was called “Dream Living”; and it was about people who live in their Dreamhouses.

I had seen our house in Pasadena when I was 13 and was determined to live in it someday. And I DID!!

It is kind of blurry, but it is a delightful story and the hostess Jody Daley, was a delightful hostess!

A few of my friends have seen this scrolling around in hotel rooms. I was thrilled to find it on a thumb drive!

I hope you enjoy it!

It was filmed right before we decided to move to Montecito!”

A Look Back! Living The Dream In 1996Read More

Montecito Foothills Meet French Country Chic! Our clients house in SB Seasons magazine!

September 25, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi 2 Comments

Interior Design by Penny Bianchi | photo by Amy Barnard Story by Nancy Ransohoff | Photos by Amy Barnard

A Look Back! Living The Dream In 1996

When attorney David Cohn and his wife, Debby, came to Montecito from Bakersfield, they connected with two key people who helped make their dream home a reality. After buying a remodeled 1960s-’70s ranch-style house, they hired Jon Sorrell of Sorrell Design, who transformed their ordinary ranch into a French country-style stone farmhouse with a historic feel. “Even though it isn’t an old house,” says Interior DesignerPenny Bianchi, “it feels and looks like one.”

Interior Design by Penny Bianchi, photo by Amy Barnard.

Shared Vision

The Cohns had a vision for the interior but needed help in executing it. When they saw online photos of Penny and Adam Bianchi’s Provence-style farmhouse (featured in Santa Barbara Seasons’ Fall 2017 issue), they knew they had found a match. “They said, ‘Your house looks like what we want our house to look like,’” says Penny.

Penny, who has been designing for 49 years, emphasizes the need for creative alignment and a shared vision for each project. “All my work is certainly not the same style, but there’s a general approach. It’s important to be on the same page. I talk with my clients about their lifestyle, what they are interested in and what they like, and I listen,” she says. “In the end, it should not look like a decorator did it.”

Perfectly Imperfect

The Cohn home is infused with a gracious old-world European feel. “There is nothing that looks new,” notes Penny. “Everything has a patina, old finishes that are worn and look like they have been used and loved. I like to see a mixture of things that look like they were collected over the years. European houses are imperfect—they have cracks. I call it ‘perfectly imperfect.’ For some projects, I have gone after limestone counters with a hammer!”

The living room presented one of the biggest challenges of the approximately one-year design project. “It’s a central room with no windows,” says Penny. “It opens onto rooms with windows so it gets light, but color was very important. We used a mix of colors and prints, with some chinoiserie prints, for the upholstered furniture.”

Timeless Trove

Many of the furnishings and accessories were sourced locally. “There is an enormous trove here in Santa Barbara, with all of the old estates,” Penny notes. Wood-plank floors are warmed throughout the house by old area rugs. “New rugs are against my religion!” says Penny. “When they’re made with vegetable dyes they fade beautifully.” She sources most of her rugs from Shaw Zahiri of Summerland Oriental Rugs, who specializes in handmade carpets from around the world. They add to the timeless quality of the house, which is a signature of Penny’s designs. “If it’s a trend I’m allergic to it!”

“It’s a very happy house,” says Penny. “Debby and Dave have grandchildren who visit and it’s a great house for children, with a lot of indoor-outdoor space and lovely gardens.” Outdoor living is enhanced with seating,
walking and dining areas, and graced with a gurgling stone fountain.

Growing up in Pasadena, Penny was drawn to design at an early age. “Other kids would be out on the swings and I was rearranging the furniture,” she says. “My mother gave me Elsie De Wolfe’s book, I read it and said, ‘Oh my gosh, this is a job?!’” Penny graduated from the University of Southern California with an English major and later took courses at the New York School of Interior Design. “I’m so lucky that I’ve been able to do what I love doing my whole life,” she says, “It’s a passion.”

“A house should feel personally collected … not decorated. … I’ve been collecting things my whole life because I don’t like anything new. I like everything old, weathered and used.” —Penny Bianchi | Photo by Amy Barnard.

This story was originally published in the fall 2018 issue of Santa Barbara Seasons Magazine.

Montecito Foothills Meet French Country Chic! Our clients house in SB Seasons magazine!Read More

Photos by Mark Lohman from a few years ago! So nice to see before the restoration is complete! Hope!

June 18, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi 50 Comments

A few years ago, one of my favorite photographers; Mark Lohman, an excellent and well-known interior and exterior photographer

(whom I have known for many years!) called me about a new magazine!

“French Country”!

Fifi O’Neill, the editor ,has written books, and has two other magazines, “Romantic Prairie Style” and” Romantic Country”

Her books are “Romantic Prarie Style” and “Romantic Prarie Cookbook”

She has been searching for real “country” (not fancy, not formal; but rustic and authentic) French houses in the United States!

