Montecito

A Look Back! Living The Dream In 1996

November 10, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi 8 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

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

January 24, 2018 By // by Penelope Bianchi Leave a Comment

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

Monterey Colonial garden update! Big difference!!!

May 24, 2016 By // by Penelope Bianchi 3 Comments

Hi there! I have had a lot of requests for more updates on the Monterey Colonial our daughter

purchased a few years ago here in Montecito!

The previous posts are at the end of this post!

She removed some shrubbery crowding this beautiful jacaranda tree; and changed the planting

behind the boxwoods to only purple agapanthus. There were lots of them sprinkled all

over the property; so she moved them all here.

When they bloom under the purple blossoms it will be a show!

Here is the front porch with the Anduze pots with topiaries. Everything simplified!

there is a lovely new gate in the background on the left. It was made to match the back gate.

Around the back of the house; she has added oak leaf hydrangeas, and star jasmine.

Right around the corner.

Another new gate to match the back gate! The pool is on the other side!

Remember when you couldn’t see the pool from the garden? She opened up the hedge!

It is still private; but you have a glimpse!

The beds are also simplified with white agapanthus, iceberg roses and Viburnum.

The original back gate!

The other side!

Behind the above hedge is another whole garden! Avocado trees, wildflowers, fruit trees

and raised potager beds!

3 avocado trees all different species so they fruit at different times!

My favorite! Lavender, matillija poppies, artichokes and herbs! And roses!

I think they are doing a beautiful job of this garden!

I think my favorite of all are these oak trees in the front which were never

“trimmed up”!!!!

Congratulations to our daughter, her husband and their gardener!!!!

Monterey Colonial garden update! Big difference!!!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

Another update on the "Monterey Colonial"! Interiors and exteriors!

November 20, 2013 By // by Penelope Bianchi 23 Comments

This story has been a long and winding road!

Anyone following my “blog” knows!!

Rather than publishing the three former installments; if you haven’t seen them, you can click on the “search” box on this blog,

and write “Monterey Colonial”

and they will show up! If you haven’t seen them; I suggest you do that first!!

It is very fun even for me to compare the “before” “during” and these most recent!

It surely proves what I have always said; a house is NEVER “finished”!! A house is like a “life”; “a scrapbook” of the lives living in it; and is

always a “work in progress” over the lifetimes spent in it! A great house adapts to the family

and animals who live in it! And it evolves as they do!

I hope you are enjoying the journey!!

Did you give up on this update post?? I’m so glad you didn’t!!!

Well ! Come on in!!

A peek into the living room! (A work in progress!!)

Terrible picture!

(Joni! I already know my pictures are terrible….my assistant will help more!!)

The library! Remember the window on the right was turned into a TV cabinet! No light came in here1

also heavy shutters on French doors!

big plantation shutters block out at least 50% of the light!!

Our grandson’s room on the first floor just past the library!

Grasscloth, tortoise wood blinds; and twin headboards! Bedskirts match headboards!

(“dust ruffle” is the female equivalent)

There is a surfboard mounted on the right wall! So cool!!!

It looks like a grown-up boy! He’s almost 15!!!

Up the stairs!

The hall to the “Jill and Jill” bedrooms and bath. The door on the right goes out to the balcony at the top of the “Lover’s stairs”

The bedroom at the end of the hall!

Family pictures where they belong!!! Not in silver frames spread all over the house! Framed and

hung on wall people walk by every single day..and starting at eye level; up and down past that!!!

The sixteen- year old’s bedroom!

This is blurry….so sorry! I want to show the curtains that they had in Switzerland; lovely silk panels were remade for this

bedroom AND the Roman shades in her sister’s!

As long as the fabric is a “natural fabric”; curtains can last through many houses

and incarnations! These are 100% silk; and from Pottery Barn, no less!!

In the new Mario Buatta book; he shows us his curtains he has had for fifty years!!

Redone for each of this three residences! (added on, taken off, valance added; Honestly!! Fifty years!!!

(do buy this book; it is a DOOZER!!!)

SHE LOVES PINK!!!

headboard coming!

To the left before the end of the hall!

The other girl’s bedroom with the sky and the birds! Thank goodness

she decided to keep the birds!!!

SAME FABRIC!! redone into roman shades!!!

On to the Master bedroom!

The headboard is in; and the curtains were fixed!

I love this bed alcove….there are bookcases in there on both sides!

