Bay Area Beauty

I loved this San Francisco apartment recently featured in Architectural Digest.  The designer skillfully balanced the needs of the homeowner’s  family demands  and their need to express their style.  Also, the collaboration between the designer and the couple in choosing interesting Asian art and antiques results in a home that is personal and beautifully designed. 

 

Like airports and railway stations, residences can be points of departure for life’s grand adventures. For a couple from Manhattan, she a psychotherapist and he a real estate attorney, the purchase of a 1,670-square-foot condominium overlooking the hills in San Francisco has been a chance to explore the city’s Pacific Rim culture and, perhaps more significantly, the terrain of the heart.

The couple was ready for “a new place and a new role for ourselves as grandparents,” the wife says of their decision to put down roots near their young grandchildren in San Francisco. (They commute from their primary residence in New York.) “We love the topography and ease of life, the Asian vibe. We wanted the residence to be emblematic of who we were in San Francisco.”

Longtime connoisseurs of contemporary art and architecture, the couple asked for a sophisticated apartment for themselves that would also function as a warm gathering spot for the extended family. “The Asian aesthetic is very sympathetic to ours,” the husband explains. “It’s all about simplicity, line and form.”

Of course, every difficult expedition needs a Sherpa. The couple, who “even deliberate on where to go to dinner,” says the wife, are still amazed by how easily they settled on The Wiseman Group and senior designer Judy McBride. They had researched the firm and admired the model apartments and interior fittings that Paul Vincent Wiseman had designed for the St. Regis Residences, where they now occupy a prime floor. Perhaps it was that fabled Bay Area karma.

“Their thing is modern,” says McBride, whose first in-depth design meeting with her well-traveled clients was held at the VIP lounge at San Francisco International Airport. “But this residence is about moving west, closer to Asia.”

For those desirous of architectural detail (and who isn’t?), even the most luxurious modern building can pose challenges. Here, the thorny issues were low ceilings and a structural beam beneath the windows running the entire length of the apartment. “It was tricky,” says Wiseman. “We wanted something bold yet simple.”

His solution took the form of a series of cantilevered alderwood shelves with Asian-inspired joinery and bronze hardware—a contemporary abstraction of the traditional Japanese tansu. The shelves visually anchor the interiors and, in the master bedroom, appear to float to the window’s edge. To further frame and define the space, The Wiseman Group designed a room divider between the master bedroom and the den that functions as a set of doors but reads like a paneled wall, establishing a strong architectural presence. “There was no detailing,” observes Wiseman. “So we had to create it.”

McBride and the couple scoured the Bay Area in search of fine Chinese and Japanese objects and works by Bay Area artists—expeditions that took them from Sausalito to Jackson Square. “We had a lot of fun going to places with Judy,” the wife recalls. “This whole new ancient world opened up to us.”

Click here to view the entire article.

Inspiring Travel

I’ve been thinking quite a bit about a trip to Italy that I took  last October.  One of the highlights of the trip was a stay at the  Borgo Santo Pietro  nestled  in the Tuscan countryside.  The hotel was absolutely beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay there.  The  food was excellent , the views were breathtaking and the gardens were charming.

Of course, I was inspired by the  hotels impeccably decorated rooms.  They were elegant, comfortable and above all luxurious.  Each room was decorated in a unique style, but ornate tapestries, murals, lush colors and delicious linens were ubiquitous.  Despite the hotels grandeur, nothing was overdone and it was always tasteful.  It appears that you can be simple and grand at the same time!

The outdoors were as inspiring as the indoors.  The gardens surrounding the hotel are classic Italianate gardens featuring fountains, clipped boxwoods and cypress trees.  Of course, there were beautiful kitchen and herb gardens used by the hotel’s restaurant.  I  loved all the pea gravel terraces and patios.   These terraces were a great spot for relaxing, reading and enjoying a coffee or aperitif.  The outdoor fireplace was also a guest favorite on cool evenings.

Although you don”t want to leave the hotel, the surrounding area is inspiring.   Beautiful scenery and charming villages are the draw of Tuscany.   The village of Palazetto is a quick drive  and it is great for strolling and people watching. 

You can read more about the Borgo Santo Pietro in this month’s House and Garden.

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