My blogger friend Contessa sent her my blog on Renee; and she had Mark come take “scouting shots” of both houses!!

Lucky me! He took some wonderful shots of things that have not been photographed before!

I hope you enjoy them!

Here are some new angles of everyone’s favorite room! Remember, the heat is in the floor out here (and all through the house)

and we live out here all year long! Even in the rain; I don’t have to move the books!

My Corgi-mix rescue “Pete ” likes this ottoman!

By the way, the paintings on the right are of the identical room in our old house in Pasadena!

This ivy on the ceiling is my favorite, the panel was a shade on an Italian verandah we found in Florence; and the Italian stove

is another favorite!

Here are our ducklings getting bigger and enjoying their repaired house!

The main terrace with the previous room behind the umbrella! The deer is wrought iron!

A pretty plaque on the chimney; and an unusual way to hide those ugly metal things at the top of chimneys!

The Spring slipcovers and pillows!

My collection of Quimper salt and peppers on the mantle; and showing how the “convent table” works! The nuns would work

at the table all day; then take their dishes out, have a meal, and return them! Very practical!

The teeny Portugese chair on the table I bought at a museum in Portugal! I found the identical chairs at an antique shop here in Montecito!

My mother’s first Vertes painting! (Once, on a tour, a man insisted to his wife that it was a painting of “Mrs. Bianchi”!

“Can you imagine having a nude portraitof yourself in your living room?”

(It was painted before I was born!)

These lovely chickens were a gift from Oprah when there was a tabloid story quoting Oprah complaining about our chickens!

The card said: “Contrary to tabloid opinion; I absolutely adore your chickens!”

This panel in the kitchen was one of a pair I found for a client who only needed one!

The soup tureen on the bottom shelf has chicks poking through her feathers

The cat jumps on this antique stool to reach her food on the island!

Radisha makes us an “initial painting” for our birthdays! These are Adam’s by his sink.

This is my “pride and joy” Vertes screen which was owned by Gypsy Rose Lee! and my sink on the other side of the bathroom!

More Vertes lithographs mostly from the “Cirque” series!

These bookcases house my millions of decorating books!

The checked ottoman is a pop-up TV!!!

two antique valances and a favorite Vertes silk screen of his dog; an Airdale!

SaveSave

Photos by Mark Lohman from a few years ago! So nice to see before the restoration is complete! Hope!Read More

Montecito Gardens: Our house featured in Santa Barbara Seasons magazine!!!

January 24, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi 2 Comments

GLORIOUS GARDENS: FRENCH COUNTRY STYLE MEETS CALIFORNIA COOL

When Penny and Adam Bianchi bought a modest slice of undeveloped land off of East Valley Road 20 years ago, they had a golden opportunity to build a custom home in the heart of Montecito. The property sits at the entrance to the pristine 42-acre Ennisbrook Preserve, and Oprah’s vast estate borders the property on two other sides. A single home edges the property in the north. “The terrain and plants reminded me of France,” recalls Penny, “so we went to Provence and took thousands of pictures of roofs and crooked roofs and chimneys and floors and doorknobs.”

The Bianchi’s worked with Grace Design Associates to create their own Shangri-La that sits lightly on the land blends in naturally with the surroundings. Photograph by Amy Barnard.

Once home, they began to build a French country-style home and a guesthouse, surrounded by about 2.5 acres of magical gardens and wildlife habitat. The walls were washed with lime from pigment mined from the ground in Provence—no paint was applied at all. “Lime wash lets the mortar breathe,” explains Penny. “This is how stone and brick houses in Provence are traditionally treated.”

Penny has worked as an interior designer for nearly 50 years and has filled her home with antiques from all over the world. Much of her collection was inherited from her mother and grandmother, and Penny appears to have inherited her family’s amazing knack for finding one-of-a-kind treasures, as well. “I’ve been collecting things my whole life because I don’t like anything new,” she says. “I like everything old, weathered and used. Even my linens and light fixtures are mostly antiques.”

Generous use of color and texture spotlight Penny Bianchi’s great eye for detail. As an interior designer for nearly 50 years, she uses her own home to showcase her designs. Photograph by Amy Barnard.

High ceilings and plentiful windows fill the home with light throughout the day. The main entrance leads into a spacious hall, which leads to the bedroom (there’s only one) and master bath on one side, and kitchen, office and guest bathrooms on the other. Adam Bianchi works in the office—he sold his family’s poultry business 30 years ago and has run Penny’s business operations ever since. Penny changes the furniture slipcovers several times a year so the mood always reflects the season.

