A sweet corner Craftsman in Oakland gets a loving restoration by our craftspeople! What was once a dull beige (click through to second-to-last image of former barely-there colors via Google Maps), now sings in harmonious shades of green and violet, inspired by the bee-friendly California native plants in the surrounding gardens and the color of the sky at dusk. Beautifying and protecting the stucco and original details like the wood windows is one of our favorite things to do!
For this portfolio, we included photos of the garden and shots of the color tests, which show how this house painting project could have gone a few different directions, but all would have stayed within the palette of the flora.
Arana has been fortunate to partner with many talented interior designers in the Bay Area and our long-term relationship with Laura Martin Bovard and LMB Interiors (lmbinteriors.com) is a standout in this regard. It is our pleasure and joy to contribute our team’s craftsman skills to realizing the visions in Laura’s projects, many of which are transformations of architecturally-significant older homes into gorgeous, playful, and inviting environments for the modern families moving into them. We asked Laura to share with our community her thoughts on creating balance between the two forces, old and new; how she approaches adding beauty and enhancing liveability – while touching on some of the recent projects we’ve worked on together for her clients.
When I first arrive at a client’s home, I greet the space, the landscape, and the architecture, as if they are their own entities. My next step, if it is an architecturally significant home, is to assess the original craftsmanship. I always intend to maintain the original details, the quality that went into the building of the home.
And then there’s so much more than what meets the eye to consider: There is soul and lived-memory infused into the space, whether from previous owners or the original craftspeople who built it, or both. The history and the stories of how people moved through and lived in a home are woven into its walls and play a part in the way a home feels and looks; just as the new homeowners will add their story.
I’m such a firm believer that stories are how humans weave together their existence across lifetimes. And historic homes carry a soulfulness that new homes just don’t. Historic homes cure over time; there’s a richness to them. A certain level of groundedness. You can imagine who else was staring up at that ceiling 80 years ago. The passage of time in a given space is something that’s fun to contemplate; doing so furthers one’s connection to it.
We greet the soul of the home to be reverential toward the original quality craftsmanship, because legacy homes, historic homes, are almost always built better and with more integrity than what’s built now. A lot of the woodworking was more detailed; you are not going to see a lot of that level of quality and attention these days.
However, when we begin an interior design project, we want to consider who’s living there today. And if they really want to infuse a totally different aesthetic onto this home, we will necessarily walk a line between honoring the clients and honoring a home.
Most clients today don’t want to be surrounded by a lot of ornate, heavy velvets and dark colors. They tend to prefer a lighter, fresher palette. And so we find ways to bring in some of that without tipping the scale too far toward one direction or the other – the direction of the original architecture or the direction of the client. That’s the conversation we are having. It’s a very thoughtful process.
Project: Hollywood Regency
When people buy an estate home, there is a certain amount of stewardship that comes along with it. In particular, our “Hollywood Regency” project demonstrates this. The homeowners – a couple – see it as the community’s home as much as it is their home. They throw parties often, fundraising for civic entities and causes, including Oakland Parks and Rec, Fairyland, and organizations that impact education for Oakland’s youth, plus political fundraising, supporting Barbara Lee and other East Bay politicians.
Their home, known as The Morse House, is on the list of historical landmarks in Oakland, and it is just stunning. The house set the tone. These clients had a passion for local art, so it was fun to weave their love of it into the designs. Their aesthetic was their own version of what’s known as “Hollywood Regency,” which harmonized with the home being so grand. Hollywood Regency style reached its height of popularity in California between the 1920s and 1950s, so playing with this historical sensibility in this landmark home built in 1934 felt just right.
We brought in bright colors in the furniture and art, with plenty of jewel tones, while keeping walls neutral. We needed painters who understood how to perform a high-quality job on such a significant home, so of course we teamed with Arana Craftsman Painters.
Some wood features needed to be sanded down and prepped really well to maintain the provenance of the craftsmanship; you can’t just throw a new coat of paint on top of the original wood! The process requires skilled painters who can achieve clean edges and leave it in a good state for either the next homeowners, or the next paint job 20 years down the road. It has to age well. Having a clean, expert, professional paint job keeps the level of quality congruent with a historical home, ensuring the home is maintained with that sense of stewardship and respect. This kind of attention takes a certain level of investment, but it’s longer lasting, looks better, and celebrates the house.
