When a newly relocated couple reached out to Heidi Caillier to help with the design of their 1910 Craftsman, it didn’t take long for the Seattle-based interior designer to fly down to Berkeley to see the house herself. “[The owners] wanted to keep the spirit of the house as it was and add to it in a way that felt appropriate,” Caillier shares. “They view themselves as caretakers of the property and they wanted to respect what’s been done to the home instead of undertaking a massive remodel.”
With a sweeping view of the Bay and a lush yard that makes it feel like a treehouse, the more-than-a-century-old home was an easy sell for everyone involved. “We just fell in love with the character and the history,” says one of the homeowners. “We felt very enchanted by the house. It was an emotional reaction—I feel like that’s a very good way to describe it.” The home, they add, “has a kind of warmth.”
The owners, who had met in New York—he’s an East Coaster while she’s a Berkeley native—always knew they would return to her Bay Area hometown. “We wanted to move for all the technical reasons, like getting a dog and starting a family,” one of the clients explains. “We also always dreamt of living in a Craftsman, since they just feel so quintessentially Berkeley.”
Caillier and the owners connected right away, often finishing each other’s sentences as they took their first walkthrough of the house. “We seemed to be right on the same page from the start,” the designer explains. “I feel like half of my Pinterest was [images from] House & Garden UK,” adds one of the homeowners, who mentions Rita Konig and Beata Heuman as designers who inspired her. “It was very much a mix of European sensibilities,” adds Caillier. “Very Berkeley, very old-world, and a mix of younger British influences. [The owners] are both very well-versed in design and often took trips to the San Francisco Design Center to feel fabric samples and immerse themselves in interior design inspiration. They wanted to be very involved in the process. Every detail was so considered.”
The couple also wanted the home to feel casual and livable, not austere. They also wanted to incorporate more rustic kinds of organic materials like cane and wicker, and fill the space with vintage pieces and family heirlooms. “Heidi totally got that, translated it, and applied it in a very impressive way,” says one of the homeowners.
Since there wouldn’t be any changes to the layout—no walls to move or heavy construction—the focus, and often the biggest challenge, was in trying to figure out the balance of working with the dark woodwork and still creating something that felt lively and bright. “The house wants to be bright,” Caillier says. “As soon as you walk outside, the place is drenched in sun, but this dark millwork fights it. So it was really about creating balance.” Rather than choosing jewel tones and rich colors, the design scheme went toward colors like sage green, soft pink, and light blue, plus large and small scale floral patterns and just the right hint of quirkiness.
“Luckily the previous owners had done a lot of the hard work and had opened up the layout on the ground floor, so it was more of a big open plan,” says one of the homeowners. “We got to focus on the fun stuff like furnishings and wallpaper.” The owners like to think that they came in with a very thoughtful sprucing up of the home, embracing the patina of the wood and how it gives everything a vintage look. “It is showing its age, but we like that,” one of them adds.
“Every last ruffle and trim size was so considered,” Caillier says. “The way [the homeowners] live is very thoughtful, and the house really reflects that.”
Featured in Caillier’s forthcoming debut book, Memories of Home: Interiors, this house is a perfect example of the ways the designer showcases how to mix color with layers of pattern and textures that ultimately result in a beautiful, very livable space.
One of the bigger changes in the space was adding the new tile around the fireplace. “We settled on pink because it’s a nice little neighbor to brown,” says one of the homeowners, who adds that they ordered just about every color tile when trying to decide and now joke that they have a tile showroom in the basement. Filling out the rest of the living room are vintage Paolo Buffa chairs in a Michael Smith fabric, a Pinch London sofa in a Robert Kime fabric, an antique side table from Westenholz, a Blend Interiors coffee table, and Phillip Jeffries wallpaper.
Art: Antonello Radi
In another view of the living room, a vintage Audoux-Minet console sits under a painting by Antonella Radi. Interesting light fixtures fill the home, as seen with the vintage pomegranate lamp with a Penny Morrison shade. The drapes are custom with Rose Uniacke fabric and the striped rug is an antique Indian dhurrie.
Food and wine are important elements of the owners’ lives, so having ample space to prepare meals was essential. Devol pendants hang above the Matthew Cox island and Apparatus flush mounts add another source of light to the space.
The vintage tilework around the LaCanche range was a design update made by the previous owners of the home. The rug is an antique Tuareg from Mehraban.
The powder room received one of the bigger overhauls in the house and required some serious problem solving when the owners decided to use a centuries-old Greek washbasin as the sink. “Our contractor, [Jeff Altmann], was really patient, and also impressive, to be able to figure out how to make the sink effortlessly float,” says one of the homeowners. The Nicholas Herbert wall covering, antique brass scroll mirror, and Italian sconces continue the old-world feeling, while the Clé tiles and Waterworks Henry faucet add a glossy sheen to the room.
The dark wood is a defining feature of the downstairs, but one that the homeowners and designer embraced. The chair is from Blend Interiors with a Namay Samay textile seat and the lamp is a vintage Italian piece.
Adding a built-in bench to the listening room was one of the few changes the homeowners felt strongly about. “Craftsman houses usually have a built-in window seat so this seemed appropriate, and Heidi and our contractor made it look like it had always been there,” the homeowner says. “We incorporated some drawers underneath and having that extra storage is always a plus.” The cushions are covered in Guy Goodfellow fabric while the pillows add pops of color and pattern with Decors Barbares and Robert Kime fabrics.
The garden room, where the owners love to sit and have coffee in the morning, gives off a light, happy energy. It’s also a perfect example of where Caillier’s vision—that the room needed a green, skirted sofa (a custom piece covered in a Lisa Fine Textiles pattern)—paid off and is beloved by all. The rattan chairs are French antiques with cushions covered in Nicholas Herbert fabric. The ottoman is another custom piece covered in fabric from Jennifer Shorto. The rug is from Rush House.
A large-scale floral Pierre Frey wallpaper adds a youthful touch to the upstairs landing. Antiques fill the space from Audoux-Minet sconces to a Swedish bench and a Tuareg rug from Mehraban.
The primary bedroom is a favorite room of the homeowners, who find the soothing gray green Farrow + Ball Cromarty walls and views looking out to the Bay very peaceful. Just beyond the room is a Victorian sleeping porch—back in the day they were used for breezy summer slumber—used as an office space. The artwork is from Casa Gusto.
Vintage French chairs from Hollywood at Home in one of the outdoor seating areas.
For dining outside, an iron-based Bailey’s Home table and more vintage French chairs set the scene.
Art: Antonello Radi
Art: Antonello Radi
Art: Antonello Radi