As an interior designer for nearly 50 years, Penny Bianchi uses her own home to showcase her eye for detail to charming effect. Photograph by Amy Barnard.

Treasures that appear at every turn include antique lace lampshades and oriental rugs, screens and other works by French artist Marcel Vertes, shower tiles from 17th-century France and an 1860s bathtub from Paris. The guest powder room features bird murals with bird figurines that hover over the walls. The kitchen has furniture pieces rather than built-in cabinets.

Views of the gardens—designed by Grace Design Associates—are always on display from the Bianchi’s breathtaking country kitchen, photograph by Amy Barnard.

The gardens, designed by Grace Design Associates, are a welcome haven for humans and wildlife alike. The National Wildlife Federation has named the Bianchi property as a Certified Backyard Wildlife Habitat, which means it provides the basics needs for wildlife: food, water, a roof over their heads and a place to raise their young. Carefully selected trees and shrubs nourish and protect ducklings and other creatures, and floating houses anchored in the middle of a pond allow nesting ducks and their offspring to escape from predators. Heirloom chickens roam free during the day and put themselves in the coop in the evening for protection.

Heirloom chickens happily roam free during the day, along with multitudes of other wildlife. The Bianchi property is a Certified Wildlife Habitat. Photograph by Amy Barnard.

Views of these glorious gardens (designed by Grace Design Associates) are on gorgeous display from Penny Bianchi’s indoor/outdoor office. Photograph by Amy Barnard.

All in all, the Bianchis have successfully created a haven in which every nook and cranny evokes coziness and a connection with the natural world. In Penny’s words, it’s “a cozy, collected and patina” home where they, their grown children and seven grandchildren thoroughly enjoy daily life in a remarkable Montecito setting.

Montecito Gardens: Our house featured in Santa Barbara Seasons magazine!!!Read More

New tv show! “The Real Houses of….”

October 19, 2015 By // by Penelope Bianchi 7 Comments

Our house is featured in an episode of “The Real Houses of…..” on the W network in Canada!

The series of shows were filmed this last Spring; and were shown this fall season. We were in the episode “Southwest USA”; and we thought they did a nice job of showing our house!

They were lovely to work with; and it is fun to see what their perspective was ! The other houses in the episode were completely different!

It is always an experience to see yourself on television!

If you want to see the whole episode; here is the link to download and watch: http://we.tl/rXzhWdviVH

I hope you enjoy!!!

New tv show! “The Real Houses of….”Read More

Question: “Do you follow trends in decorating?”

February 10, 2015 By // by Penelope Bianchi 18 Comments

(Don’t forget to click on the title!! To see the whole post!)

“Do you follow trends in decorating”?

That is the topic on “By invitation only” on the blog: splenderosa.com.

Everyone is different; but this

is something I decided many years ago (43) to be exact!

I do not follow trends for my own decorating; and being a professional decorator; I avoid it in my work

for others when I can. Since I try to give my clients a house that represents their tastes, family and likes; sometimes

they are dying for something “trendy”. Usually I try to dissuade them if I feel it will

be a dated mistake shortly; and really if it is very expensive. I avoid trends like the plague!

“Santa Fe” decorating belongs in “Santa Fe”; my goal is timeless decorating.

I find it a disturbing trend that many people when they move start all over with their

furniture, rugs and even art!

This is a picture of our “big hall” from outside. Nothing trendy!

This our main room in Pasadena which I decorated in 1985.

I still absolutely love it!!

This is the master bedroom the same year. Same thing!

Our terrace in Montecito designed in 1997 with furniture from our loggia in Pasadena

Circa 1985.

It has been “pinned” 50,000 times on just one website! (my landscape designer’s)

In my view, furniture, rugs, art and should be personal and mean something to the homeowner.

Family heirlooms I work into houses all the time! They are a priority!

And classics stay classics! They don’t go out of style; they weren’t “trendy”!!

I feel my house is a scrapbook of my life!

Permanent things like tile, flooring,appliances and plumbing fixtures should NEVER follow

trends. I encourage classic white tile, (or at least white background) white plumbing fixtures,

and classic appliances.

(ever seen a bathroom all done in black plumbing fixtures? I have!!! TWO, 10 years apart in different cities!)

Lord have mercy!

Trompe l’oeil window with trompe l’oeil curtains in a Reginald Johnson Italian Villa in Pasadena done in

1988. Fortuny on the sofa, family heirloom antiques , and original 1919 sconces with paintings framing them.

Absolutely the same today. And I wouldn’t change one thing!

My goal for myself and my clients is “Timeless decorating”. I doubt anyone could date anything

I have done! And I keep things young, and fun, and full of meaning!

One of my idols is Mario Buatta who just published a book of 50 years of his work.

