Velvet & Linen

A Giannetti Home Project with a British Touch...

 

Several years ago, Steve designed this house in Brentwood, California for his friend, contractor Paul Morrow. Paul purchased the property as an investment and sold the house when it was complete. 

A while after the new owners moved in, Steve contacted them and asked if they wouldn't mind if he popped by. Fortunately, the new owners are lovely and generous people, and they welcomed a visit from my curious husband. As it turned out, Samantha O'Connor is a talented decorator from England, who added a whimsical aesthetic to this traditional home. 

 

Samantha was kind enough to let us take some photographs of the interiors and share them with you here. I know you are going to love them as much as I do!

As you can see from the dining room, Samantha shares my appreciation for Swedish and European antiques. Her interior decorating reflects her love for shopping at European flea markets and antique shops. 

 

In this two story paneled library, Samantha did an excellent job creating an inviting sitting area, made up of a set of mismatched chairs paired with a fun sofa upholstered in several different fabrics.   

 Samantha used modern styled barstools in her all white kitchen. The glass tile backsplash also adds a contemporary feel to the space.

Samantha used modern styled barstools in her all white kitchen. The glass tile backsplash also adds a contemporary feel to the space.

 

 The kitchen is open to the breakfast room and has a lovely view of the backyard. 

 

A collection of one of a kind chairs, as well as a beautiful wood bench, provides seating around a zinc-topped table in the breakfast room. 

 

 In the back yard, Samantha has designed several welcoming seating areas.

 

 Beyond the pool, the garage has the look of a charming cottage. 

 

We can walk back into the house through the family room...

 

As we walk towards the stairway, we can catch a glimpse of the Farrow and Ball wallpaper above the ebonized sink cabinet in the powder room. 

 

A muted green painted mirror stands in the corner of Samantha's daughter's bedroom, near a painted vintage vanity

 

 In the master bedroom, Samantha chose a pair of aged chairs, upholstered in faded tapestry, and a  metal garden table in front of the bed. Samantha used a soft floral linen for the window seat cushion cover.

 

 In the master bathroom, the free standing bathtub sits in front of the dramatic circular window, with a view of the backyard.  

 

 Afion marble slabs cover the walls in the shower.

 

 We can use the back stair to go back downstairs....  

 

Thank you, Samantha, for letting me share your beautiful home!

All photography by Lisa Romerein.

To see more images of Giannetti Home projects, please follow me on Instagram (VelvetandLinen).

xo

Brooke

Copies of our books, Patina Farm and Patina Style now available!

Our Clients' Atherton, Ca home in C Home Magazine!

 

Steve and I are so honored to have our clients' (Annie and Jim Barnett) home featured in the Fall 2016 issue of C Home Magazine!  With permission from C Magazine, I'm excited to share the article with you here. 

 

Writer Leilani Marie Labong did a wonderful job explaining Annie and Jim's desire to capture the essence of their former traditional Cape Cod-style home while creating a new home that had an open floor plan and connected with their stunning gardens that included mature redwood, dogwood and birch trees.  

 

This image by Lisa Romerein really provides you with a sense of the airy, open quality of the main space of Annie and Jim's home. 

 

Thank you again to Jennifer Hale and Andrea Stanford at C Magazine for including Annie and Jim's home with so many other beautiful houses in this issue. You can pick up C Home now on news stands.

 

 Steve and I spent two days at our clients'  home with our amazing photographer, Lisa Romerein, and our talented styling friend, Erin Taylor, and I thought you might enjoy seeing some of Lisa's images that aren't in the magazine...

 

The oversized steel windows and doors on the back of the house allows the natural light to flow into all of the rooms.

 

On the side of the house, planters filled with hydrangeas and boxwood flank the zinc covered porches.

 

 

Annie and Jim loved many of the design details of Patina Farm. Although their home is a different style, we were able to reinterpret many of the Patina Farm elements, including the pale gray steel doors and the clean white plaster walls, to work in their modern/traditional style home. A pair of our Alix sofas  provide comfortable and elegant seating.

 

The clean architecture is complimented by the more rustic antiques throughout the house.

 

An antique mantel is the focal point of the living room. 

 

Annie and Jim's cherished antique pieces become prominent features in the all white entry. 

 

 

Annie found this beautiful black Swedish cabinet to display her collections. 

 

The steel doors in the family room open to connect it to the outdoor patios.  Our Nick sofa and Mason ottoman create a cozy area to watch tv or hang out while dinner is being prepared. 

 

A pair of vintage zinc industrial lights (found at A Beautiful Mess), that originally hung over Elizabeth Taylor's tennis court, now illuminate Annie and Jim's kitchen island.

Who doesn't love a big steel window surrounded by white calcatta marble?

 

 

A pair of antique doors hide the bar in the breakfast room. 

 

 

Seen through the monumental steel window (all steel windows and doors by Euroline) in Annie and Jim's office, the redwoods make quite a spectacular view that can be enjoyed even when the glass steel interior doors are closed.

 

I have to also mention that the arched window itself is a pretty amazing view too!

 

 

The cement sink in the powder room adds a little contemporary edge to the house. 

 

A mix of Annie's own photography, as well as black and whites that she has collected,  are displayed on shallow white oak shelves in the upstair's hallway.

 

Annie's whimsical cherub sconces hang on either side of a beautiful chalky grey Swedish cabinet.

 

A pair of gilt mirrors add some shimmer to the all white master bathroom. 

 

 

 

Annie shares my love for Swedish antiques. We included all of her existing pieces throughout the house, including this beautiful chest in the master bedroom.