These curtains and shades were made from curtains they had in Switzerland!!!

There are windows on three sides!

Windows on three sides; and French doors to the balcony on the front!

I adore this hand-painted chest! It says some wonderful saying in French! With someone’s birthdate!

I think it was a birthday present to someone in the 30’s!!

I found it in Summerland at a wonderful antique store!

It was happy living in Switzerland for 8 years!

But I am even happier that it is “home”!!!

The fireplace is greatly improved!

You can see the gate in the back of the garden!

Here are a few exteriors!!

The agapanthus and the jacarandas look wonderful blooming at the same time!

Newly planted beds in the side garden! And big pots with olive trees!

Two new gates to match the one in the back (but singles)!

This gate goes to the pool from the back…..beautiful oak tree!!!

This one is in the front!

Up the “lover’s staircase”!

Through the porte-cochere!

Through the “porte-cochere”!

Leading to …..

Through the rose arbors, lots of refining!

To a lovely focal point!

There are vegetable and herb beds!

Vegetable beds! And…….

Hydrangeas and roses!

and an apple tree!

My favorite poppies!

As progress moves along; I will keep everyone posted!! This house has some very serious fans!

I keep getting email saying “HURRY UP!!!”

I am sorry I haven’t been faster at updates! The good news is that my “real job” has been busy!

I will also keep you posted on that!

I am doing a wonderful house in my favorite part of Los Angeles (actually Santa Monica) for a wonderful guy!!

(he wrote one of my very favorite movies of all time!!)

“School of Rock”!!

MIKE WHITE!!!

He was also our daughter’s “her Best Man” at her wedding 19 years ago! Best friends since

“crib room” at Sunday School!!!

(I was so sure he would be a “STAR” I asked him for his autograph when he was in third grade)

He is a “perfect client”!

Another update on the "Monterey Colonial"! Interiors and exteriors!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

Monterey Colonial "During"!! again before the "present" to be posted in the next few days!!! Exterior!

October 23, 2013 By // by Penelope Bianchi 54 Comments

Hi there again!

I am going to post the “present pictures” of our Monterey Colonial; however, it has been so long since I have posted; and I have many new subscribers; so I decided to republish the

last post”during” a day or two before the “present” so no one has to search for it!!

Here was the post last May!

The very top picture is the exterior “before”

The above is “present” exterior!

Hi there all my friends!

I am so sorry!

I am back!

I am so sorry this has taken so long! I am so enthusiastic and excited about it!

My assistant (who helped me endlessly with my blog) left to travel; and I thought I knew more than I did how to do it!

(the blog, I mean!)

This is such an exciting thing for me; and I want to share all the things I have learned!

Here goes the first one! The “exterior” during! And that doesn’t even include the garden!

This is a Joseph Plunkett designed house built in 1935 in Montecito, California.

He was a very respected and accomplished architect here. He contributed to the magnificent City Hall here;

he designed our beautiful original airport, the “Arlington Theatre” (drop-dead amazing and beautiful);

the original “Paseo”; contributed to the “City Hall” (famous throughout the world!!!)

and many other buildings and houses is Montecito, Santa Barbara, Ojai and Santa Ynez!

He died at 46; which is even more astonishing that he designed so many buildings that are so well known for their artistry!

I thought I would do one post on the “during”!

There will have to be more than one! I am starting on the “exterior”! And this is the first of the “during”!

The post on the “before” was my last post!

Here is the “Monterey Colonial” house I found for our daughter’s family here in Montecito!

Their goal was to “move back!”I started looking two years ago!

I knew when I walked in the door………this house took my breath away!

I knew it would take a lot of work to restore it; but I didn’t really know HOW much!

Sad to say; this house had been neglected in ways many older houses are! It is called “deferred maintenance”!

It is extremely common in old houses!

This house was first in 1935. By one of the prominent architects who worked in Santa Barbara during the twenties and thirties. He

designed a few wonderful houses; and unfortunately died very young at 46. His name was Joseph Plunkett.

This house is a complete treasure! I hope I will show you why!! I am going to start with the exterior!

(To begin with; this house looks in pictures as though it was yellow. No. Pink.)

Many people do not know the importance of painting “correctly”;

in dealing with an old house (it is always more expensive than just slapping on some paint)!

Great advice on my friend Leta Austin Foster’s blog…….”Decorating with Sheets” “when to call in the specialists!” She is one of the best

decorators on this earth (in my opinion); and her explanation of the importance of “specialists” cannot be better explained!