I wouldn’t change so much as a lampshade! Now, that is “timeless decorating”!!!

Question: “Do you follow trends in decorating?”Read More

Montecito Sea Meadow, my dream once-in-a-lifetime decorating job!! [repost]

February 3, 2015 By // by Penelope Bianchi 78 Comments

Well, there is a “secret place” in Montecito. Honestly; even close neighbors barely know it is there!

One can only see it from the water……or walking on the beach going from the “Biltmore” east towards the “Miramar”!

It was the dream job of a lifetime for me!

In 1989, my client and dear friend in Pasadena, Molly Munger, (her Italian villa by Reginald Johnson circa 1919 is pictured in my “work” section) , told me

that her father “Charlie Munger” had some property in Montecito that he wanted to develop for many years; and he was

“getting close”! “I think you want to go up there on Tuesday with Charlie and Nancy” (his wife, her stepmother)!

So I did!

His property was originally part of a subdivision of a large estate owned by the Hammond family; and it was slated to be more large condominium buildings which were built in 1970.

The Montecito community was not happy about these buildings; and they went bankrupt. Charlie and Warren Buffet (his partner at Berkshire-Hathaway) owned the bank

which had the second mortgage. They knew that anything resembling the original buildings would be impossible to build. Charlie also knew that Montecito

was a very special place. He had been a guest at a very unusual development in Oceanside, California, called “St. Malo”.

It was developed starting in 1929..(it was the first gated community in San Diego County)!

and a family with a “vision” (from Pasadena, where I grew up) bought a big bunch of acres……and started a “development” with very strict architectural

restrictions. This is seriously one of my favorite things I have ever seen on the coast of California.

It resembles a fishing village of the same name in the Brittany area of France. That village “St. Malo”

was the inspiration. Many owners who built houses in Oceanside traveled there

to take pictures and buy things.

Many of the houses are extremely authentic; the people who built them went to France and brought back materials.

The coast of California is not known for its fine architecture. Far from it. Frankly, it is pretty sad. Even pathetic. Never mind!

“St. Malo” is a jewel on the coast.

An article about it is on the “san diego travel tips”:

http://www.sandiegotraveltips.com/public/Saint_Malo_Oceanside_California.cfm

Charlie; being the visionary that he is, thought this would make sense in Montecito!

I went with Charlie and his lovely wife Nancy up to see this property! YOWZERS!!

Beautiful! 28 acres.

It is a”flag lot” meaning that the first part of it is behind some beachfront houses….

and then it opens up and there is a meadow and 11 lots around it with ocean views and frontage. The plan had 23 “condominiums”

(forget every single condominium you have ever seen); a common clubhouse with a tennis court, swimming pool, kitchen and a wonderful living room with poolhouse bathrooms!

This was in “the planning stages”

Charlie finally got the permits to build a “village” like St. Malo; and he was starting to build it!

At first, I was hired to “decorate” the clubhouse! (which was not built yet).

Now. Here is the clubhouse! Originally, Charlie hired me just to do the “Clubhouse”! My foot was “in the door”!!

I designed it. I showed him samples and presented it all to him in his office.

(there is a farm table with red chairs that don’t show in this picture)…they are to the right!

He said, “everything is ok here; except the red chairs. They need to be dark wood color.”

I leapt up! I jumped up and down!!! I shrieked! “NONONO!! THEY NEED TO BE RED! THAT IS THE WHOLE POINT!”

“It will be so ordinary if they are brown wood! This project just cannot be ‘ORDINARY’!”

AND THEN I SAID……..(this is the God’s truth; I could not make this up!)

“And, Charlie, there just needs to be one person doing all these houses you are building! And it needs to be me! I “get” your vision!

I want you to hire me! I know what to do here!”

And he did. And I did.

And that is a true story of a dream job.

My title was “Aesthetic Director”!

So, for the next twenty years…….I chose all the “finishes” exterior and interior; the light fixtures inside and out;

the cabinets, the colors, the floors, the tiles (87 bathrooms all different hand painted tile!

24 kitchens…….all different cabinets and tile! Whew!!!)

for the 23 “condominiums…the clubhouse ..and for Charlie’s own house, and another house!

There are 11 “houses” (built by the owners….but subject to the architectural restrictions) that surround the “common areas;

and the “condominiums ” which are all completely different from one another.

This has never been publicized. So here we go!

Here we are. On one of the most “primo” surf beaches in the world. “Hammond’s” is in every book about surfing beaches. Charlie had to provide a special bridge and beach access to surfers! He also

had to deal with the Chumash Indians; who have a “sacred Indian burial ground” right on the ocean. The following picture is the meadow (which cannot be landscaped); and the Chumash

have rituals here. There is a monument honoring them. This an multi- acre open meadow right on the ocean in honor of their ancestors!

