Houzz Tours
My Houzz: Spanish Colonial Restoration in Hollywood
Honoring its Spanish heritage, a 1928 home in California becomes a romantic sanctuary and inviting space for entertaining
Eight years ago on a whim, Jeff Olde visited an open house on a pretty elm-lined street he’d long admired. “I walked in the front door and was immediately taken with the two-story entry hall with a sweeping staircase," says Olde, a TV network executive. He then called husband Alan Uphold who, without seeing the home, agreed to put in an offer. Within two hours the couple, who were not even looking for a new house, found a new house, sold their current house and purchased a new one. “It was just meant to be," Olde says. "The house sort of claimed us, and we claimed it.”
Beyond the front door, however, the best part of the home was that entry hall. "The rest of it was mostly a wreck,” he says. "It had been badly remodeled in the '60s or '70s and needed a ton of work."
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Jeff Olde, Alan Uphold and dog Bailey
Location: Los Angeles
Size: 3,900 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths
That's interesting: The home features more than 40 authentic Spanish light fixtures.
Beyond the front door, however, the best part of the home was that entry hall. "The rest of it was mostly a wreck,” he says. "It had been badly remodeled in the '60s or '70s and needed a ton of work."
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Jeff Olde, Alan Uphold and dog Bailey
Location: Los Angeles
Size: 3,900 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths
That's interesting: The home features more than 40 authentic Spanish light fixtures.
The entryway staircase convinced Olde to buy the home. Soon after, he and Uphold decided to restore it to honor the home’s architectural roots. Their vision was for the house to flow from the kitchen through the library and the family room, and out to the patio and the pool, with lighting as the central work of art.
They lived in the house for six months before hiring architect David Serrurier and contractor Terry Richardson to help with renovations. “It was good to have that time living in it before we began construction, because we really got a sense of how we would use the rooms,” Olde says.
They lived in the house for six months before hiring architect David Serrurier and contractor Terry Richardson to help with renovations. “It was good to have that time living in it before we began construction, because we really got a sense of how we would use the rooms,” Olde says.
The couple wanted to restore each room to what they thought was the original design. “We took our clues from the few rooms on the main floor that had not been altered," Olde says. "They were characterized by thick plaster walls that were extra deep at the passageways. So we adopted that thick sort of castlelike character into all the rooms to create that really beefy Spanish look I like." Most rooms were gutted down to the studs and rebuilt with this design aesthetic.
One of their biggest design dilemmas was trying to make sense of the 1960s addition, which created a huge, long room, “like a giant bowling alley,” says Olde. Their solution was to divide the space in two, creating a living room in the front and a family room in back.
One of their biggest design dilemmas was trying to make sense of the 1960s addition, which created a huge, long room, “like a giant bowling alley,” says Olde. Their solution was to divide the space in two, creating a living room in the front and a family room in back.
These two red tufted leather salon chairs from Olde’s favorite furniture store, Mortise and Tenon, were the first purchase for the house. “They make such a statement, and I’m in the process of finding the pieces that go around them. I love the hunt. I literally wake up at 3 a.m. thinking about what might go there, which drives Alan insane by the way.”
As the couple adds new furniture and fireplace tile, they are redesigning the living room more for beauty than for comfort. “I want it to be a great visual, even if we don’t go in it, because you see it so prominently from the rooms we do live in. I simply enjoy its pure visual beauty," Olde says.
As the couple adds new furniture and fireplace tile, they are redesigning the living room more for beauty than for comfort. “I want it to be a great visual, even if we don’t go in it, because you see it so prominently from the rooms we do live in. I simply enjoy its pure visual beauty," Olde says.
This baby grand piano, a birthday gift to Uphold, is the centerpiece of the living room. Olde says, “Nothing makes me happier than to have a glass of wine and sit with the puppy and listen to him play and sing. Those are some of my favorite times together and how we mostly enjoy that room, just the three of us with music.”
The family room features plenty of casual seating, warm carpeting and an entertainment center.
Sectional: Pampa Furniture
Sectional: Pampa Furniture
The dining room, which is adjacent to the entry and the kitchen, sets the tone and palette. Olde kept all the walls the same neutral color to create visual continuity. He says, “I liked that it all just flowed together, so I painted it very creamy and neutral to create a light, open and free-flowing space. I wanted the lighting, tilework and furnishing details to really pop." He kept the old reclaimed tile and dark wood for all the floors and ceiling beams. The one distinct color accent is a brilliant deep red.