Project: Piedmont Craftsman
A lot of people buying historic homes today are not only far younger than the structures themselves, but also they potentially have not been exposed to legacy homes before. And so the question becomes, how do you integrate a home with history with the needs of a younger family? In this case, the family that purchased this Craftsman estate were certainly worldly and appreciated quality, but we wanted the interior to reflect their style which was more playful, more energetic, a little bit more fresh.
One technique we used was color. We enlivened certain areas: the kitchen, the sitting area, the solarium, and the little library with a lighter palette, while maintaining the original kind of grand Craftsman quality of the manor in select other areas throughout the home.
But then there were the very grand touches that were not part of the original architecture to contend with. One set of the home’s previous owners had been Italian, and the owners after them inherited their design additions, which skewed towards a rather heavy-handed Italianate look. These next owners layered in some Asian touches, per their taste. And so, in working with the home and its history for our clients, ultimately, we needed to peel the layers back to restore the original, timeless, tasteful Craftsman elegance.
Some of the layers we liked, and those we kept. For example, we all agreed that we enjoyed the spirit of the Italianate fireplace. And we liked the more-recently-added tile details and flooring in the solarium, because it felt appropriate for a sunroom to have that. In the dining room, we also kept the ornate ceilings, just touching up and refreshing them. We left that original, very grand application, while choosing to temper the impact with a natural woven grasscloth wallcovering, thus connecting the room in spirit to adjacent, lighter areas of the house.
Project: Maybeck Craftsman
For this Maybeck Craftsman that had been purchased by very discerning clients, the work was going to involve a very specific challenge: restoring and/or replacing huge areas of redwood paneling – a key design element in Maybeck homes. We knew we needed an expert team, because we needed every detail to be flawless. So of course, this project called for Arana’s “stainmaster” Ernesto and his team.
Color matching the stain from old redwood to new redwood is a challenge, and in this situation, after decades of life, curing, sunlight, et. al. – let’s just call it “50 shades of brown-and-red.” It is a massive undertaking to have new wood look like it was there all along, and to freshen, clean, and care for the old wood at the same time so that it will continue to serve. It’s an art. Color matching it all took many rounds of mixing to get right, and in the end, the results were exactly what the home needed.
Stewardship Is a Relationship
Historic homes and modern families and the design that brings them together is a relationship benefitting from exquisite listening, understanding, respect, communication, and connection. Like any good marriage, each partner affirms and appreciates the strengths the other brings to the equation. Good design is like a marriage counselor, helping the parties to maintain their unique qualities in some areas and choosing where to blend in others; ultimately creating something greater than the sum of their parts.
As the name of our company implies, we (Donatella and Simona) are both Italian, and our interior design style takes inspiration from the wonder that is Italy. Although we live in California, we return to our home country every year – to visit family, source from our vendors and of course, for inspiration.
Drawing from the elegance, history, and artistic heritage of Italy while blending in a more laid-back, contemporary vibe of California we create home designs for our clients that are stylish, classic yet fresh, and beautifully livable. Would you like to bring a bit of Europe into your California home?
Here are a few design tips, along with photos from our most recent trip, this past summer:
Classic Meets Modern: Think of a sleek minimalist living room adorned with a vintage Venetian mirror or a rustic Tuscan dining table paired with modern chairs. This juxtaposition creates a unique and eclectic aesthetic that is both sophisticated and inviting.
Natural Materials and Textures: Italian design emphasizes the use of natural materials like stone, marble, wood, and wrought iron and brass. Consider pairing a marble sink reminiscent of an Italian villa with a modern kitchen; or terracotta tiles to bring warmth and texture to a patio, reminiscent of the landscapes of Tuscany.
Artisanal Craftsmanship: From hand-painted ceramics to custom-made furniture, investing in quality pieces sourced in Italy not only enhances the aesthetic appeal but also creates a sense of connection to European artistry and heritage.
Earth Tones and Neutral Palettes: Italian interiors often feature a palette of earthy tones, inspired by the natural surroundings. Warm beiges, soft browns, and muted greens evoke the tranquility of the countryside.
