Beat the pandemic blues and take in some fresh air!
At Arana, we’re always looking for new and different — or even tried-and-true — ways to enjoy our homes and communities! Given all of the hard work we do helping homeowners throughout the Bay Area by beautifying their homes and neighborhoods, it seemed natural that when we learned about Questing, we would be excited to share about it with you.
Questing, and its cousins, Scavenger Hunts, Guided Adventures, Geocaching, and Letterboxing, are great ways to get more real-life engagement with our community treasures and the great outdoors into our lives!
Questing is an age-old activity that can be used for community building, education, and just plain fun! With the multitude of views and vantage points on our gorgeous Bay that you can get by traveling around, you can even build a whole quest with the goal of seeing the water from as many different angles as possible in one day!
Here are some resources and tips for starting on a Quest of your own:
Questing Questing: A Guide to Creating Community Treasure Hunts is a book about this “place-based education model.” As explained by the authors, “Questing is creating and exchanging treasure hunts in order to collect and share your community’s distinct natural and cultural heritage, your special places and stories.” The book provides the history, social value, and academic reasoning behind using scavenger hunts as a tool for individual growth and community connection, as well as guidance for devising (writing clues, making maps, etc.) and sharing your own journeys.
Geocaching Geocaching (and Letterboxing, below) are adventurous outdoor activities for all age groups. If you like hunting for treasure, have good orienteering skills, and love the great outdoors, these activities are for you and your family. Geocaching is a high-tech treasure-hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Go here to sign up for your local chapter: geocaching.com/play. (Note: There are free and paid-membership versions.)
Letterboxing Letterboxing combines navigational skills and rubber stamp artistry into a charming “treasure hunt” style outdoor quest. A wide variety of adventures can be found to suit all ages and experience levels. Atlas Quest (atlasquest.com) is a global Letterboxing community. The website provides guidelines and resources including chat boards, events, photo galleries, tutorials, and more, and registration is free.
Scavenger Hunts In some ways, this is the overarching term for all of the above, albeit without the specifics of a tech focus, scrapbooking, or community engagement. A scavenger hunt is usually a one-time event for a specific group of people. Often used for a celebration activity or team building. There are companies that specialize in creating unique hunt experiences. This article from cityHUNT offers detailed guidelines for making up a hunt of your own (or will convince you that you would rather pay them to do it): cityhunt .com/theultimate-guide-on-how-to-make-a-city-scavenger-hunt
Everyone knows that it is good manners to thank people. What might be less intuitive is that showing gratitude creates a whole host of positive outcomes for the grateful person.
According to The University of California at Berkeley, practicing gratitude can lead to benefits in the physical, psychological, and social areas of a person’s life. Having a stronger immune system, being more alert and optimistic, and feeling less lonely or isolated are just a few of the ways that a person could notice an improvement over time. The social aspect is possibly the most important because gratitude can help strengthen relationships by affirming others.
Psychology Today highlights gratitude’s role in the relationship of a married couple. Over time it is common for a person to become numb to their spouse’s good qualities and only focus on the annoying parts of their personality. This leads many couples to think that they have lost the spark
But, couples who have an ongoing appreciation for one another are less likely to end their relationship and more likely to become closer, research shows.
One great technique for showing appreciation to a partner is by actively listening. Lean in, make eye contact, and show them that what they say is important.
In the realm of business, showing appreciation for a job well done was a better motivator than a financial incentive in most cases. Without that crucial interaction, employees will be much more likely to be unhappy with their jobs, miss work, burnout, or even quit.
Why hire a house painter when you can hire a craftsman? Arana is a family-owned business with over 60 years of professional painting experience and roots in the Old World tradition.
At Arana Craftsman Painters, we leave little to chance because we follow a tried-and-true set of steps.
Philosophy
These crucial steps are our “secret sauce” so to speak and it has allowed us to consistently build a reputation of reliability, exceptional quality and professionalism over the last 17 years.
The steps to exceptional interior painting include:
Protecting your home and environment (family, pets, surrounding surfaces, furnishings, valuables, all areas not scheduled for paint)
Scraping/sanding to remove old layers of paint that will negatively impact the integrity of your new paint at a standard that meets our 5 Year Warranty
Thorough cleaning of the surfaces scheduled for work to remove any contaminants
Priming, Caulking and Patching
Exceptional Painting
Process
Pre Job Walkthrough: Our Production Manager and Estimator will meet with you prior to the scheduled project start date to confirm start date, scope, sequencing, and colors. Essentially all expectations are reconfirmed to assure smooth handoff between our Estimator and our Production Department. Proper communication is the key to exceptional quality and you having a great painting experience. At this point when we arrive at your project, our Crew Leader and Crew have a solid plan as to what processes will take place first and in what areas.
Color Consultation: Arana Craftsman Painters works with top San Francisco Bay Area Color Consultants and on projects needing a consultation, the Consultation is included in our bid. Having colors chosen ahead of time makes your life so much easier. We’ll even put up swatches so you can see the color in real life and make a final decision.
We set up a neat and organized area for our equipment, tools, and products, a home base, where we can safely and efficiently manage your project.
In addition to a dedicated Production Manager, every project has a dedicated Crew Leader who works closely with you, our Production Manager and our office to assure timely resolution to any challenges that arise, quality control, sequencing and assuring you have an amazing painting experience!
