A WORLD OF INSPIRATION PASADENA SHOWCASE HOUSE TAKES ON GLOBAL FLAVORS.Byline: Martin S. Gonzalez Staff Writer The Pasadena Showcase House has gone Hollywood. The 43rd annual Pasadena Showcase House of Design opened Sunday at Descanso Gardens Descanso Gardens is a 160-acre botanical garden and historical site located at 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, California, USA. Situated in a natural “bowl” in the San Rafael Hills, this calming, urban retreat is just 14 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. in La Canada Flintridge to reveal not only an impressive renovation of the historic Boddy House, but a whimsical whim·si·cal adj. 1. Determined by, arising from, or marked by whim or caprice. See Synonyms at arbitrary. 2. Erratic in behavior or degree of unpredictability: a whimsical personality. tribute to the Golden Age of movies. Designers made over the 22-room home -- built in 1937 for newspaper editor Manchester Boddy and his family -- with bold color, glamorous wall treatments and striking lighting fixtures and chandeliers. Mirrors and glass accents embellish the natural light. While designers have left their personal stamps on their rooms, there is an overall unity in this year's Showcase House, more so than in previous years. The Hollywood theme, and the history of the house itself, helped achieve this. The power of red The Red Carpet Foyer, designed by Christopher Gaona Interiors of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , is a terrific introduction to the house. It's done in a bold, solid red palette with restrained, symmetric clean lines in furniture and lighting. It also offers one of the finest outdoor views. As visitors enter the foyer, they look straight ahead through the solarium to a breathtaking garden and city vista. Vintage Murano glass Murano glass has been a famous product of the Venetian island of Murano for centuries. Located off the shore of Venice, Italy, Murano was a commercial port as far back as the 7th Century. By the 10th Century it had become a well-known city of trade. chandeliers and custom Murano glass wall fixtures appear in the "Hollywood Glam GLAM Glamorgan (Welsh County) GLAM Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (Australian Society of Archvisits) GLAM Grinning Like A Maniac GLAM God's Love And Mercy Powder Room," from Amy Devault Interior Design of Venice. Special touches include antique glass, monograms etched etch v. etched, etch·ing, etch·es v.tr. 1. a. To cut into the surface of (glass, for example) by the action of acid. b. in the mirror, crystal faucet handles and Calcutta marble floors. The upstairs "Singing in the Rain" master bath, designed by Carmel and Vincent Chow of Foothill Tile and Stone Co. of Pasadena looks to Art Deco art deco (ärt dĕkō`; är dākō`, ärt) or art moderne (är môdĕrn`, ärt) for design inspiration. "We used a lime-glazed plaster that was applied in four layers," Carmel Chow said of the walls. Hand-crafted white onyx onyx (ŏn`ĭks), variety of cryptocrystalline quartz, differing from agate only in that the bands of which it is composed are parallel and regular. floor tiles sparkle in the light. "And it's not slippery when wet," Chow added. Murano glass beads A crowd favorite is the small, second-floor backstairs back·stairs also back·stair adj. Furtively carried on; clandestine: backstairs gossip. backstairs or backstair Adjective space called "All Quiet on the Western Front All Quiet on the Western Front unromanticized novel of WWI and its unsung heroes. [Ger. Lit.: All Quiet on the Western Front] See : Antimilitarism All Quiet on the Western Front " by Sutherland Interior Design of Long Beach. A unique wall covering is made with bits of Murano glass beads. Other walls are done in luxurious Venetian plaster Venetian Plaster (or Stucco Veneziano) is a Faux Painting or Faux Finishing technique using thin layers of plaster applied with a spatula or trowel and then burnished to create a smooth surface with the illusion of depth and texture. . Check the "Satin & Silk" master bedroom by Peter Dunham of Los Angeles for its 18th-century-style Chinese wallpaper with hand-painted song birds. A benefit of this year's Showcase House is that the public will be able to reap the joys of the renovation for many years to come. Working closely with Descanso Gardens, Showcase designers created their rooms with an eye to the function of the space once Showcase House tours end, although the rooms will be used as offices and meeting rooms rather than bedrooms. One such permanent addition is "A Place in the Sun" wedding and sculpture garden A sculpture garden is an outdoor garden dedicated to the presentation of sculpture, usually several permanently-sited works in durable materials in landscaped surroundings. by Cassy and Kirk Aoyagi of C and K Landscape Design of Tujunga. The arbor on the garden mimics the entryway to the house. The Aoyagis envisioned the space being used as a sculpture garden, especially since the garden is located adjacent to where the future Descanso Gardens art collection will be housed. For the tour, Aoyagi has procured an arresting collection of sculptures and mobiles to bring her vision of a sculpture garden to life. Architect J.E. Dolena was the original designer of the Hollywood Regency-style mansion, which cost $140,000 at its completion in 1938. The house has served as an art gallery and event venue for visitors to Descanso Gardens for several years, and renovation has been on Descanso's to-do list for a long time. "It could not have been a better collaboration at a better time," said Avery Econome, public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most manager for Descanso Gardens. "What they're leaving with us is something that will serve Descanso and visitors here for many years to come." Literary aspirations Econome said her favorite room in the house has always been the library, where Boddy wrote many of his newspaper columns and did his radio broadcasts. "It's a beautiful paneled room that opens onto the terrace and overlooks the Oak Forest. Anyone who writes or reads and goes into that room will fall in love with it." The wood walls and shelves have been refinished and polished. Unique decorative accents and lush fabrics complete the look from Burbank-based MV Design Group. Michelle J. Mills contributed to this story. martin.gonzalez@sgvn.com (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2734 PASADENA SHOWCASE HOUSE OF DESIGN What: Visit the restored Boddy House presented by the Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts committee and Descanso Gardens. When: 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday; 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Closed Monday. Now through May 20. Where: Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Drive, La Canada-Flintridge. Parking: Weekday parking at Descanso Gardens. Weekend parking and shuttle service from the Rose Bowl, 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena. Tickets: $30 to $35; advance purchase required. No children under 12. Tickets include a Garden Pass good through May 20 to shop, dine or revisit re·vis·it tr.v. re·vis·it·ed, re·vis·it·ing, re·vis·its To visit again. n. A second or repeated visit. re the gardens. Information: (626) 578-8500. Tickets: (714) 442-3872. www.pasadenashowcase.org. CAPTION(S): 5 photos Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) BEAUTY BY DESIGN Historic Boddy House gets a makeover (2 -- 3 -- color) The "Singing in the Rain" master bathroom, above, designed by Carmel and Vincent Chow of Foothill Tile and Stone Co. of Pasadena, looks to Art Deco for its design inspiration, while the "Satin & Silk" master bedroom, designed by Peter Dunham of Los Angeles, features 18th-century-style Chinese wallpaper with hand-painted song birds, a detail of which is shown at right. Sarah Reingewirtz/Staff Photographer (4 -- color) The dining room at the Pasadena Showcase House of Design, the Boddy House in Descanso Gardens, has the theme "The Man Who Came to Dinner." The dining room's 10-foot-long table was cut from a West African West Africa A region of western Africa between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It was largely controlled by colonial powers until the 20th century. West African adj. & n. Bubinga rosewood tree Noun 1. rosewood tree - any of those hardwood trees of the genus Dalbergia that yield rosewood--valuable cabinet woods of a dark red or purplish color streaked and variegated with black rosewood . (5 -- color) no caption (home decor) Walt Mancini/Staff Photographer |
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