Maximizing Natural Light: Taking full advantage of natural light is a concept that Italians and Californians share. Large windows and open floor plans invite light in; sheer curtains or strategically placed mirrors can enhance this effect.
Indoor-Outdoor Flow: Taking inspiration from Italian courtyards and terraces, add comfortable seating areas, outdoor kitchens, and lush greenery to the backyard.
Al Fresco Dining: Adding a rustic wooden table, string lights, and potted plants evokes the charm of an Italian piazza and encourages leisurely meals under an open sky – embodying the relaxed, communal spirit of both cultures.
Curated Collections: Europeans, particularly Italians, have a knack for curating collections of art, books, and antiques. Californians can adopt this approach by displaying personal collections that tell a story and add character to their homes.
Timeless Elegance: Choose pieces that transcend trends – quality over quantity, classic pieces, and a cohesive design scheme can create interiors that are both stylish and enduring.
To see more of what is possible when bringing Italian aesthetics and sensibilities into California homes, visit www.florentine-design.com
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Photo info:
Marble and coffered ceilings balance the contemporary feel of the lighting and colors in this completely transformed kitchen in San Francisco. Interior Design by Florentine Design. Photographer: Nadia Andreini | DILUNA Photography
Venice Canal: Colors mirrored by the water are a feast for the eyes. Photographer: Donatella Mazzini
This modern chandelier perfectly fits in the classic foyer of this San Francisco Victorian; Interior Design by Florentine Design. Photographer: Nadia Andreini | DILUNA Photography
Minimalism meets beautiful details in this restaurant interior – with a Murano glass chandelier, rich wood tables and beautiful, original, 1500s vaulted ceilings; in Tolentino, Italy. Photographer Simona Corradini
Donatella Mazzini (left) and Simona Corradini (right), founders of Florentine Design
The glass art greets one on the approach to her front door, sculptures both vertically and horizontally oriented, in the garden and on the porch. I am at the home of Mary Albert, glass artist, and longtime Arana client. Fans of our newsletter may recognize the sumptuous interior colors she chose for her basement ADU which we’ve featured before in this newsletter, or her kitchen with the art-tile backsplash, included among the many favorites in our cookbook.
We start our tour in the driveway; her mosaic tiles in non-matching designs are set along the two sides. The tiles used to be just laid in the dirt, until somebody stole one, and she took the rest inside to reassess. “Why did they take THAT one? Am I angry or am I flattered?” she mused at the time. (Today, the missing tile has been replaced by a new one, and all 26 are now permanently installed.)
The garage door opens to reveal an inviting mad scientist’s/artist’s lair, outfitted all around with shelves holding pounds and pounds of colored glass and gear; workstation front and center.
Inside the house, our first stop is the dining room table where all of her current for-sale pieces are laid out in piles and wrapped in foam, awaiting pricing for her next show. More of her glass-art dishes, plates, plaques, and organic shapes are displayed throughout the house, sometimes next to pieces made by other glass artists she respects and admires. We visit her kitchen, featured in Arana’s cookbook, and I get to see close-up the mosaic backsplash featuring a fleur de lys; a piece she commissioned mosaicist Gina Domingue to make for her and that they built to be removable, should she ever decide to move.
We retire to the back balcony, surrounded by chirping birds and more of her outdoor landscape adornments, a set of glass and cement stepping stones are visible in a path that meanders down through the garden below.
Our interview begins… Artist, artisan, crafter? All of the above.
Mary explains, “People love the Craft vs. Art discussion. I don’t hold that distinction, necessarily I think possibly the difference is that craft is usable and art is a visual feast; and so many arts are crafts and so many crafts are art.
“When I started, I was making pieces I was really enjoying making, which were very large and kind of expensive to make, and they weren’t selling the way I wanted them to.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do to change that. I started looking at ways to use up scrap glass. Every week I would make small pieces with that; wasabi dishes, sushi dishes, dessert plates for petit fours, and they were selling – people loved them!
“The big stuff, people think, ‘What am I going to do with that? Who can I give it to? I can’t afford it.’ But then, sometimes something speaks to you and you really want that thing. Someone might say to me, ‘I love that! Do you have anything like that, but smaller?’”
