An early twentieth-century Monterey Colonial home underwent a complete renovation by Fergus Garber Architects, located in Palo Alto, California. Originally designed by renowned architect Birge Clark, a young family fell in love with the property and wished to tailor it to their lifestyle needs.
The structure had charming historical features, but the space, floorplan, and amenities were lacking in practicality. Through careful planning and creative problem-solving, this dwelling underwent a full-scale renovation and addition that incorporated a guest suite, mudroom, and family room, as well as a new basement space with golf and movie rooms and a combined dance studio and garage.
The homeowners requested a seamless indoor-outdoor connection. Contemporary nine-foot steel and glass doors open onto the beautiful garden and flood the interiors with natural light. Stone floors in the sunlit great room transition out onto the terrace.
The design solution was to navigate through city regulations for historic homes while optimizing the confines of the corner property. This included raising the ceiling height to gain more light and dropping the foundation so there was no longer a step onto the patio.
Efforts were taken to embrace the history of the dwelling and reuse and refresh the home’s iconic red clay roofing tiles, stuccoed landscape walls, and other original materials. At the same time, the interior architecture features a modern neutral palette with lighter wood finishes, bright brass hardware, and minimalist black steel detailing.
What We Love: The past and present come together to breathe fresh air into this gorgeous Monterey Colonial home. We are loving the modernized interior living spaces of this home and the beautiful connections to the outdoors. The goregous landscaping adds to the overall beauty with its expansive terrace and outdoor dining for entertaining family and friends. Overall, the architects did a fabulous job of transforming this house for family living.
Tell Us: What is your favorite feature in the redesign of this home and why in the Comments below!
Note: Check out a couple of other amazing home tours that we have showcased here on One Kindesign in the state of California: Tour this gorgeous rustic contemporary home in Palo Alto, California and Dutch Colonial Revival gets an elegant refresh in San Francisco Bay Area.
Above: Rhombus tile floors with dark wooden vanity with additional toiletry storage.
Above: This Monterey Colonial backyard patio features indoor-outdoor access to kitchen and dining areas. A second level balcony overlooks the yard. A detached garage can be seen in the rear.
PHOTOGRAPHER Paul Dyer
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