Guarantee
Sustainability
Paint will not adhere properly without expert preparation. Proper preparation is the cornerstone of exceptional quality.
We sand, scrape, and prime as appropriate to ensure proper adhesion. We contain particulate and dust exposure per Environmental Protection Agency safety standards and Arana Craftsman Painters is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Contractor.
For the safety of everyone involved, are all the painting contractors you have bidding on your project EPA Lead-Safe Certified?
After primer is applied, we patch, caulk and fill for aesthetic and in some cases sealing purposes or to prevent water incursion.
Latest Color Trends 2022 Webinar
This Arana annual webinar explores Color Trends and Colors of the Year for 2022. Perfect for Interior Designers, discerning Homeowners and General Contractors contemplating your next amazing project
We LOVE to highlight the people in our community who make things, craftsmen and women if you will, and Jeanne Henzel Swartz is such a perfect example of that. Jeanne is the founder and principal of Joona Fabriculture, Artisan Curtains and Upholstery. She has been in business as a bespoke furniture maker and repair and restoration specialist as well as custom window treatments purveyor for 26 years. Her relationship to fabric, decor, and quality spans decades—through a previous career as a milliner and costumer for theater and film, and even further back to her childhood exploring the insides and outsides of her family’s collection of heirloom fine furnishings.
“I was fortunate,” Jeanne explains, “that we had nice quality antiques, mahogany furniture, passed down from my grand-, great-grand-, and great-great-grandparents. I remember this one set of dining room chairs in the basement – heavy, dark, animal-footed – the table was long gone! – covered in mohair velvet and stuffed with horsehair. I’d stroke and press on the fabric; I’d find a horsehair and pull it out – I remember the curl and spring of it. It was a very sensory experience. I had a fascination with traditional upholstery at a very young age!”
She continues, “It was my chore to clean and dust and polish the furniture, and to polish the brass and silver. I grew up with a respect and love for these really nice things. That style is not to my taste now – I’m much more colorful! – but my taste is eclectic. When you have multiple items being passed down from different eras within a family, like we did, you get a feeling for eclecticism and an appreciation for mixing thoughtfully; everything doesn’t have to be new.”
It is this respect for quality and history that threads through Jeanne’s work today. She notes, “I love making new things, but I also love breathing new life into old things that have a story.”
(Jeanne once told us that she would love to create a “slow furniture” movement just like the “slow food” movement and we can definitely get behind that!)
Her discerning eye, she jokingly admits, has not made life easy. “My poor mother,” she laughs. “I’ve always really delighted in superfine things, which made her life hard. She’d buy something nice for me, and it wouldn’t be up to my standards. But that’s actually really a good thing in the world of custom furnishings: to be able to recognize what quality is, to aspire to it, to value it, and to want it for yourself and your clients.”
She also credits her love of art and museums and her mentors over the years for training her eye, “You have to be able to see it, and then know what it takes to be able to create at that level.”
A self-professed “big fabric nerd” with a fine art degree in sculpture, Jeanne’s first career was in costume design and construction for regional theater: hats, showgirl dresses, jewelry, shoes, masks, gloves. And not just clothing, but also truly unique items, like the time she modified a goat skin, turning it into a leopard costume for a production of Huckleberry Finn.
Back then, as a way to augment that income, Jeanne was inspired to start making slipcovers. She laughs, “Making clothing for furniture was easier! I never had a sofa tell me I made it look fat!”
Around that time, she had her first union job, as a costumer for the film industry, which was a step up. She recalls being shocked at how different the culture was compared to theater. “We were paid by the hour, plus time and a half, double time, and triple time. Everyone was happy and relaxed, not stressed and angry. That’s when I started to realize that regional theaters were not a healthy place for me to be.”
She recounts how, soon after that, a woman who had been mentoring her in how to make the slipcovers decided to move to New York City for a master’s level training program, and offered to sell her upholstery business to Jeanne.
Jeanne said yes.
Barely two weeks later, the San Francisco Opera came calling, asking if she would come and work in their millinery shop, a dream job for some. But by then, the die had been cast.
Jeanne has no regrets. She says, “Looking back over my work history at the time, I realized that I am a leader, and that being a self-employed entrepreneur was a better fit for me.”
But leading is not at all a solo endeavor. Jeanne explains, “I love to work collaboratively with other artisans, designers, fabricators, woodworkers, glass artists, fiberglass artists, metal artists, fine hand embroiderers who custom weave with materials from mills in Europe that are hundreds of years old… together we can make all sorts of amazing things!
“I also love making things whole,” she adds, referring to the repair and restoration part of her business. She recounts a story from 10 years ago, of a rocking chair from the mid-1800s that had belonged to the client’s grandmother, and that the client herself had been rocked in as a child. “It was in very sad shape. The tack rails, that area where you attach upholstery onto the wood, had been redone so many times that there were just little shreds of wood remaining. I cut those rails off and made new ones, glued and doweled them in place. To restore the distribution of the original finish from where the wood had been rubbed bare, I used a specialty product that liquefies the current finish and allows me to spread it around, while incorporating a bit of new product. “From there I reassembled, re-dowelled, and reupholstered, giving the chair a whole new life!”