Near the center to the left; you can see the monument!

Here is the monument…..and the Indians have celebrations sometimes in this meadow!

There are some very low-profile houses along the edge of this meadow. They had to be low because of the two story condominium

buildings behind them. ( They emerged from bankruptcy; and now sell for millions each!)

The views from these houses (not condominiums) go up and down the coastline; and the surfing beach is right to the left of them!

This is looking at these houses across the meadow…..and you can see the condominiums behind. …

Montecito Sea Meadow, my dream once-in-a-lifetime decorating job!! [repost]Read More

Monterey Colonial!! "Progress!" "More Progress coming next" This is the "Interior progress" midway! UPDATE!!!

October 25, 2013 By // by Penelope Bianchi 34 Comments

Well; again, instead of just launching into the
” update” on our “Montecito Monterey Colonial”; because of my new subscribers, I am repeating the “during” published in January!

With three children relocating from Europe; all the things I had done to the house in their absence, the progress now is slowing down! But “slow and steady wins the race!!” And our daughter

will not make any mistakes! This is the post that was posted in January!

(I will make some notes along the way!)

This is the continuation of the “restoration” of the Joseph Plunkett designed “Monterey Colonial” house we found (finally); in Montecito after a two-year

search for our daughter and her family to move “back to Montecito ” after 8 years in Switzerland!! I consider it one of the “magnificent houses built in the ’30’s!!!”;

by a premier architect in the “Monterey Colonial” Style!

First; the architect! Joseph Plunkett arrived in Santa Barbara and worked for the excellent architect George Washington Smith; and then was

half of the firm “Edwards and Plunkett”. Unfortunately, he died at 46!!

The fact that he is so famous and he died so young is a great testament to his talent! The most important part was to restore the house!

Before my next installment of pictures (our daughter really didn’t want this installment….but gave permission with the caveat:

“it isn’t finished being decorated yet!”

Well; in my world….nothing ever is! Her choices (my advice; but completely her choices) of colors, rugs, and finishes. This is the interim…….but the restoration of this house has been so educational for me!

So here it is showing a restoration in progress!

My philosophy (fortunately shared by my step-daughter and her husband) is to start with the house!

No complaints! the “bones” of this house are as “good as it gets” , in my opinion!

You have seen the before! And one installment of during! Mostly the exterior!

Here we go!!! The interior!

There were lots of things to be done before they arrived.

Let’s start with the entry hall. (I had been looking for two years; and when I first saw this house; the front door opened; I looked up and saw the sky!

I immediately thought; “this wants to be blue!” Our daughter agreed! We tried at least 6 colors of blue! emailing back and forth…….we waited until she

arrived…..we chose “light blue”; Farrow and Ball”

(All paints by Farrow and Ball used for the whole house!!)

(I have been a decorator in Pasadena and Montecito for 43 years.,,,never have I stepped into an entry hall and looked up and seen “the sky”!!)

Never! Here it is!

Here it is! this is the window one sees when you step in the door!

I thought……”this entry wants to be blue!”

Fortunately; our daughter agreed! She ‘got ‘it when she saw it!

we both (and the painter); learned so much from how colors change according to the “light”!!

One lovely reason to use “Farrow and Ball” (do not believe one paint store who says they can duplicate these paints!)

They cannot! There are way more pigments than any American paint!

Here it is blue! (Farrow and Ball, “Light blue”)

gorgeous!

By the way, this border looks orange in this picture! It isn’t! It is red; closer to the next picture!

The daughter had always dreamed of this runner! I suggested the red binding….she went for it! She loves it!

This house has the lovely architectural feature of an “enfilade”!

One stands just inside the front door; ( it is a central hall floor plan) and one can see through aligned doorways from one end of the house to the other! Each way. (very unusual in Southern California!) A beautiful architectural feature anywhere.

Looking into the living room!

The view from the entry to the left! (one can see through the far doorway the library fireplace !)

(If I were a better photographer)

Tucked under the circular staircase is a charming powder room (behind the white door in the entry hall).

I love the curving wall; I think it gives it the best personality and charm!

Many people would consider it a “flaw”! I simply adore quirky and brilliant things like this!

It is so obvious to me (even before I knew the architect) that this house was designed by a brilliant architect!!

Joseph Plunkett!

The charming little sink was original to the house in 1934; but it was pink! She did not want pink (nor did I); but we found

someone to refinish it!

I was delighted to be able to preserve it!

The Library transformed!!

One of the things that bothered us was that a window in the beautifully paneled library

had been removed to make into a TV cabinet! Thank goodness the window itself, and the outside shutters had been saved!

