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Palo Alto Online

The Devil's in the details

by Carol Blitzer

Ideas - about imaginative colors, unusual textures, illuminating uses of light. That's what one expects at a show house and that's exactly what the Coyote Point Museum Auxiliary's 2003 Decorators' Show House delivers.

Visiting the house itself is worth the trip. Designed in 1929 by Gordon Kaufmann for San Francisco businessman Herbert Fleishhacker - who had it built for his daughter Marjorie and her husband Martin Mitau - the French Normandy home encompasses 10,000 square feet. From the outside, it resembles a mini-castle, complete with cupola.

Inside, the round room with the cupola has been transformed into a library, rich with refinished woods, and trimmed out in 9-inch string fringe.

There's a lot of attention to detail throughout the house, which was transformed by more than 30 local interior designers who donated their time and materials to create the show house, a fundraiser for Coyote Point Museum for Environmental Education in San Mateo. This year's show runs April 25 to May 18.

Beginning with the front entrance and hallway, designer Lilley Yee of San Mateo brought in hand-made wallpaper and bronze draperies, setting the tone for a richly textured home. She also added molding around the arches.

In the "loggia," designed by Julie Lanterman and Shelly Amoroso of Hillsborough, the designers decided to add texture to the smooth, Sheetrocked walls with color-infused Venetian plaster. It's hard to tell that the wall finish is composed of three layers, beginning with a strong umber base, a buttery middle and a linen top.

The room "was as high as it is long," Amoroso said, noting that "it couldn't be too fussy." The multipurpose, indoor-outdoor room has tall windows and doors along three walls, making it a perfect room for lounging, reading or entertaining.

The colors in the house range from muted greens to warm earth tones.

"We thought of it as a summer home, so we used cooler colors," said Dawn Williams of Design & Interiors, Los Altos, who chose a celery green for the large living room, subtly weaving in aquamarine and chartreuse. "We wanted a very elegant feel to the house, yet relaxed enough so people could be entertaining and enjoying family and friends," she added, noting that without real clients to work with, she imagined a family living in the space.

Williams drew attention to the French limestone fireplace by removing the glass-and-brass door with the old mesh screen and adding faux-finished decorative detailing.

Although there are windows on three walls, light is still at a premium in the large room. She maximized light by starting the window treatments about one-third of the way down the arch, using lined silk hung from burnished iron rods with pewter accents, softly puddled on the floor.

Jeanese Rowell, of Jeanese Rowell Design, Palo Alto, took her cues from a large tapestry that she hung in the stairwell. The rich hues of forest green and burgundy are reflected in the carpeting up the stairs, as well as in the fanciful painted molding near the ceiling. The shape of the arches and the window are emphasized with contrasting-color paint.

Up the stairs you'll find the "family room," which was made into a media area as well by Renee Prudhomme and Vicki Saxton of Flegel's Fine Furniture in Menlo Park. They found the rug -- a whimsical piece incorporating fish -- at the Stephen Miller Gallery in Menlo Park first and created a nautical/ethnic theme around it.

Inside the built-in bookcase - custom refaced by Segale Brothers, Menlo Park, to "add more presence and balance" - they placed a fish, crab and shells, along with an Indonesian shadow puppet on a stand. A Sony flat-screen TV takes center stage, complemented by a game table complete with chess board.

Track lighting offered "the most bang for the buck," said Prudhomme, as it highlighted accessories and the Gregory Deane (of Los Altos) painting over the sofa.

Prudhomme and Saxton had the coffee table custom made by Top Metal to reflect the theme, with wavy metal strips visible through the glass top.

It's clear that the designers were enjoying themselves upstairs: Peter Baty of Windemere Design Group, Palo Alto, created a young man's equestrian room complete with horse's head (not real, of course), medals and riding hat; a sitting room in the master bedroom suite became a space for a "Party of Two" dinner; the man's dressing room and bath is painted black and sports a modern chandelier.

The master bedroom was a challenge for the McChesney Design Studio in San Mateo, since there are no "walls" but many spaces broken up by doors and windows. Their solution: Set the large bed at an angle.

Part of the fun is contrasting the "before" pictures with today's creation. The Chat Room and Powder Room, for example, had been wallpapered in a gaudy Moulin Rouge print. Maria Quinby of Norman Design Studio, Woodside, and Annie Cronin of Verde Design Associates, San Mateo, transformed the room with 19th-century Swedish Gustavian antique furniture and chandelier, complete with "bishop's cap."

Gone is the busy paper; instead there are wide pale gold and deep gold stripes in the powder room and delicately painted detailing by Lisa Atoji of Palo Alto on the warm, yet light walls of the chat room. The design was copied from a Swedish castle.

An unusual addition to this year's show house is a spa room, complete with demonstrations of hand scrubs and head-and-neck massages, courtesy of Thermae of Menlo Park. What was once the sewing room and long-term storage area now houses a sauna and room for relaxation, which Elizabeth Hawkins splashed out in Thermae's corporate color of sea green. "You want people to feel, smell, touch," she said, adding that she put in a humidifier to create steam with eucalyptus scents.

Thermae products will be among those on sale at the boutique downstairs. Box lunches are available for $12, and other refreshments will be on sale as well. The fundraiser includes a drawing, with first prize $1,000.

What: 2003 Decorators' Show House: Mitau Manor When: Friday, April 25, through Sunday, May 18; Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Fridays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Wednesdays reserved for tours of 15 or more persons. Where: 77 Fair Oaks Lane, Atherton Parking: No parking on Fair Oaks Lane; park on nearby streets or in the Caltrain lot for 50 cents. Tickets: $20 in advance; $25 at the door; children under 8 not admitted Info: Call (650) 330-1455 or (650) 342-7755 ext. 102 for pre-prerecorded information; Anne Oakes at (650) 340-8720 or annieoakeslee@msn.com for tour reservations.