In today’s fast-paced, single-use world, who Jeanne is and what she does, her dedication to history, value, longevity, and craft, is absolute treasure.
Joona Fabriculture occupies two loft spaces – a workroom and adjacent showroom/meeting space, at the historically-apt Cotton Mill Studios in Oakland. Visiting her location is a delight, like stumbling upon an old-world cobbler hard at work on making magic shoes.
With one full-time operations manager, one part-time apprentice, and two part-time production employees, Jeanne designs, builds, and restores furnishings in the workshop. And she hosts visits for clients and interior designers who wish to meet in person in her showroom, where they can lay eyes and hands on her curated library of fabrics and materials.
Jeanne hosts educational lunch-and-learns for design professionals on topics ranging from Window Treatments 101 to business topics to performance products to more in-depth explorations of shade motorization and home automation. Her showroom features a courtesy textile research library for design professionals as well samples from the lines of custom draperies and shades that she represents, including Sunbrella, which designated her as their sole Bay Area partner and purveyor of their new line of indoor, fade-resistant window treatments.
Curtains and the houses that need them present yet another set of complicated problems and solutions that speak to Jeanne’s engineer/artist mind.
She says, “To meet the needs of a contemporary homeowner in a house that was not designed for the things we are able to do now, like motorization, and adapting newer styles to very traditional Edwardian-era or Victorian era-homes, for example, means specifying contemporary window treatments that can feel ‘at home’ but don’t look like your grandmother’s drapes.”
Of course, with new construction, she explains, “You can build in pockets above, below or to the side and your window treatments can disappear into them with motorization.”
Drapery, she notes, is “fabric in motion. Sometimes, it’s fabric being beautiful. Being itself. Sometimes it’s function over form; and sometimes it’s the other way around.
“I train the interior designers I work with to ask appropriate questions of their clients, so that we can design and engineer collaboratively to achieve the window treatments that will fulfill those needs. Window treatments aren’t really taught in design school,” she adds. “They teach a lot about code, but code doesn’t encompass how to achieve privacy, or address heat and cold insulation, and make choices regarding light filtration.
“We have products that are engineered to filter some or all of the light, and can keep a house warmer or cooler, depending on the season. We need to consider what to prioritize. Do you want to be able to see your amazing view? We have solar screen cloth, which does a great job of isolating heat while still being see-through. We have honeycomb shades, and other highly-engineered products developed by materials scientists who are working to make shades more effective and even less toxic! We have lines specifically developed for people with chemical and environmental sensitivities.
“Last year, Sunbrella unveiled a new line of solution-dyed acrylic material for curtains, Roman shades and solar shade fabrics, which were revolutionary in terms of how they look. Solar shades have traditionally been a simple plastic mesh screen for many years. Now you can specify houndstooth and other patterns and colors that look like textiles.”
Today, Jeanne continues to expand her skills and share her knowledge, attending and presenting at conferences in both the custom furnishings and window treatment industries, and traveling to Europe every year to meet with her mentors who are master-upholsterers.
“Our industry is so generous in terms of teaching,” she says appreciatively, adding, “We know that there are not that many of us!”
To learn more about Joona Fabriculture, visit the website: joonacreates.com
__________
PHOTO CAPTIONS: Featured Image: Custom window coverings and pillow by Joona Fabriculture. First image: Jeanne Henzel Swartz in her Oakland studio, holding the IWCE Award for Most Intricate Handwork. Second image (in-text): Custom upholstered sofa for which Jeanne won the IWCE award. Third image (in-text): Custom kitchen window treatments by Joona Fabriculture (from their portfolio).
When it comes to enhancing the aesthetic appeal of your home or business in Alameda, California a professional paint job with a licensed contractor and an extended warranty is an essential investment.
The Arana Craftsman Painters team prides ourselves on our exceptional exterior and interior preparation process that leads to a beautiful paintable surface that will be not only be protected against the elements, make the final product shine and increase the value of your home.
Our team of experienced painters delivers pair detail with craftsmanship, great communication and customer service. On both the interior and exterior of your home, Arana Craftsman Painters knows what is needed and can create high-quality painting solutions tailored to your specific needs.
Why Choose Arana Craftsman Painters for Your Alameda Painting Services?
We understand that a fresh coat of paint is 10% of the project; The quality of the preparation is paramount to a quality paint project. Then you can move on to creating a space that reflects your personality and style and that will last longer than a year. Here are a few reasons why homeowners and business owners in Alameda choose us for their painting needs:
Expertise in Both Interior and Exterior Painting, Staining and Wallpapering
We offer comprehensive painting services, specializing in both interior and exterior painting. Our team is skilled and experienced in handling a wide variety of projects, from residential homes to commercial buildings. Whether you’re looking to transform the look of a room with fresh color or give the exterior of your home a facelift, we have the expertise to deliver an excellent and long-lasting product.
Use of High-Quality Paints and Materials
To ensure longevity and durability, we use the best quality paints and material. We work with trusted brands that offer superior coverage, weather resistance, and vibrant color retention. Our exterior paints are formulated to withstand the elements, keeping your home or business looking fresh year after year.
