“We’re not sure what years the house was built,” says Jennifer Bennett, owner of the popular restaurants Zazie in San Francisco and Lovina in Calistoga. She’s talking about the house she purchased in 2008 as a weekend getaway that is now her full-time residence. “The family purchased the land in 1845 and the next record […]
“We’re not sure what years the house was built,” says Jennifer Bennett, owner of the popular restaurants Zazie in San Francisco and Lovina in Calistoga. She’s talking about the house she purchased in 2008 as a weekend getaway that is now her full-time residence. “The family purchased the land in 1845 and the next record […]
After their Wilmette home of three decades suffered significant smoke and water damage from an attic fire, John and Pam McCambridge turned to architect Mike Shively and interior designer Marshall Erb to revitalize the house for their next chapter in life. Shively had just redesigned their garage and swimming-pool patio, creating a chic area with […]
Open floor plans and clean lines might be trendy, but historic homes will never go out of style. With decorative details like wainscoting and intricate millwork, these five properties, which are currently on the market, have stories to tell. (Four of them are roughly a century old.) Thankfully, thoughtful renovations have modernized these homes without […]
In 2006 Emilia and Tad Buchanan moved their family of five into a spacious, south-facing home in Mill Valley. It had a fabulous floor plan and epic views, to boot. But, after a dozen or so years of nesting, the finishes began to feel dated. “It had that late nineties feel,” says Emilia, “Dark cabinets, […]
Interior designer Holly Hollenbeck refreshes a spacious but outdated Mill Valley home.
Bold coffered ceilings and echoes of traditional boiserie lift a classic but timeworn Russian Hill pied-à-terre. When a couple from a leafy Chicago suburb who needed to be closer to their daughter and grandchildren in San Francisco found a worn fourth-floor flat in a 1924 Russian Hill condominium building, they took it. “It had bay […]
When a Highland Park couple found a spacious, one-level home on a picturesque lot near Lake Michigan, they decided to make an offer despite its choppy layout and badly dated décor. “There was so much visual clutter that it was hard to make sense of the house, but it had classic elements and it wasn’t […]
Any job, big or small. That’s what the ad says. But how do you know if you’re getting quality work at the right price, not to mention protecting yourself if something goes wrong? 1. Know the Rules Be wary of any handyman who professes to do it all. Electricians and plumbers, as well as roofers, […]
Standing in the entry of Brian and Tami Quinn’s five-bedroom Spanish Revival home in Wilmette, it’s difficult to believe that the house had been marketed as a tear down less than two years ago. “Water had been seeping into the interior walls from leaking gutters, so plaster was crumbling, wallpaper was sagging and floors were […]