Her light eyes sparkle as she speaks. “What’s been lovely is that people come back a couple months later for the larger piece: ‘Do you still have it? I can’t stop thinking about it! I really want it.’”
Her voice has distinctive rasp, and a cadence that is almost bubbly but with an underlying intensity, the fierceness with which she approaches everything – from her past experiences as a law school student, a denizen of corporate America, a second career as a voice-over actor, and now her work making fused glass. Her nom-de-kiln is Glass-Vox (glass-vox.com), a nod to her two favorite professions.
Utility and beauty are almost equal parts of her ethos. “I like making things that people can use. Most of what I make is useful – not just art. I believe to my core that art is crucial. And, I like color. I love to set a pretty table! If you have color popping on that table, that’s fun!”
At the time of publication, Albert and other artists like her are gearing up for holiday craft sales. While she is adept at gift-sized art, Albert is not in the business of making multiples past an individual set.
“A lot of people go into production and they are brilliant at it,” she notes. “But I don’t typically make the same thing more than once.” Her plates come in sets of two or sometimes four. “I have too many ideas in my head to do sets!” she laughs. “I love a matched pair and have done things that are similar or could go together; I will use the same color palette to make a serving set – bowl, platter, plates – but they will not be exactly identical.” She doesn’t repeat her mosaic pieces, either.
Albert’s “functional art glass” is also not just for sale. She regularly donates pieces to community fundraisers and rents work out for staging homes.
Her passion for glass art started with a class in the early 2000s, and later, joining The Crucible in 2013 was a turning point, giving her access to a large-scale kiln to make bigger pieces, as well as immersing her in the inspiration and encouragement that comes from being among a community of fellow women-artists.
She says, “What I discovered, working alongside this group of all-women, some who had been doing this for 20-plus years; they were all so generous and kind, offering advice and suggestions and tips…. In the classroom you are making smaller pieces. Once you join a lab, you are sharing molds and other resources. You learn so much in that situation, even just observing, and that emboldens you to try something new.”
The kiln itself is a collaborator and co-conspirator. Albert describes, “A lot of magic happens in the kiln; forgiveness and joy comes out of the kiln. You put something in and you didn’t know it would flow like this and fill in that gap and when it comes out, all the faults I saw going in have corrected themselves; the kiln makes me look good.”
We finish our meeting with a tour of the downstairs ADU. Where the main living area of the house boasts a more subtle palette, the ADU is where Albert let her imagination run a little wilder. With the assistance of a color consultant, and her experience in a painting-textures class, she selected the rich coppery textured wall for the entry and kitchen, and the deep “dark cherry” almost-purple textured walls with glossy chocolate-brown trim and ceiling in the living room – colors that evoke a feeling of “steam-punk” luxe.
Our very last stop on the tour is back out front, admiring more of Albert’s glass art pieces, which are placed amongst the river rocks around a tree in that little patch of garden next to the sidewalk; all of which, so far, remain in situ.
2024 Holiday Art and Craft Shows Shadowlands Holiday Faire & Holiday Teas; Shadelands Ranch Museum, Walnut Creek, November 30-December 15 Oakland Cottage Industry Show; 4101 Park Blvd., Oakland, December 7 GIFTY at The Crucible 1260 7th St., Oakland (near West Oakland BART), December 7-8 (Mary will be there on the 8th)
Over the years, in writing our newsletter (which is also posted on this blog) we have interviewed and hosted guest blogs by numerous brilliant and talented Bay Area interior designers and landscape architects, sharing their wisdom on how to make our homes beautiful, inside and out.
This post is an opportunity for us to collect links to all of these articles in one place and share them with you! And if you are not already on our e-newsletter or snail-mail newsletter list, please reach out to us and let us know. Send a message to [email protected] or sign up via the contact form on our website: craftsmanpainters.com/contact. Please include your physical address if you would like to receive the print version.