 

Laundry isn't as much of a chore when it's done in a room as pretty as this one!

 

Thank you to our amazing clients', Annie and Jim, for allowing us to share their home with you! Steve and I always say that our projects are a collaboration. Annie and Jim's home is a reflection of who they are and the clear vision they had of their dream home....

 

 

It takes a talented team to make a beautiful home! Thank you to Carter Seddon of Seddon Construction for overseeing this project.

Steve and I also want to thank Ryan Oliva and Javier Perez, our architectural associates. Madison Lussier, our interior design associate, kept track of all of the details... big and small over the entire course of the project. You're awesome!

Please feel free to ask questions in the comment section of this post.

To see pictures of our other projects as they progress, please follow me on Instagram (VelvetandLinen).

 

xo

Brooke

 

giannetti home: the french normandy house is ready for our installation!

We are one week away from installation day at our clients' gorgeous French Normandy style beach house!  Our site visit last week assured us that we will be able to get the house ready for our clients to enjoy over the 4th of July weekend. Just in time!

This was the first time we saw all of the lighting and cabinet hardware in place. The beautiful zinc "Piedmont"  lanterns above the island are from Urban Electric Company.

We painted the cabinetry on the left side of the kitchen Farrow and Ball French Gray so it would have the appearance of a  piece of furniture. The color matches the Exquisite Surfaces tiles behind the stove.

 

The three pendant lights are from Schoolhouse Electric.

Most of the brass cabinet knobs are from The Golden Lion. We selected different knobs and pulls for the islands and the other kitchen cabinets. 

The Barber Wilsons' unlacquered brass faucet is the same one that we used at Patina Farm.

 

The Laundry Room is ready for beach towels and bathing suits!

The counter is honed Balzac limestone.

The unlacquered brass faucet is from Newport Brass.

 

 We're bringing a couple of mirror options for the Powder Room.

 

All of the plumbing fixtures in the Guest Bathrooms are from Newport Brass.

The ceiling light in this image is temporary... we're waiting for the real one to arrive. 

The sconces are from Circa Lighting.

 

 

During our site visit, we tried out various baskets for storage. Each bathroom will be supplied with towels, hair dryers, etc... so the baskets will get a lot of use.

This vanity has an extra long sink vanity, which can be used as a make-up area.

 

 This arched shower is my favorite....

 

 In the Master Bathroom our clients chose a gorgeous Afion Marble. 

 

 We added extra storage underneath the daybeds in a couple of the Guest Rooms.

 

 

The Bunk Room is so cool! We've decided to paint the bunks a pale gray... 

The ship lights are from Barn Light Electric.

 

 The Bunk Room feels a bit like a ship, with storage built into the walls. 

 

 We used boat cleats as hooks for hanging those wet towels.

 

This is the Secondary Master.  It can easily accomodate a couple with small children.

The chandelier is from Aidan Gray.

There is plenty of storage for everyone...

 

The Courtyard is going to be a great hang out area... The outdoor fireplace is sure to get a lot of use when the fog rolls in!




I will be posting images to Instagram (VelvetandLinen) during the installation next week.  I hope you'll join us for the fun!

 

xo

Brooke 

a giannetti home project: modern in the desert...

 

 

Steve is working on a fantastic project, and I've asked him to share it with you...

 

Every once in a while I get the chance to something completely different. Last year, a longtime client asked me to design a new contemporary home in the desert.   

The site is amazing, with views of a golf course the and mountains in the distance.  

Here is my first sketch that I drew on the way back from visiting the site for the first time. You enter a motor court and then turn to the left to enter the house... slowly revealing the fantastic mountain view.

 

 

The house will be stone, glass, wood and plaster... very transparent. This was a sketch looking through the front door to the mountains beyond.

 

 

 

 

 

I prefer  to sketch my initial ideas...

Once inside, a two story living room frames the mountains, and a bridge separates the entry. The ceilings are pale wood. The walls are stone and plaster. 

 

 

 

After the layout is approved, we moved onto a Sketch-up model to work out the design. During each phase, the design is more refined. 

 

 

 

 

 During this phase, the landscaping becomes part of the design. 

 

 

 Along the way, we had a few photo realistic renderings created, integrating both Sammy Castro's landscape ideas and Anna Busta's interior designs.

 

 

We tested the ideas of the simple stucco and stone walls and floating wood ceilings. Most of the glass is fully movable, vanishing into the walls. Exterior draperies will block the western sun.  

 

 

  This early interior rendering shows the views to the mountains and some prelimary furniture selections. The new designs gave gotten much more interesting. We also raised the door heights to the back.

 

 

 

 Here are some photos that I took at the last site meeting. The angle of this image is similar to the first computer rendering.

 

 

 

 A view of the couryard. The openings will be all glass, framing the view of the golf course and beyond.

 

 

 The view of the mountains from the entry. There is a bridge that connects the 2 sides of the house.

 

 

 This view is similar to the angle of the interior rendering.

 

 

This image captures the bridge and the floating wood stairs.

 

 

 

 The view from the second floor is spectacular.

 

 

 

During the construciton process, I go back to pencil sketches, like these from my note book, to refine different areas and explain ideas to the client. 

We will be updating you on this project as it continues through the construction process.

A special Thank You to my clients for letting me share their home here on Velvet and Linen!

 

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As always, feel free to ask questions in the comment section of this post here.

 

xo

Brooke

 

For more inspiration, I can be found on Instagram (VelvetandLinen) 

and Pinterest (Brooke Giannetti)