What a difference!! This is when we removed the cabinet. Great care was taken (by the owner who made the tv cabinet!!) not to enlarge the opening;

and so everything fit perfectly back together! And look at the light! And the view!!

What a difference!!!

This, below, is after the restoration; you will notice that we painted the backs of the bookcases to match the paneling.

The fireplace was an “antique” in 1934! And the restoration of the “window” was important!

Remember this bathroom?

It is between the library and the downstairs bedroom.

The boy twin has the downstairs bedroom; and this bathroom.

Fortunately, he never saw this!

But you may have; and if not, now you will!

YIKES!!!

THEN!!!

NOW!!!!!

Can you believe it? We approximated the marble on the antique fireplace; and our cabinet

man made all the new cabinets right on site!

We removed all the shutters from every window! They blocked out the light and hid the views!

The views are beautiful from every single window!

The mirror is a hinged medicine cabinet.

this is the same view that showed the two sinks………We reduced it to one…….removed the tile…….

and our boy grandson made friends with the bathroom!

The antique pavers on the floor were left over from our guest house! A bonanza!

Just enough!!

And the inside of the showers we did in “Brooke and Steve’s pool plaster”! (of “Velvet and Linen” and “Giannetti Architects”) It looks beautiful!!

You can put pigments in it; but this is just plain; and there is a very interesting kind of “patina”!

Brooke and Steve let me bring our plasterer down to their house in Oxnard to see!

Below was the built-in dresser between the bathroom and bedroom.

Nothing wrong with the drawers; soaked the shiny brass “lacquered ” hardware in some solution! Painted the cabinet Farrow and Ball “Railings”

And “POOF!!”

Good lines make easy solutions!

There are two windows in this space. The shutters shut out (interesting name for shutters) light, views, and also made it impossible to open the windows!

She picked a lovely camel grasscloth wallpaper; and then the mirror was hung!

this above; became this; below!

Same knobs. they were shiny brass! Soaked in turpentine; they became understated and they

are the new “unpolished brass…..which will weather naturally…..the natural finish that is

fortunately gaining force into fashion today!

The boy’s bedroom has three exposures; and wonderful views into the gardens!

Our daughter found some lovely “grasscloth”! and his room is getting better and better!!

The house is mostly one room deep; which is one of the best of its architectural features!

Two of the four bedrooms have three exposures; making wonderful light and views!

This post was meant to show; and it may (appropriately be called) “The end of during”

Henceforth, “evolving”!

Back to the entry hall; to the left is the living room with French doors opening to the front terrace and the back terrace; to the right is the dining room shown here! The beams in the living room and dining room were formerly brown. We selected two colors of off-white for the woodwork and the walls.

Both the living room; and the dining room have French doors on both sides; opening to the north (this view) and to the south (onto the front terrace).

The view from the dining room!

I am so sorry about these pictures! The beams and trim are a lovely off-white! The color of the beams is the same color as the trim!

Going up the stairs, these charming wood valances are over the two windows on the curving walls!

These were also original to the house in 1934! We plan to paint some detail!

(No curtains/ shades yet here and in the boy’s bedroom!)

Turn to the right is the master bedroom!

Now the Master Bedroom! Here it was with these beams, shutters and fireplace before.

The tile “sneaked” in from the bathroom!

It is the same tile as in the downstairs bathroom!~

This tile was “much loved” by the truly darling family that installed it (I am guessing 40 years ago!)

(I do tell my clients; and always have; try to put simple “permanent” things like tile and plumbing fixtures mostly white; because when

you decide you are “tired” of patterns or colors; paint and wallpaper are easy to change!) ( This tile

all over the walls and floors of two bathrooms and sneaking into the bedrooms and dressing rooms was not easy to change!!)

No more tile; painted the brick, and used some leftover marble from the downstairs counter on the hearth.

She loves carpeting in a bedroom; it makes it very cozy and this carpet seems like an extension of the hardwood floors!

I love it!!!

Beams removed. Such a pretty shaped ceiling! Again, this room has 3 exposures and beautiful light and views!

It also opens onto the balcony that runs the length of the front of the house!

(I were extremely disappointed with the curtains…….)!

Same fabric; new remake……..happy ending!!!

I love the bed alcove with bookcases!

Still working on the headboard; and getting the curtains right!

Pool plaster shower and walls; “borrowed light” ceiling ; new cabinet

with a space for either a dressing table or a free standing bathtub.

“Pool plaster” shower, limestone floors and countertop of beautiful new cabinet!

A medicine cabinet on the left and the right! (behind the mirrored panels)

Thank you Brooke and Steve of Velvet and Linen and Giannetti Architects and Giannetti Home for the pool

plaster!