Attention to Detail and Precision
When it comes to painting, precision and detail matter. Our skilled painters take the time to prepare every surface thoroughly, ensuring a beautiful finish. Removing failed paint, Sanding, priming, caulking and filling are 90% of the work before paint. Our detailed process to ensures we can offer our signature 5-year guarantee and that every corner and edge is prepared and painted well.
Professionalism and Customer Satisfaction
We are committed to providing a smooth customer service experience. Our team works closely with you to navigate the ins and outs of a paint job. We communicate regularly and help you understand each step along the way and how to prepare. The process is as important as the results. We arrive on time, work efficiently, and maintain a clean, organized workspace throughout the project. Our goal is to make the painting process as smooth and hassle-free as possible, leaving you with a beautiful and well-maintained property.
Exterior Painting Services in Alameda: Boost Curb Appeal
The exterior of your home or business is the first thing people see, and a fresh coat of paint can significantly enhance its curb appeal and boosts its retail value. Paint will achieved multiple goals, one is to give your home or other property a new look while protecting it from the harsh elements.
Surface preparation: We removed failing paint, sand, wash and patch and repair surfaces and prime before applying paint to ensure proper adhesion and smooth coverage. This is crucial for ensuring long-lasting results.
Priming: We apply high-quality primers that are essential for promoting paint adhesion and seal the surfaces to prevent damage from moisture or sun exposure.
Expert application: Our painters are skilled in applying paint, with attention to detail on to ensure proper coverage and beautiful execution of lines and transition from element to element.
Front Line Defense against weather: We materials that can hold up against wind, rain, UV rays, and other outdoor conditions, keeping your home or business looking great year-round and for an extended period of time.
Commercial Exterior Painting
We also offer commercial exterior painting services in Alameda. Private Schools, Commercial buildings, Healthcare facilities, etc. Restaurants often forgo paint, but under estimate the feeling of cleanliness a good paint job can give. We work around commercial and business schedules to minimize disruption to your business operations while delivering professional results that enhance the appearance of your commercial property.
Specialized Finishes for Exterior Surfaces
In addition to standard services, we provide specialized finishes for different types of exterior materials. From stucco and brick to wood and metal, we apply paints and coatings designed specifically for these surfaces, ensuring optimal performance and aesthetic appeal.
Interior Paint: Transforming Your Living Space
Interior painting is one of the most impactful and lower cost ways to transform your home. Whether you’re updating a single room or your entire home, we offers a full range of interior painting, staining and wallpapering services designed to transform your space.
Room-Specific Interior Painting
Each room in your home has its own unique needs and function. Our team specializes in painting all types of rooms, including:
Living rooms: Choose from a wide range of colors and finishes to create a warm and inviting atmosphere in your main living areas.
Kitchens: We use durable paints that resist stains and moisture, ensuring that your kitchen remains beautiful and easy to maintain.
Bathrooms: Our specialized paints are perfect for high-humidity areas like bathrooms, helping to prevent mold and mildew growth while maintaining a fresh look.
Bedrooms: Whether you’re going for a serene, calming atmosphere or a bold, energizing space, we can help you select the perfect colors to match your style.
Cabinet and Trim Painting
In addition to painting walls, we also offer cabinet and trim painting services. Whether you’re updating your kitchen cabinets or refreshing your interior trim, our team uses advanced techniques to provide a smooth, professional finish. We can help you achieve a high-end look by updating outdated cabinetry or providing custom finishes to enhance your home’s aesthetic.
Color Consultation
Choosing the right color for your interior can be overwhelming, which is why we offer color a 1-hr meeting with a professional color consultant. Our colorist will help you select the perfect colors that match your vision and existing or new decor.
The Arana Craftsman Painters Process: Professional and Reliable
We believe in making the painting process as easy and stress-free as possible for our clients in Alameda. Our process involves:
Initial Consultation: We begin by discussing your project, understanding your goals, and assessing the space. This allows us to provide a detailed estimate and timeline for the job.
Check out our Frequently Asked Questions about Arana Craftsman Painter– There’s a level of trust placed in any home service provider as they work in and around your home. The attached sheet will help you learn more about our company and how we serve our customers.
Check out What Our Customers Say – I thought you would like to hear from a few of our customers, so you don’t have to “take my word for it!”
Here’s what you can expect during our appointment:
Overview – Please allow about an hour to an hour and a half for our appointment. Before our estimator starts, they’ll give a brief overview as to what will happen while they are on the property and address any concerns you may have regarding our process, scheduling needs, budget, and special considerations.
Project Audit – An audit will be conducted to determine the present condition of your home, and our estimator will take measurements and photos. They will note surface conditions and use this information to create a ‘written recommendations’ document for you to review. They can also provide alternatives and suggestions to achieve the outcome you are looking for.
Presentation of Recommendations – When you receive our proposal, it will thoroughly explain the scope of work required to achieve your desired outcome. We typically check in within a day of sending, and we can answer any additional questions you may have.
Determine Next Steps – After reviewing our proposal and signing the contract, we will schedule a job walk with our production manager and put your project into the production calendar.
When your project is in Progress
Planning & Staging –
When we arrive at your project, the first thing we do is formulate a plan on where to establish our work site and what will be accomplished over the next several days depending on the size of the project.