The glass art greets one on the approach to her front door, sculptures both vertically and horizontally oriented, in the garden and on the porch. I am at the home of Mary Albert, glass artist, and longtime Arana client. Fans of our newsletter may recognize the sumptuous interior colors she chose for her basement ADU which we’ve featured before in this newsletter, or her kitchen with the art-tile backsplash, included among the many favorites in our cookbook.
We start our tour in the driveway; her mosaic tiles in non-matching designs are set along the two sides. The tiles used to be just laid in the dirt, until somebody stole one, and she took the rest inside to reassess. “Why did they take THAT one? Am I angry or am I flattered?” she mused at the time. (Today, the missing tile has been replaced by a new one, and all 26 are now permanently installed.)
The garage door opens to reveal an inviting mad scientist’s/artist’s lair, outfitted all around with shelves holding pounds and pounds of colored glass and gear; workstation front and center.
Inside the house, our first stop is the dining room table where all of her current for-sale pieces are laid out in piles and wrapped in foam, awaiting pricing for her next show. More of her glass-art dishes, plates, plaques, and organic shapes are displayed throughout the house, sometimes next to pieces made by other glass artists she respects and admires. We visit her kitchen, featured in Arana’s cookbook, and I get to see close-up the mosaic backsplash featuring a fleur de lys; a piece she commissioned mosaicist Gina Domingue to make for her and that they built to be removable, should she ever decide to move.
We retire to the back balcony, surrounded by chirping birds and more of her outdoor landscape adornments, a set of glass and cement stepping stones are visible in a path that meanders down through the garden below.
Our interview begins… Artist, artisan, crafter? All of the above.
Mary explains, “People love the Craft vs. Art discussion. I don’t hold that distinction, necessarily I think possibly the difference is that craft is usable and art is a visual feast; and so many arts are crafts and so many crafts are art.
“When I started, I was making pieces I was really enjoying making, which were very large and kind of expensive to make, and they weren’t selling the way I wanted them to.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do to change that. I started looking at ways to use up scrap glass. Every week I would make small pieces with that; wasabi dishes, sushi dishes, dessert plates for petit fours, and they were selling – people loved them!
“The big stuff, people think, ‘What am I going to do with that? Who can I give it to? I can’t afford it.’ But then, sometimes something speaks to you and you really want that thing. Someone might say to me, ‘I love that! Do you have anything like that, but smaller?’”
Her light eyes sparkle as she speaks. “What’s been lovely is that people come back a couple months later for the larger piece: ‘Do you still have it? I can’t stop thinking about it! I really want it.’
Her voice has distinctive rasp, and a cadence that is almost bubbly but with an underlying intensity, the fierceness with which she approaches everything – from her past experiences as a law school student, a denizen of corporate America, a second career as a voice-over actor, and now her work making fused glass. Her nom-de-kiln is Glass-Vox (glass-vox.com), a nod to her two favorite professions.
Utility and beauty are almost equal parts of her ethos. “I like making things that people can use. Most of what I make is useful – not just art. I believe to my core that art is crucial. And, I like color. I love to set a pretty table! If you have color popping on that table, that’s fun!”
At the time of publication, Albert and other artists like her are gearing up for holiday craft sales. While she is adept at gift-sized art, Albert is not in the business of making multiples past an individual set.
“A lot of people go into production and they are brilliant at it,” she notes. “But I don’t typically make the same thing more than once.” Her plates come in sets of two or sometimes four. “I have too many ideas in my head to do sets!” she laughs. “I love a matched pair and have done things that are similar or could go together; I will use the same color palette to make a serving set – bowl, platter, plates – but they will not be exactly identical.” She doesn’t repeat her mosaic pieces, either.
Albert’s “functional art glass” is also not just for sale. She regularly donates pieces to community fundraisers and rents work out for staging homes.
Her passion for glass art started with a class in the early 2000s, and later, joining The Crucible in 2013 was a turning point, giving her access to a large-scale kiln to make bigger pieces, as well as immersing her in the inspiration and encouragement that comes from being among a community of fellow women-artists.
She says, “What I discovered, working alongside this group of all-women, some who had been doing this for 20-plus years; they were all so generous and kind, offering advice and suggestions and tips…. In the classroom you are making smaller pieces. Once you join a lab, you are sharing molds and other resources. You learn so much in that situation, even just observing, and that emboldens you to try something new.”
