MEDITERRANEAN MUST-SEE THIS YEAR'S PASADENA SHOWCASE HOUSE IS IMMERSED IN OLD WORLD CHARM - BUT WITH A SPANISH ACCENT.

Byline: Linda Hutchinson Staff Writer

'Mi casa es su casa,'' goes the traditional Spanish welcome: ``My home is your home.'' This is, perhaps, the greeting the Showcase House of Design extends to you at this year's tour of an area Mediterranean revival estate, dubbed Casa del Cielo: ``Home of the Heavens.''

Designed by the renowned architectural firm Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury in 1923 for Mr. and Mrs. William Henry Peters for $50,000, the two-story, 19-room home took four years to complete.

At one time, the house was dilapidated and ready for the wrecking ball until a local physician, Dr. Doug Benson, and his wife, Lynn, spotted the house in the 1970s. They bought it and did significant remodeling - bringing in all sorts of European detailing from their trips abroad to enhance the look of the home.

When Showcase scouts spotted the house in April of last year, this 9,500-square-foot home was being expanded by the current owners to more than 14,000 square feet. A brand-new poolside cabana and garage currently under construction are Showcase add-ons.

This year's interior co-chairwoman, Donna Gotch, was one of the first to get a look at the house last year.

``The grounds impressed me initially before I even stepped foot in the house,'' Gotch said. When she viewed house interiors, Gotch said she knew the place was at the top of the list.

``After coming up the driveway, when I saw the house I just said, 'Wow,' '' said 2003 House chairwoman Doris Christy. ``I just think the new construction on the house was done so tastefully,'' she said. ``When the architects added the extra rooms on, they really looked at the other parts of the house - what was original. And what they liked about them.''

Christy said she hopes that when the public views the house, they will feel the easy flow from room to room. She also advised viewers not to miss the backyard pool as well as the many garden areas.

As Showcase House viewing die-hards know, each year brings a different design flavor.

``It may be a Mediterranean revival estate, but the design has a lot of Spanish influence - more Spain than Italy this year,'' said Gotch. ``And you will notice throughout the house, there are designers going for that specific look.''

As for her personal favorites, Gotch has a fondness for the downstairs library, designed by the Elia Design Group of Pasadena. Designers are restoring all of the pre-existing bookcases, and an upstairs children's library is being created. The two spaces are linked by a small winding staircase.

Gotch also believes the salon off the living room, which is being done by Caroline Baker Interior Design in Pasadena, holds many of the basic themes of the home.

``The salon is truly one of the most Spanish-looking rooms in the house,'' said Gotch. ``Even though new windows are being installed, she's maintaining the floors, and really trying to stay within the time period.

For the salon, Baker teamed up with faux artist Randall Stokey to age the walls and stencil them with a Moorish theme. The process took eight days.

Next came the draperies. Baker hung teal drapes displaying the reverse side of the fabric, which is a deeper hue. She selected a pinkish shade of terra cotta for the antique silk velvet love seat. The floral armchairs are in complementary tones of pink, teal, green and yellow. The room is completed with a rust-colored chandelier and wall sconces.

Baker refers to the salon as ``the silver room,'' as it reflects the silver tones of its Spanish influence.

``It's a fun room, and the stenciling is like the icing on the cake. The part that works so well for me is there's a lot of color in this room.''

The color palette, which designers use as a guideline, is muted. Think ``the colors of Spain,'' said Gotch, like terra cotta. Many of the upstairs rooms are relying on ``neutral tones.'' And, ``This year, I think this house, the rooms are going to really flow from one space to another. The designers are working very, very well at doing that.'' Gotch said designers consulted one another to avoid color ``shocks'' when going from room to room.

While the Old World charm of the home dominates, designers have added modern touches. The bathroom of the Meditation Suite, designed by Bradley Blair of Los Angeles, includes a state-of-the-art Meridian 55 Bain Ultra bathtub.

With no visible plumbing components, the tub sports concealed air jets, a heated back rest and an electronic control panel that creates bathing luxury with the press of a button. Other unseen innovations include a super-quiet energy-efficient motor and a patented technology that flushes water out of the water lines in the tub after every use, reducing the threat of bacterial build-up.

In the kitchen of this year's Showcase House, designer Georgie Kajer of Pasadena celebrates the beauty of modern technology while still keeping with the period beauty of the estate.

``My dilemma as a designer is that there are no fabulous kitchens from the 1920s,'' said Kajer. ``In the '20s, kitchens were service quarters and usually stuffed with a lot of equipment. You really don't want an authentic 1920s kitchen in this house.''

She has used materials and finishes that were used in the 1920s and incorporated them into her designs for tile patterns and elegant, Old World fixtures.

Yet instead of hiding kitchen appliances behind cabinet panels, Kajer chose to celebrate their beauty by using stainless steel appliances.

The Thermador professional series range offers 15,000 BTU burners with Thermador's patented star design, which distributes the flame equally from the center to the rim of the pan. The Gaggenau steam and convection oven combines the advantages of two cooking methods into a single unit, allowing meats to bake crispy but remain moist.

Tucked away in the corner of the first floor of the mansion, the media room - or family entertainment lounge - and adjoining fitness and wine cellar is the one area in the house that makes no excuses about its embrace of the future. Designer David Reaume has installed large plasma televisions with surround sound in both the fitness center and family room. The speakers are embedded throughout the rooms.

Along with the lighting and air-conditioning, just about every electronic component in these rooms is controlled by a $200,000-plus AMX Control System installed by Encino-based Dynamic Audio. Even a computerized inventory can be kept of all of the wine stored in the wine cellar.

The Showcase house accommodated 55,000 visitors last year, and everyone at Showcase hopes they will exceed that number this year. Tour proceeds are used for youth music education programs, an instrumental competition for young adults, and a grants program that supports the Los Angeles Philharmonic and other nonprofit organizations emphasizing symphonic arts and educational programs for young people.

Staff writers Martin Gonzalez and Michelle Mills contributed to this story.

PASADENA SHOWCASE HOUSE OF DESIGN

Where: Visitors will be shuttled from the Rose Bowl parking area to the Pasadena estate.

When: 9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Sundays, Tuesdays and Saturdays; 9 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Through May 18.

Tickets: $25 to $30. Call [phone] or go to www.ticketmaster.com or www.pasadenashowcase.org.

Also: The gardens, La Cocina Divina restaurant and the Marketplace are free. Children under 12 are not permitted.

CAPTION(S):

9 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) On the cover

Bright light spills into the Salon, which features faux-aged walls and stencil work with a Moorish theme.

Leo Jarzomb/Staff Photographer

(2 -- 3 -- color) The kitchen of the Showcase House features stainless steel appliances and decorative tile inlay.

(4 -- color) The house was built in 1923 and saved from demolition in the 1970s by Dr. Doug Benson and his wife, Lynn.

(5 -- color) A plasma-screen television enhances the family room on the first floor.

(6 -- color) Designers preserved an Old World ambience, as seen in the Meditation Suite bathroom.

(7 -- color) The home's many garden areas may enthrall visitors just as much as the interiors.

(8 -- color) The wine cellar's inventory comes up on a touch-screen display near the media room.

Keith Birmingham/Staff Photographer

(9 -- color) Designer Greg Parker incorporated details from the library woodwork into the cabinets for the Lady's Office.

Leo Jarzomb/Staff Photographer

Box:

PASADENA SHOWCASE HOUSE OF DESIGN (see text)