The second thing we do is set up a neat and organized area for our equipment, tools, and products. And at the end of each day we clean our work area and stow away our equipment and garbage.
Protection – We mask and cover with plastic, drop cloths, and tape to protect the surfaces of your home that are not to be painted.
Preparing – Paint will not adhere properly without expert preparation. We sand, scrape, and prime as appropriate to ensure proper adhesion. Once we have properly prepared for your painting project with the “3P’s”, we move on to executing the job daily in a way that gives our customers confidence and peace of mind. The following is what we call our “3C’s” that we observe as your painting project in progress:
Consistency
Throughout the project, we take a methodical approach that has us completing each step thoroughly while taking into weather conditions and other immediate factors.
Clean-Up
As we are working, we are monitoring the cleanliness of the project and cleaning as we go when possible. At the end of the day, we do our best to organize the work site to minimally disturb your environment. We do not want neighborhood critters in our garbage!
Communication
Our Production Management team is there to answer questions and help you navigate through the duration of the project being readily available for questions and problem solving when needed.
Any painting contractor can estimate a project and most can at least “get started,” Arana’s process makes sure we “finish well.” We believe that leaving a happy, satisfied homeowner has been the key to our success.
Here’s how we “wrap up” your project and leave you 100% satisfied!
Periodic and Final Check-in
We keep in close communication with you during your project and create check points where we ensure that each stage is being performed to your satisfaction. We will ask you to walk through the project to review the work in progress in case you have any questions or if there is anything specific so you would like us to address. At any time either I or another of our leadership team is available to answer questions.
Post Project Survey
·We ask all of our customers to evaluate us on our performance so we may continually improve.
Our 5-Year Guarantee
We stand behind all workmanship and products for 5 YEARS against peeling, bubbling, and cracking in the paint film. if you have issues past that point, we still want you to contact our office so that we can assist you in solving the problem.
Contact Arana Craftsman Painters for Your Painting Project in Alameda
When it comes to exterior and interior painting services in Alameda, Arana Craftsman Painters is the trusted choice for homeowners and businesses alike. Our professional team is dedicated to providing high-quality results that not only enhance the beauty of your property but also stand the test of time.
If you’re ready to refresh your home or business with expert painting services, contact us today for a consultation. Let us bring your vision to life with our exceptional craftsmanship and attention to detail.
Oakland, CA – April 2025 – Arana Craftsman Painters, a premier provider of high-quality residential and commercial painting services in the Oakland area, is excited to announce a limited-time offer of 10% off all interior and exterior painting services. Homeowners and property managers looking to revitalize their spaces with expert craftsmanship and premium finishes can now take advantage of this exclusive promotion, available only through May 15, 2025.
With spring in full bloom and summer fast approaching, now is the perfect time to give your property a fresh new look. Whether it’s updating interior walls with warm, modern tones or enhancing curb appeal with a striking exterior makeover, Arana Craftsman Painters brings decades of expertise, attention to detail, and customer-focused service to every project.
“We’re thrilled to offer this seasonal discount to both new and returning clients,” said Arana spokesperson. “We know that painting projects are an investment in your home’s beauty and longevity. This 10% savings is our way of making high-quality painting services more accessible during a time when many people are focused on improving and protecting their most valuable asset—their home.”
Why Choose Arana Craftsman Painters?
Arana Craftsman Painters has earned a reputation throughout the Bay Area for delivering exceptional painting services with a unique blend of old-world craftsmanship and modern techniques. The company’s team of skilled artisans specializes in:
– Interior painting, including walls, ceilings, trim, cabinetry, and more – Exterior painting, including stucco, wood, siding, and custom finishes – Color consultation and eco-friendly paint options – Pre-paint surface preparation including sanding, patching, and priming – Historic home preservation and restoration painting
Arana’s commitment to professionalism and customer satisfaction has made them a trusted partner for homeowners, designers, and architects across Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Piedmont, San Francisco, and surrounding communities.
Limited-Time Savings and Flexible Scheduling
This special 10% discount is valid for all projects booked between now and May 15, 2025, with flexible scheduling options to accommodate your timeline. Whether you’re planning a complete repaint or a smaller touch-up project, this offer makes it easier to transform your home with the trusted quality of Arana Craftsman Painters.
Don’t miss this opportunity to refresh your space with the expertise of one of the Oakland’s most respected painting companies. Offer ends May 15, 2025—book now and let your home shine with color and craftsmanship that lasts.
About Arana Craftsman Painters: Arana Craftsman Painters is a family-owned and operated painting company based in Oakland, California. With a passion for timeless craftsmanship and a dedication to superior service, Arana has been beautifying homes and commercial spaces throughout the Bay Area for over 20 years.
Arana has been fortunate to partner with many talented interior designers in the Bay Area and our long-term relationship with Laura Martin Bovard and LMB Interiors (lmbinteriors.com) is a standout in this regard. It is our pleasure and joy to contribute our team’s craftsman skills to realizing the visions in Laura’s projects, many of which are transformations of architecturally-significant older homes into gorgeous, playful, and inviting environments for the modern families moving into them. We asked Laura to share with our community her thoughts on creating balance between the two forces, old and new; how she approaches adding beauty and enhancing liveability – while touching on some of the recent projects we’ve worked on together for her clients.
