Showcasing passion for architecture and simplicity, Oakland-based Framestudio, is revered for their project diversity which celebrate all-things ‘calm, unassuming, and lyrical’. Through blending the latest advances in building technology and sustainable building practices with honest materials and hand craftsmanship, Framestudio is able to create spaces that go beyond providing shelter.
In their latest project, Framestudio remodels a 1958 home that has suffered from unsympathetic alterations over the years. Their gameplan included expanding on the home’s good and existing elements whilst discarding those that have corroded to present timeless interiors, similar to those envisioned by its original architect, Henry Hill.
Located in Alamo, a suburb 20 miles east of San Francisco, this ‘dramatic midcentury’ residence is characterised by two glazed wings which open up views of San Ramon Valley and Mount Diablo, and centred by an irregularly shaped swimming pool. Taking cues from the surrounding natural landscape to create a peaceful sanctuary, the studio has strategically installed a multitude of windows in the master bedroom, lounge, kitchen, dining room, and den – alongside an all-new glass wall secondary bedroom, and a new fireplace that referenced the existing brickwork fireplaces in the house.
Featuring enhanced luxuries such as , a new wine room, reconfigured guest and main bathrooms, additional floor to ceiling wood closets in the hallways, lowered ceilings, an all-new air duct system for heating and cooling bedrooms, double-glazing, white marble and pale wood in the kitchen, plus, wooden cabinetry and dark-painted wooden wall panelling in the bathrooms, this renovated Californian house on Ridgewood was designed to pay homage to the ‘soul’ of its original maker who is remembered as a proponent of the Second Bay Tradition, an architectural style that merged a rustic aesthetic and modern lines.