My darling friends Brooke and Steve Giannetti I asked to come see the house! They did and they loved it!

Steve solved the “roof problem”!

(one of the items of “deferred maintenance”!)

No where in Santa Barbara County can you on a put a new wood roof!

So he showed me the absolute best “fake shake” roof! (my skin crawled at the notion of ‘fake shake’; until I saw Steve’s solution!) Thank you Steve and Brooke!)

There is simply not one single “composition roof” that looks like real “shake”! Except this one!

The roof was on its last legs. You could see sky when you stood in the attic.

And the roof is huge! It goes across the entire house; over the “porte-cochere” and the two and a half car garage!

The wood shake that looks appropriate on this style of house is now illegal to use in much of California; due to the risk of fire;

so Steve Giannetti sent me this picture with this color and this maker of “fake shake” roof which as you can see is

“as good as it gets”! It is “Cedarlite” and the color is:”Silverwood”! Thank you Steve! It looks gorgeous! (Just so you know; he also explained to our “head guy”

how to treat the side views so they didn’t look like ‘fake slate’!

This makes a “huge difference by the way!)

Here are the “planters” inset in the brick front terrace!

This was where the “leggy hags” lived! My total favorite Tara Dillard expression!

So inside those brick “planters” will be boxwood and an Anduze pot with a topiary “cone”

Instead of “leggy hags”

This is planter bed our daughter found at a chateau in France!

The exterior of the house had not been painted in over 35 years; and it was pink, with turquoise shutters!

The amount of preparation to sand and prepare the exterior woodwork and brick and stucco was mind-boggling!

It took 4 painters over 4 months for the inside and outside. (Fine painters) Nothing is more important in

the restoration of a fine old house than fine painters.

I often say to clients: “nothing is more expensive than ‘cheap painters’!

Without the proper preparation; harm will be done that is almost unfixable. Hire “cheap painters” at your own risk!

It was completely worth it; because it will now hold up for many years to come.

We spent a long time on the phone!

The roof off; and the shutters off preparing to paint! This looks like it is yellow; but it was pink! Honestly, pink!

The new colors for the exterior are : the brick and stucco are a “creamy” off white “New White” by Farrow and Ball”

and the whiter trim is “Pointing” by Farrow and Ball;

and the shutters and front door are “Black Blue ” in “full gloss” Also Farrow and Ball!

Now we start the new colors outside!

Here is the “before ” front door!

Please excuse the photographer (me) the new front door!

Well; it was a neglected “beautiful woman”; in m opinion! It had simply not been “kept up”! And houses (and people) do deteriorate when they are not “kept up”!

I saw this house as a magnificent beauty in dire need of restoration and “heavy cosmetics”!

The bones..as so many of you commented were perfect!

This is the exterior! For my next post…….I will do the “during” of the interior!

Yikes! It is such an exciting thing to bring a beauty back with restoration! This house reminds me of the model “Carmen”!

She is gorgeous at 81! This house is 78! It needed help……but the “bones” were perfect; and no “remuddeling” had taken place!

the entrance to the dining room from the back terrace……..(don’t forget; one room deep!”

Who thought of an outside fireplace in 1935?

Joseph Plunkett!

One chimney serves 3 fireplaces in this house!

Living room, this outside, and upstairs in the master bedroom. All use one chimney!

Masterful!

Now we see the new color scheme!

I think it makes a “magical” difference!

Just my opinion!

The chimney looks so pretty as “a part of the house”!

We do love the new , more classic, colors! That chimney was a bit of an eyesore!

(I am having a bit of a crisis! Newell Turner, my friend; editor of House Beautiful; recently promoted to “editor of all Hearst Design Publications”!!

Liked it “pink and turquoise!)

Oh well…..

Look how the shutters really “work!

They have no curtains or anything yet! This is what shutters were invented for!

(When was the last time you saw a “shutter” closed? Let alone not being nailed to the house and completely the wrong size!)

This shows the new roof!

This has been a six and a half month labor of love!

It won’t be as long before I post the “during” on the inside! Some spectacular before and afters!

They have moved in; and there is still more to do; they are all ecstatic!

On our chickens; one hen just hatched seven chicks!

Monterey Colonial "During"!! again before the "present" to be posted in the next few days!!! Exterior!Read More

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Monterey Colonial garden update! Big difference!!!

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

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