When I first arrive at a client’s home, I greet the space, the landscape, and the architecture, as if they are their own entities. My next step, if it is an architecturally significant home, is to assess the original craftsmanship. I always intend to maintain the original details, the quality that went into the building of the home.
And then there’s so much more than what meets the eye to consider: There is soul and lived-memory infused into the space, whether from previous owners or the original craftspeople who built it, or both. The history and the stories of how people moved through and lived in a home are woven into its walls and play a part in the way a home feels and looks; just as the new homeowners will add their story.
I’m such a firm believer that stories are how humans weave together their existence across lifetimes. And historic homes carry a soulfulness that new homes just don’t. Historic homes cure over time; there’s a richness to them. A certain level of groundedness. You can imagine who else was staring up at that ceiling 80 years ago. The passage of time in a given space is something that’s fun to contemplate; doing so furthers one’s connection to it.
We greet the soul of the home to be reverential toward the original quality craftsmanship, because legacy homes, historic homes, are almost always built better and with more integrity than what’s built now. A lot of the woodworking was more detailed; you are not going to see a lot of that level of quality and attention these days.
However, when we begin an interior design project, we want to consider who’s living there today. And if they really want to infuse a totally different aesthetic onto this home, we will necessarily walk a line between honoring the clients and honoring a home.
Most clients today don’t want to be surrounded by a lot of ornate, heavy velvets and dark colors. They tend to prefer a lighter, fresher palette. And so we find ways to bring in some of that without tipping the scale too far toward one direction or the other – the direction of the original architecture or the direction of the client. That’s the conversation we are having. It’s a very thoughtful process.
Project: Hollywood Regency
When people buy an estate home, there is a certain amount of stewardship that comes along with it. In particular, our “Hollywood Regency” project demonstrates this. The homeowners – a couple – see it as the community’s home as much as it is their home. They throw parties often, fundraising for civic entities and causes, including Oakland Parks and Rec, Fairyland, and organizations that impact education for Oakland’s youth, plus political fundraising, supporting Barbara Lee and other East Bay politicians.
Their home, known as The Morse House, is on the list of historical landmarks in Oakland, and it is just stunning. The house set the tone. These clients had a passion for local art, so it was fun to weave their love of it into the designs. Their aesthetic was their own version of what’s known as “Hollywood Regency,” which harmonized with the home being so grand. Hollywood Regency style reached its height of popularity in California between the 1920s and 1950s, so playing with this historical sensibility in this landmark home built in 1934 felt just right.
We brought in bright colors in the furniture and art, with plenty of jewel tones, while keeping walls neutral. We needed painters who understood how to perform a high-quality job on such a significant home, so of course we teamed with Arana Craftsman Painters.
Some wood features needed to be sanded down and prepped really well to maintain the provenance of the craftsmanship; you can’t just throw a new coat of paint on top of the original wood! The process requires skilled painters who can achieve clean edges and leave it in a good state for either the next homeowners, or the next paint job 20 years down the road. It has to age well. Having a clean, expert, professional paint job keeps the level of quality congruent with a historical home, ensuring the home is maintained with that sense of stewardship and respect. This kind of attention takes a certain level of investment, but it’s longer lasting, looks better, and celebrates the house.
Project: Piedmont Craftsman
A lot of people buying historic homes today are not only far younger than the structures themselves, but also they potentially have not been exposed to legacy homes before. And so the question becomes, how do you integrate a home with history with the needs of a younger family? In this case, the family that purchased this Craftsman estate were certainly worldly and appreciated quality, but we wanted the interior to reflect their style which was more playful, more energetic, a little bit more fresh.
One technique we used was color. We enlivened certain areas: the kitchen, the sitting area, the solarium, and the little library with a lighter palette, while maintaining the original kind of grand Craftsman quality of the manor in select other areas throughout the home.
But then there were the very grand touches that were not part of the original architecture to contend with. One set of the home’s previous owners had been Italian, and the owners after them inherited their design additions, which skewed towards a rather heavy-handed Italianate look. These next owners layered in some Asian touches, per their taste. And so, in working with the home and its history for our clients, ultimately, we needed to peel the layers back to restore the original, timeless, tasteful Craftsman elegance.
Some of the layers we liked, and those we kept. For example, we all agreed that we enjoyed the spirit of the Italianate fireplace. And we liked the more-recently-added tile details and flooring in the solarium, because it felt appropriate for a sunroom to have that. In the dining room, we also kept the ornate ceilings, just touching up and refreshing them. We left that original, very grand application, while choosing to temper the impact with a natural woven grasscloth wallcovering, thus connecting the room in spirit to adjacent, lighter areas of the house.
Project: Maybeck Craftsman
For this Maybeck Craftsman that had been purchased by very discerning clients, the work was going to involve a very specific challenge: restoring and/or replacing huge areas of redwood paneling – a key design element in Maybeck homes. We knew we needed an expert team, because we needed every detail to be flawless. So of course, this project called for Arana’s “stainmaster” Ernesto and his team.
Color matching the stain from old redwood to new redwood is a challenge, and in this situation, after decades of life, curing, sunlight, et. al. – let’s just call it “50 shades of brown-and-red.” It is a massive undertaking to have new wood look like it was there all along, and to freshen, clean, and care for the old wood at the same time so that it will continue to serve. It’s an art. Color matching it all took many rounds of mixing to get right, and in the end, the results were exactly what the home needed.