The kiln itself is a collaborator and co-conspirator. Albert describes, “A lot of magic happens in the kiln; forgiveness and joy comes out of the kiln. You put something in and you didn’t know it would flow like this and fill in that gap and when it comes out, all the faults I saw going in have corrected themselves; the kiln makes me look good.”
We finish our meeting with a tour of the downstairs ADU. Where the main living area of the house boasts a more subtle palette, the ADU is where Albert let her imagination run a little wilder. With the assistance of a color consultant, and her experience in a painting-textures class, she selected the rich coppery textured wall for the entry and kitchen, and the deep “dark cherry” almost-purple textured walls with glossy chocolate-brown trim and ceiling in the living room – colors that evoke a feeling of “steam-punk” luxe.
Our very last stop on the tour is back out front, admiring more of Albert’s glass art pieces, which are placed amongst the river rocks around a tree in that little patch of garden next to the sidewalk; all of which, so far, remain in situ.
2024 Holiday Art and Craft Shows Shadowlands Holiday Faire & Holiday Teas; Shadelands Ranch Museum, Walnut Creek, November 30-December 15 Oakland Cottage Industry Show; 4101 Park Blvd., Oakland, December 7 GIFTY at The Crucible 1260 7th St., Oakland (near West Oakland BART), December 7-8 (Mary will be there on the 8th)
View Mary Albert’s Work Instagram: @glassvoxbyhand Website: glass-vox.com Private showings on request
House Painting Project in Oakland, CA, Grand View.
Rebuilt from the ashes of the Oakland fire in 1991, this grand home with a grand view (on Grand View!) was ready for a kitchen refresh. Arana painted all of the cabinetry, taking it from a dated and yellowy stained wood to this bright and light, more modern design.
About Arana Craftsman Painters
Arana Craftsman Painters is a premier, family-owned residential painting company based in the San Francisco Bay Area. They specialize in both interior and exterior painting, bringing the beauty of homes to life with their expert craftsmanship.
Their services extend beyond painting to include plaster and drywall repair, wallpaper removal, wood restoration, waterproofing, caulking, and sealing. Clients have praised their superior workmanship and reasonable project timelines, noting that their homes look as if they were new after Arana’s work.
Arana Craftsman Painters serves the Bay Area, including cities like Oakland and Berkeley, offering professional painting services for both residential and commercial projects. Their experienced team brings years of expertise to each project, ensuring high-quality results that enhance the beauty and value of homes and businesses.
Beautiful home in Alameda we had the pleasure of working on.
We love houses that have lots of decorative details!
These homeowners chose a palette that not only reflects their love of U.C. Berkeley, but also highlights the craftsmanship on the vintage early 1900s woodwork. Choosing a darker gray for below the molding is another creative choice that adds to the curb appeal. And the fact that the houses on either side are gray on the one, and blue on the other, speaks to how choosing a palette can be a decision that plays well with others, and contributes to the beauty of the whole neighborhood.
A little bit about Alameda.
Alameda is a city located in Alameda County, California, situated in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The city occupies an informal archipelago, including Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, providing a unique geographic setting. With a population of around 77,600 people, Alameda boasts a diverse community, where 24.6% of residents were born outside the United States. Alameda is characterized by its suburban feel, offering a blend of big-city amenities and small-town charm. The city takes pride in its sense of community and local initiatives, such as the “Love Our Island” campaign, which fosters civic pride and engagement
It is EASY being green… It’s just not easy CHOOSING green
We think this palette is divine!!!👏 Great work on the part of the Designer, Leela Willow. The color on the garage door is just a pleasure for the eyes!
PROJECT DETAILS: Spray application done by our Craftsman Painter Julio Cadenas on this gorgeous custom garage door. Part of a ground-up addition to a rustic former hunting lodge in the Piedmont Hills.
GARAGE DOOR COLOR: Rainy Afternoon 1575, Benjamin Moore in Satin finish
NOTE: While we love Satin for the way that it can render any minor variations in the underlying surface less visible, as well as for its muted sheen, we generally recommend Semi Gloss — which is a bit shinier, yes, but also more durable — for any exterior wood surfaces.
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