Historic home renovation

Berkshire Retreat. Photographer: Rob Karosis

Berkshire Retreat. Photographer: Rob Karosis

Berkshire Retreat. Photographer: Rob Karosis

Pergola gate with climbing hydrangea

Traditional carriage house garage and interlocking paved stone driveway enhances this traditional home with stone veneer in Los Altos, California.

Often, less is more. Take this landscape design composed of climbing roses, hydrangeas, and lilies surrounding a bluestone terrace. This small, suburban garden feels both expansive and intimate. Japanese forest grass softens the edge of the terrace and adds just enough of a modern look to make the garden’s owners, urban transplants, happy. “My husband and I were looking for an outdoor space that had a secret-garden feeling,” says homeowner Anne Lillis-Ruth. “We’ve had fun adding furniture, antique planters, and a stone fountain to [landscape designer] Robert Welsch’s beautiful landscape. The white and green plantings provide the perfect backdrop to my collection of colorful table linens, glassware, and china. We love our garden!” Dean Fisher loved it, too. “The setting is so lovely and relaxed. It evokes the south of France, with its intimate scale and the integration of house and patio through the use of the vines and other plantings.”

An eclectic and welcoming alternative to the traditional lawn. Inviting to birds, butterflys and neighbors. More at http://www.WestoverLd.com

"The circular seating area links a large side yard with the equally large front yard, giving both a raison d'etre. The rounded "carpet" of crushed stone has some nice detailing, including the block edging and the flagstone path that cuts through it. Not too casual; not too formal. Definitely inviting. The rounded area (complete with two charming turquoise Adirondack chairs and a small side table) serves the same purpose as a front porch, providing bonus seating to the two benches on the entry threshold of this traditional home. This side yard treatment is both attractive and neighbor friendly." Debra Prinzing More at www.WestoverLD.com

The original doors to the outdoor courtyard were very plain being that it was originally a servants kitchen. You can see out the far right kitchen window the roofline of the conservatory which had a triple set of arched stained glass transom windows. My client wanted a uniformed appearance when viewing the house from the courtyard so we had the new doors designed to match the ones in the conservatory.

This kitchen was originally a servants kitchen. The doorway off to the left leads into a pantry and through the pantry is a large formal dining room and small formal dining room. As a servants kitchen this room had only a small kitchen table where the staff would eat. The niche that the stove is in was originally one of five chimneys. We had to hire an engineer and get approval from the Preservation Board in order to remove the chimney in order to create space for the stove.

Joseph St. Pierre photo

My client wanted to keep a tub, but I had no room for a standard tub, so we gave him a Japanese style tub which he LOVES. I get a lot of questions on this bathroom so here are some more details... Bathroom size: 8x10 Wall color: Sherwin Williams 6252 Ice Cube Tub: Americh Beverly 40x40x32 both jetted and airbath

Photography by Northlight Photography.