Stewardship Is a Relationship
Historic homes and modern families and the design that brings them together is a relationship benefitting from exquisite listening, understanding, respect, communication, and connection. Like any good marriage, each partner affirms and appreciates the strengths the other brings to the equation. Good design is like a marriage counselor, helping the parties to maintain their unique qualities in some areas and choosing where to blend in others; ultimately creating something greater than the sum of their parts.
As the name of our company implies, we (Donatella and Simona) are both Italian, and our interior design style takes inspiration from the wonder that is Italy. Although we live in California, we return to our home country every year – to visit family, source from our vendors and of course, for inspiration.
Drawing from the elegance, history, and artistic heritage of Italy while blending in a more laid-back, contemporary vibe of California we create home designs for our clients that are stylish, classic yet fresh, and beautifully livable. Would you like to bring a bit of Europe into your California home?
Here are a few design tips, along with photos from our most recent trip, this past summer:
Classic Meets Modern: Think of a sleek minimalist living room adorned with a vintage Venetian mirror or a rustic Tuscan dining table paired with modern chairs. This juxtaposition creates a unique and eclectic aesthetic that is both sophisticated and inviting.
Natural Materials and Textures: Italian design emphasizes the use of natural materials like stone, marble, wood, and wrought iron and brass. Consider pairing a marble sink reminiscent of an Italian villa with a modern kitchen; or terracotta tiles to bring warmth and texture to a patio, reminiscent of the landscapes of Tuscany.
Artisanal Craftsmanship: From hand-painted ceramics to custom-made furniture, investing in quality pieces sourced in Italy not only enhances the aesthetic appeal but also creates a sense of connection to European artistry and heritage.
Earth Tones and Neutral Palettes: Italian interiors often feature a palette of earthy tones, inspired by the natural surroundings. Warm beiges, soft browns, and muted greens evoke the tranquility of the countryside.
Maximizing Natural Light: Taking full advantage of natural light is a concept that Italians and Californians share. Large windows and open floor plans invite light in; sheer curtains or strategically placed mirrors can enhance this effect.
Indoor-Outdoor Flow: Taking inspiration from Italian courtyards and terraces, add comfortable seating areas, outdoor kitchens, and lush greenery to the backyard.
Al Fresco Dining: Adding a rustic wooden table, string lights, and potted plants evokes the charm of an Italian piazza and encourages leisurely meals under an open sky – embodying the relaxed, communal spirit of both cultures.
Curated Collections: Europeans, particularly Italians, have a knack for curating collections of art, books, and antiques. Californians can adopt this approach by displaying personal collections that tell a story and add character to their homes.
Timeless Elegance: Choose pieces that transcend trends – quality over quantity, classic pieces, and a cohesive design scheme can create interiors that are both stylish and enduring.
To see more of what is possible when bringing Italian aesthetics and sensibilities into California homes, visit www.florentine-design.com
+++
Photo info:
Marble and coffered ceilings balance the contemporary feel of the lighting and colors in this completely transformed kitchen in San Francisco. Interior Design by Florentine Design. Photographer: Nadia Andreini | DILUNA Photography
Venice Canal: Colors mirrored by the water are a feast for the eyes. Photographer: Donatella Mazzini
This modern chandelier perfectly fits in the classic foyer of this San Francisco Victorian; Interior Design by Florentine Design. Photographer: Nadia Andreini | DILUNA Photography
Minimalism meets beautiful details in this restaurant interior – with a Murano glass chandelier, rich wood tables and beautiful, original, 1500s vaulted ceilings; in Tolentino, Italy. Photographer Simona Corradini
Donatella Mazzini (left) and Simona Corradini (right), founders of Florentine Design
The glass art greets one on the approach to her front door, sculptures both vertically and horizontally oriented, in the garden and on the porch. I am at the home of Mary Albert, glass artist, and longtime Arana client. Fans of our newsletter may recognize the sumptuous interior colors she chose for her basement ADU which we’ve featured before in this newsletter, or her kitchen with the art-tile backsplash, included among the many favorites in our cookbook.
We start our tour in the driveway; her mosaic tiles in non-matching designs are set along the two sides. The tiles used to be just laid in the dirt, until somebody stole one, and she took the rest inside to reassess. “Why did they take THAT one? Am I angry or am I flattered?” she mused at the time. (Today, the missing tile has been replaced by a new one, and all 26 are now permanently installed.)
The garage door opens to reveal an inviting mad scientist’s/artist’s lair, outfitted all around with shelves holding pounds and pounds of colored glass and gear; workstation front and center.
Inside the house, our first stop is the dining room table where all of her current for-sale pieces are laid out in piles and wrapped in foam, awaiting pricing for her next show. More of her glass-art dishes, plates, plaques, and organic shapes are displayed throughout the house, sometimes next to pieces made by other glass artists she respects and admires. We visit her kitchen, featured in Arana’s cookbook, and I get to see close-up the mosaic backsplash featuring a fleur de lys; a piece she commissioned mosaicist Gina Domingue to make for her and that they built to be removable, should she ever decide to move.