Here is the view from the master bedroom, bath, other bedrooms of the mountains and trees!

That redwood in the right corner is so

tall I can’t even estimate!

These mountains are beautiful!

this is the view from every bedroom; the living and dining rooms!

Back to the “central hall”

At the top of the stairs; turn left and there are two “jack and jill” bedrooms (in this case they are jill and jill’s)!

Two bedrooms that share a dressing room, two walk-in closets and a bath! The girl twin and her older sister each have one!

Such a perfect set up!

This bedroom had a mural on all four walls!

They primed the walls before the ceiling and I came in! I said; “YIKES!!! Save that ceiling!! I LOVE IT!!!!”

Fortunately, my granddaughter did too! Two hand-painted birds are building a nest!

And it is a lovely sky!

I LOVE HAPPY ENDINGS!!!

The second bedroom which shares the dressing room and bath!

Still awaiting headboard and a few things!

(DON’T FORGET IT “ISN’T DECORATED YET!”)

Two exposures; facing East and South!

Farrow and Ball “Calamine”!

This daughter is 16! She loves “pink!”

Their bathroom was done completely in “pool plaster!

A new bathtub; and another cabinet made “on site” (the way they did it in 1934)!!

Again, like the master bath; limestone floors and counters; in this case; the splash had to have the faucets and spout come of of the wall to give more space!

Gorgeous! (to me!!)

I hope you enjoy!

Funny story. Our housekeeper was helping at this house;

and a man came in! He said….”I saw this house on the internet; I need to know the manufacturer, the colors and number of the paints on the outside!

( Our housekeeper is very, very smart!)

She said “I will ask”! “Mrs. Penny” (I love that!)

So; here’s what! If anyone wants the names and number of the colors; let me know!

I will list them all!

One of the greatest beauties of Farrow and Ball; is their “sample pots”!

Colors changed from room to room more than I ever thought possible!

The painter and I thought we were losing our minds!

(this has been my painter for 16 years) !!!

Critical in selecting a paint color! You

paint enough on the wall……and you look at it at all times of the day!

Take advantage, I suggest, of this feature this paint company provides!

(no I do no advertising)

I have no connection with Farrow and Ball!

“Old School” (you should see him……he is the coolest looking ‘surfer’ you will ever see!!)

And he is of the “old school” when it comes to painting! He subscribes to my bible…..and that is “preparation, preparation, preparation!!”

and another post is coming!

A house is NEVER finished…….and this, like all, is evolving! there are just more posts! and the next one will be in a day or two!

What a treat to work on such a treasure!!!

The repaired gate in the center of the back garden!

This is what Sara Dillard (one of my favorite bloggers and writers)!

calls an “axis” It is in the center of the hedges in the back garden and creates

a lovely focal point on axis from the center of the house! The entry hall!

Steve Giannetti suggested this “cathedral ceiling” in the porte-cochere!

What fun it is!

This lovely, classic house will continue to evolve! It is a house that is not too small for five people; and not too “big” for two!

Steve Giannetti has designed a terrific “playroom and guest room and bath in the garage space on the right in this picture!

(on his iPad to scale…it was a wonder to watch!)

When they can; this will be the next project!

The most exciting thing of all is having our grandchildren back from Europe; and our daughter

and son-in-law so close!

Our daughter says, every time she drives in the driveway, she “pinches herself” that she really lives in this house!

We all feel incredibly fortunate!

I am especially grateful for my “team”! None of this could have been done without my

absolutely amazing team! Alfredo; the most brilliant “jack of all trades” he made all the cabinets, the replacement french door screens,

repaired all the hardware; I could go on and on!

Joe; the best electrician in the world; (and the handsomest!);

Rick the best painter in the world,and all the wonderful subcontractors who fixed all the

things you could ever dream of!

It is now the “best of all worlds! The quality and beauty of an “old house”;

and the benefits of a “new house” with all the electrical, plumbing and heating updated and

energy-saving!

Hang on tio your hats

the most important changes were in this post!

the next one shows some more. Chip away!!!; it you do it right; it takes a long time to redo a treasure of an old house…….

Correctly!!

I hope you enjoyed this “catch-up”!

The next installment will be the most recent!

Remember; it takes a long time for a house to be “done”! (it is never finished!!)

It remains a work “in progress!!”

I hope you will enjoy the “process”! As our darling daughter and I do!!!

Next installment……..NOW!!!

9 months later!!!

October 26th!! 2013!!!

Penelope

Monterey Colonial!! "Progress!" "More Progress coming next" This is the "Interior progress" midway! UPDATE!!!Read More

Patina!