Although lighting and materials were chosen to honor the heritage of a Spanish colonial, some concessions were made to the floor plan. “We opened up the kitchen so it was one big space in the middle of the house. This is not traditional of Spanish architecture, but I wanted the house to be livable in the way we like to enjoy our lives, which is open and free.” This is the view from the kitchen island.
The original plan for the kitchen was to go with bright, clean and traditional 1920s tiles. In the 11th hour, on a business trip, Olde discovered a wine cellar in Lake Como, Italy. He loved it so much, he immediately changed the kitchen plans to create their own version. The kitchen is now adorned to the ceiling with limestone tiles and black painted cabinetry.
“I found old reclaimed red floor tiles from Spain, this great putty-colored tile from Morocco for the walls and this awesome limestone for the countertops,” Olde says. The utility and laundry room just off the kitchen is clad in the same aesthetic. When asked about the kitchen appliances, Olde replies, "You mean in that room where the wine lives?"
All appliances: Viking
All appliances: Viking
The master bedroom suite includes a balcony overlooking the backyard. Much of the home's artwork was discovered at Revival Antiques and the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena.
Window treatments: Restoration Hardware
Window treatments: Restoration Hardware
The third upstairs bedroom includes an attached en suite bathroom. The afternoon light streams in through French doors, and a balcony overlooks the front yard.
Window treatments: Restoration Hardware
Window treatments: Restoration Hardware
The creamy palette is consistent throughout the house.
Three years ago the couple put in a pool and landscaping to create an inviting private backyard, which has become the highlight of their home. A hot tub featuring Moroccan tiles doubles as a fountain. The tub separates the seating area from the outdoor dining patio.
“We live in our family room and back patio with fire pit. We hardly leave during the weekends, and we find plenty of company always wanting to come lounge by the pool with margaritas,” Olde says.
The house flows from the kitchen through the library and the family room to the patio and the pool.
Uphold in the backyard with Bailey.
This exterior exudes warmth, comfort and beauty. A tiled patio and greenery create an inviting first impression. “When they built the neighborhood back in the 1920s, they had planned to add an alley in the back. But they changed the plans and gave all the extra yard space to the houses on that street, so the lot was incredibly deep for Los Angeles," Olde says. "We had a really big canvas that I felt we could really not only restore, but also make better than the original. Because of the critical Historic Preservation Zone designation, the neighborhood was protected and frozen in time."
Olde and Uphold love their neighborhood and that The Grove is within walking distance, offering outdoor shopping, dining and entertainment. "Beverly Boulevard is just a short walk to the north, and La Brea to the east has a whole string of great restaurants and businesses," Uphold says.
Olde and Uphold love their neighborhood and that The Grove is within walking distance, offering outdoor shopping, dining and entertainment. "Beverly Boulevard is just a short walk to the north, and La Brea to the east has a whole string of great restaurants and businesses," Uphold says.
Olde was drawn to old Spanish houses by the movie Sunset Boulevard. “The character lived in this amazing Spanish mansion, and I remember thinking as a young boy, 'I want to live there,'” he says. A self-described frustrated architect, Olde says he has obsessed over houses his whole life. “l will drive down a street and see a house I want to see and I just want to go knock on the door and see if they will let me take a look. As a kid, I actually used to do this — I’d ask them if I could use their bathroom,” he says.
Olde pored over books of classic Spanish homes to help with the restoration. The books Classic California and Colonial California were his bibles. “I studied every photograph for design ideas, many of which I had replicated.”
Olde pored over books of classic Spanish homes to help with the restoration. The books Classic California and Colonial California were his bibles. “I studied every photograph for design ideas, many of which I had replicated.”
Olde crouches in the entryway. The next home project is completing the living room and improving the three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Olde says, "Our canvas continues to be lovingly painted. I think I was inspired to create a mood, and I want the house to glow and draw you in."
Olde considers the lighting to be art. "I really wanted an authentic, beautiful, old-world romantic look and feel to the house, and so much of that comes through the lighting,” he says. Not one original fixture had been kept, so everything had to be replaced. “It was almost as expensive as the construction, but they make the house."
In total, the couple added 12 antique chandeliers and 32 sconces, a mix of antiques and reproductions. Many of the fixtures came from nearby Ray’s Hardware.
The first two lighting fixtures they added were matching chandeliers found in an antiques store in Pasadena, California. “We bought these amazing yet heavy fixtures before we started construction because we loved them so much," Olde says. "We ended up almost constructing certain rooms around those two light fixtures, which inspired the rooms.” One hangs here in the library, and the other is in the kitchen, pulling the two spaces together.