We retire to the back balcony, surrounded by chirping birds and more of her outdoor landscape adornments, a set of glass and cement stepping stones are visible in a path that meanders down through the garden below.
Our interview begins… Artist, artisan, crafter? All of the above.
Mary explains, “People love the Craft vs. Art discussion. I don’t hold that distinction, necessarily I think possibly the difference is that craft is usable and art is a visual feast; and so many arts are crafts and so many crafts are art.
“When I started, I was making pieces I was really enjoying making, which were very large and kind of expensive to make, and they weren’t selling the way I wanted them to.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do to change that. I started looking at ways to use up scrap glass. Every week I would make small pieces with that; wasabi dishes, sushi dishes, dessert plates for petit fours, and they were selling – people loved them!
“The big stuff, people think, ‘What am I going to do with that? Who can I give it to? I can’t afford it.’ But then, sometimes something speaks to you and you really want that thing. Someone might say to me, ‘I love that! Do you have anything like that, but smaller?’”
Her light eyes sparkle as she speaks. “What’s been lovely is that people come back a couple months later for the larger piece: ‘Do you still have it? I can’t stop thinking about it! I really want it.’”
Her voice has distinctive rasp, and a cadence that is almost bubbly but with an underlying intensity, the fierceness with which she approaches everything – from her past experiences as a law school student, a denizen of corporate America, a second career as a voice-over actor, and now her work making fused glass. Her nom-de-kiln is Glass-Vox (glass-vox.com), a nod to her two favorite professions.
Utility and beauty are almost equal parts of her ethos. “I like making things that people can use. Most of what I make is useful – not just art. I believe to my core that art is crucial. And, I like color. I love to set a pretty table! If you have color popping on that table, that’s fun!”
At the time of publication, Albert and other artists like her are gearing up for holiday craft sales. While she is adept at gift-sized art, Albert is not in the business of making multiples past an individual set.
“A lot of people go into production and they are brilliant at it,” she notes. “But I don’t typically make the same thing more than once.” Her plates come in sets of two or sometimes four. “I have too many ideas in my head to do sets!” she laughs. “I love a matched pair and have done things that are similar or could go together; I will use the same color palette to make a serving set – bowl, platter, plates – but they will not be exactly identical.” She doesn’t repeat her mosaic pieces, either.
Albert’s “functional art glass” is also not just for sale. She regularly donates pieces to community fundraisers and rents work out for staging homes.
Her passion for glass art started with a class in the early 2000s, and later, joining The Crucible in 2013 was a turning point, giving her access to a large-scale kiln to make bigger pieces, as well as immersing her in the inspiration and encouragement that comes from being among a community of fellow women-artists.
She says, “What I discovered, working alongside this group of all-women, some who had been doing this for 20-plus years; they were all so generous and kind, offering advice and suggestions and tips…. In the classroom you are making smaller pieces. Once you join a lab, you are sharing molds and other resources. You learn so much in that situation, even just observing, and that emboldens you to try something new.”
The kiln itself is a collaborator and co-conspirator. Albert describes, “A lot of magic happens in the kiln; forgiveness and joy comes out of the kiln. You put something in and you didn’t know it would flow like this and fill in that gap and when it comes out, all the faults I saw going in have corrected themselves; the kiln makes me look good.”
We finish our meeting with a tour of the downstairs ADU. Where the main living area of the house boasts a more subtle palette, the ADU is where Albert let her imagination run a little wilder. With the assistance of a color consultant, and her experience in a painting-textures class, she selected the rich coppery textured wall for the entry and kitchen, and the deep “dark cherry” almost-purple textured walls with glossy chocolate-brown trim and ceiling in the living room – colors that evoke a feeling of “steam-punk” luxe.
Our very last stop on the tour is back out front, admiring more of Albert’s glass art pieces, which are placed amongst the river rocks around a tree in that little patch of garden next to the sidewalk; all of which, so far, remain in situ.
2024 Holiday Art and Craft Shows Shadowlands Holiday Faire & Holiday Teas; Shadelands Ranch Museum, Walnut Creek, November 30-December 15 Oakland Cottage Industry Show; 4101 Park Blvd., Oakland, December 7 GIFTY at The Crucible 1260 7th St., Oakland (near West Oakland BART), December 7-8 (Mary will be there on the 8th)
Over the years, in writing our newsletter (which is also posted on this blog) we have interviewed and hosted guest blogs by numerous brilliant and talented Bay Area interior designers and landscape architects, sharing their wisdom on how to make our homes beautiful, inside and out.
This post is an opportunity for us to collect links to all of these articles in one place and share them with you! And if you are not already on our e-newsletter or snail-mail newsletter list, please reach out to us and let us know. Send a message to [email protected] or sign up via the contact form on our website: craftsmanpainters.com/contact. Please include your physical address if you would like to receive the print version.
%20for%20web.jpg?width=770&height=513&name=Morse%20House%20Entry%20LMB%20Interiors%202019_10_29_0548b%20(1)%20for%20web.jpg)
%20for%20web.jpg?width=1500&height=1000&name=Morse%20House%20Living%20Room%20LMB%20Interiors%20alt%20view%202019_10_29_0323%20(1)%20for%20web.jpg)