September 2, 2013 By // by Penelope Bianchi 61 Comments

First of all, I have to say how completely thrilled I am to be participating for the first time in Splenderosa’s BY INVITATION ONLY!

AND

Also incredibly lucky to have been able to pick the topic!!!

As some of you may know, I was published in House Beautiful (one of my very favorite magazines!) in September, 2011!

It was about our house! (Which we built from a vacant lot ten years before the photographs).

The photographs were taken a couple of years earlier; and the shoot was presided over by the

darling and wonderful Newell Turner!

I had not seen any of the photographs, and I was interviewed over the phone by one of my favorite writers, Mimi Read

of New Orleans (the Queen City of “Patina”).

I had no clue what the article would say! (nor the title)

“Patina”

I was thrilled with all of it!

Because of that article; I became close friends with Brooke of “Velvet and Linen”,

(author with her darling husband of the book “Patina Style”); started a blog, and have made wonderful friends in blogdom!

Marsha of the divine “Splenderosa” is one of them!

The picture above is an excellent example of what “Patina” is to me; and why I love it!

The dictionary defines it as:

a : a usually green film formed naturally on copper and bronze by long exposure or artificially (as by acids) and often valued aesthetically for its color.

b : a surface appearance of something grown beautiful especially with age or use

I like copper and bronze with patina; but it is the second definition that is what I mean when I talk of “patina”!

The above chairs were my mother’s purchased in Italy 70 years ago.

Their fruitwood frames are faded and nicely worn. The “Fortuny” fabric is inside-out, and the table

is over 300 years old. It was in a French convent. The nuns would work at it all day (probably weaving and

writing. They would then take their dishes out of the space under, have their meal, and return their

plates after the meal. You can see that it sways a bit in the middle; and the top is anything but perfect.

The boxes are antiques; one of them is covered with an ancient French fabric.

This is a personal taste, I am sure everyone understands! This coverlet is all hand sewn copperplate toile

from 1782 England. My friend Eric Haskell (head of the Humanities Dept. of Scripps College has authenticated it). It is faded and worn in places,

(I think the man I bought it from thought I was crazy to buy it for $140.00) Eric has a fit that I use it; he says it belongs in a museum!

It represents the American Revolution! And it is the original from 1785.

It is in “Winterthur”.

(I just found it by “google images” ! It is in many museums!)

Lordy! This sold at auction for $3,500.00!!!

The pillowcases are old French embroidered in a way that cannot be duplicated today.

This gate was made by my pond man; I showed him a picture; and he made it! It is mesquite with leather holding it to the wall.

I said, “How on earth did you know how to make that? ” He said, “we vacation in third-world countries. They use what they have!”

(the mail truck hit one of them once; the man with the clipboard came to make a report; he was just scratching his head …I went out

and explained to him it wouldn’t be expensive to replace. I think he is still trying to figure out why

anyone would want a gate like that!!)

Sharon Santoni showed some lovely French shutters in her blog My French Country Home (below)

I looked everywhere for old shutters like she showed.

Our carpenter made some and they look close!

The patina on this old panelling is very difficult to reproduce. If it isn’t done really, really well; it doesn’t work at all!

(also from Sharon’s blog)

I try to promote the grown of this kind of stuff on our walls……no “power washing “

I actually cried when the floor people took this off our front steps! (it’s back!)

The real thing in France

(I know what a bad picture it is….)

My painter did a great job!

I did find an old gate from France. My husband said, “Do I dare ask? Do we paint it????”

“EEEEK!!!!! NO!!!!!!!! That’s Patina!!!”

The lime wash on the walls of the loggia

My mother’s old “lacca provera” chest from Venice. Old oil paintings, antique Chinese export

porcelain (the color worn off the top handle)

The imperfections in the antique mantle are so appealing to me. And that it is hand-carved. Where has it been???

None of our walls are painted. Lime mixed with natural mined pigments we brought from France.

It is a natural insect deterrent, and leaves a lovely, uneven chalky surface that you see in Europe.

Our loggia again. Can you see the vine growing over hand painted fabric panel?

Now! A different sort of “patina”!!

“Wendy’s chair”!!!

That is Wendy on her chair! Quite proud of what she has wrought!

“Isn’t this how you make chenille??

I took these pictures in to Cowtan and Tout and said, “this fabric just isn’t holding up very well!”

They all laughed their heads off!

Really the best way to learn about Patina is to read Brooke and Steve Giannetti’s book: “Patina Style”!

When Brooke and I first met, I said, “I think we knew each other in another life!” She

said, “Just one?”

THAT WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST COMPLIMENTS OF MY ENTIRE LIFE!

If you find this interesting; please read this book!! It is my favorite!!!

Patina!Read More