Blending local art, favorite furnishings for fun and happy home
Homeowners in Alamo Heights know that when you find a home that fits your lifestyle, you stick with it. You may remodel, paint, refurnish or restore but you stick with it.
This family has lived in their home for 28 years, raised three children here, and now their grandchildren come to play. With 4,500 square feet, there’s plenty of space to entertain family and friends.
“My favorite thing about the house is the floorplan,” the homeowner says. “All the rooms open into one another, making it very livable.”
The three-story home has four bedrooms, four baths, and one powder room.
It looks a little different today than it did 28 years ago when the couple saw the home on the market. They needed more space since a baby was on the way. Three years after the baby arrived, the couple did a small remodel for the kitchen.
Along the way, they added the downstairs master suite and then finally moved out for nine months and completely remodeled the rest of the space to meet the needs of a growing family. They enlarged the den and gutted and remodeled the kitchen.
The backyard, which had quite a slope in the beginning, was leveled and a 40-foot lap pool installed. The homeowners added an outdoor cooking area under a shady arbor. Large urns filled with colorful flowers were posted around the back and front yards. The result is a peaceful, welcoming home for all who cross the threshold.
The living room is a combination of neutral furnishings, a zebra rug under the coffee table and a vibrant abstract by Michael Wayne. A sunny yellow diptych created by the homeowner’s friend Sandra Wright hangs near it.
“I saw the Michael Wayne piece in a gallery and loved it,” the homeowner says. “I bought it for our coast house but couldn’t part with it. The Sandra Wright diptych reminds me of sunshine and makes me happy.”
The kitchen is a model of efficiency with no wasted space. A locally-sourced farmhouse table was topped with a granite slab to create a kitchen island that’s great for prep space. The column refrigerator and freezer are made by Thermador, as are the double ovens. The Bosch dishwasher and Dacor gas range complete the appliance package.
The dining room has a beautiful backyard view, courtesy of a wall of windows. Sunlight filters in on the round dining table.
“I always wanted a round table in a square room,” the homeowner says, “because it seats a lot of people.”
Her mother’s French china cabinet displays a collection of silver pitchers and her grandmother’s Limoges china. A small cabinet mounted on the wall across the room holds her mother’s collection of silver napkin rings.
The chandelier over the dining table was originally just a placeholder during the remodel. “After looking at it for a while, I decided I liked it. It’s whimsical!”
The homeowner is also attached to the large artwork by Ana Montoya, the owner of AnArte gallery. “I like the way the colors play in the room.”
The den décor is designed around a large Kathy Sosa commissioned piece “for one of my big birthdays,” says the homeowner. “It’s part of a series she painted called “Tree of Life.” It hangs over a narrow altar table behind the sectional sofa.
Why an altar table? “You’ve got to have a place to put the lamps!”
At one end of the room is a large built-in bar space hidden behind cabinet doors. Before the remodel, this area contained bookshelves. Now it organizes bottles of libations and barware. At the opposite side of the room, plantation shutters open to reveal French doors that open onto the backyard.
Near the doors is a carved and painted chest that holds the grandchildren’s toys.
“We enjoy our home so much,” she says. “One day it will become too large for us, but until then, we love every minute of it!
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BY ROBYN BARNES
PHOTOGRAPHY BY AL RENDON
