The tale of Selma Blanusa’s 1907 Sonoma farmhouse, featured by This Old House, offers a compelling case study in colorful whole house remodel techniques. What initially presented as a worn-down property with outdated wallpaper, lace curtains, and shag carpeting became a vibrant family home through strategic planning and a courageous paint palette. The 3,200-square-foot, four-bedroom residence on 4.6 acres demonstrates how homeowners can blend structural necessity with bold aesthetic ambition. For those researching similar projects, the approach taken in the Rear Window House minimalist architecture bungalow remodel offers additional insights into how historic properties can be reimagined without losing their essential character.
Choosing an Exterior Color Palette That Respects Architectural Heritage
The exterior transformation of the farmhouse began with a critical decision about curb appeal. The house had been painted an unfortunate peach tone that disguised its inherent architectural strengths. Selma worked with architect Robert Baumann and general contractor Chris Grippi to develop a palette that would restore the home’s presence while introducing personality. The result featured a striking coral front door in Benjamin Moore’s Rich Coral, set against Royal Silk siding with Graphite shutters. This combination proves that historic homes can carry bold accent colors without sacrificing authenticity. The new portico enhances the facade while matching the contours of the original beveled siding, demonstrating an attention to detail that defines successful historic renovations. For a broader look at how professional teams approach large-scale residential upgrades, the whole house remodel by 2E Architects provides an excellent point of comparison in project scope and execution.
Selecting exterior paint for an older home requires understanding the original materials. The farmhouse retained its white oak floors, plaster walls, and nine-foot ceilings inside, but the exterior had suffered years of neglect. The restoration team replaced decorative shutters with operable ones that open and close, a small detail that significantly improves the home’s authenticity and functionality. The final exterior palette returns the house to its original white while using the coral door as a signature element that distinguishes the home from its neighbors.
Two-Tone Kitchen Cabinet Strategies for a Vibrant Cooking Space
The kitchen emerged as the heart of the colorful whole house remodel, showcasing how paint can define a room’s character. Selma chose staggered Shaker-style cabinets with traditional latches, finished in two distinct Benjamin Moore colors: Let It Rain and Boca Raton Blue. This blue-on-blue approach creates depth without visual chaos, proving that multiple colors can coexist harmoniously when they share an underlying hue family. The tongue-and-groove ceiling pays homage to the porch that once occupied the kitchen’s footprint, while a lime-green chandelier from Stray Dog Designs adds an unexpected whimsical note. The citrus kitchen theme extends to yellow and green cabinet accents that evoke the property’s orchard history, where prunes and walnuts were once the primary cash crops. Homeowners planning their own kitchen refresh can study how the Revolutionary Remodel of a historic cedar shingled house tackled similar challenges of blending modern function with period-appropriate detailing.
Key elements that made the kitchen color scheme successful included:
- Using two shades from the same color family for cabinet uppers and lowers
- Pairing bold cabinet colors with neutral marble countertops to ground the space
- Adding period-appropriate hardware from Rejuvenation to bridge old and new
- Incorporating Interceramic wall tile as a subtle backdrop that does not compete with cabinetry
- Choosing a Slamp ceiling fixture over the sink as a sculptural focal point
Structural Upgrades That Ensure Safety Without Sacrificing Style
Beyond the color decisions lay serious structural work. The Sonoma property sits in earthquake territory where 75-mile-per-hour winds are common, making seismic retrofitting a non-negotiable priority. The remodel team stripped two perpendicular interior walls down to their framing and rebuilt them as shear walls anchored in concrete footings, capable of resisting magnitude 7 tremors. This work was invisible once the paint went on, but it underwrites every design decision in the home. General contractor Chris Grippi also discovered missing headers over windows and doors, which his crew installed alongside comprehensive wall insulation. The original 1907 lumber proved remarkably sound, with quartersawn fir that was inexpensive at the time but now irreplaceable. For those interested in how similar structural decisions play out in different contexts, the transformation of a dark 1950s kitchen into a bright cottage space illustrates how modern infrastructure upgrades can coexist with period character.
The structural scope of the project included:
- Complete replacement of plumbing and electrical systems, including exterior cast-iron pipes that had never been fully brought indoors
- Chimney repair and attic finishing to create usable living space
- Strategic insertion of a half bath in the master bedroom, avoiding the major surgery of a full bathroom addition
- Insulation installation in exterior walls that had none
- Window restoration by specialist craftspeople who preserved the original frames
Architectural Refinements That Add Charm Without Expanding the Footprint
Architect Robert Baumann’s contributions centered on elements that added dimension and interest without changing the home’s footprint. New porticos at the front and back entrances created what Baumann calls human-scale transitions between indoors and out, while bay windows brought light into previously dark corners of the narrow living room. A built-in window seat deep enough for lounging became one of the home’s most beloved features, borrowing design details from the existing fireplace surround. Three new dormers allowed much of the attic to become finished living space, including a sun-filled playroom for the children and their friends to gather. The two-gable wraparound porch, added two years after the initial remodel, looks as composed and time-tested as the original trim work on the house. These additions demonstrate that a well-planned colorful whole house remodel can be as much about shaping light and space as about choosing paint swatches.
| Architectural Addition | Purpose | Design Principle |
|---|---|---|
| Front portico | Enhanced entry sequence | Human-scale transition between exterior and interior |
| Bay windows | Increased natural light | Opened narrow living room without wall removal |
| Dormers | Added attic living space | Vertical expansion without changing foundation |
| Window seats | Created cozy alcoves | Borrowed details from existing woodwork |
| Wraparound porch | Extended outdoor living | Matched original trim proportions |
Practical Lessons for Undertaking a Colorful Whole House Remodel
Selma’s experience offers several transferable lessons for homeowners contemplating their own remodel projects. First, she emphasizes the importance of working with seasoned professionals whom you trust. She brought in interior designer Kim Browning and John Barnes from the local paint store to lend their trained eyes, recognizing that color selection benefits from expert guidance. Second, she advises would-be renovators to study the original character of their home before making changes. The woodwork in her farmhouse was key: solid five-panel doors with glass knobs, consistent eight-inch baseboards, and bright white trim throughout that unified the two main accent colors of blue and yellow. Third, she insists that homeowners must find their own style rather than designing for someone else’s approval. This principle guided her choice of bold colors that might have seemed risky on paper but created a cohesive whole in execution.
The project also revealed the importance of phased planning. The initial renovation addressed plumbing, wiring, structure, and finishes. Two years later, the porch addition extended the living space further. The landscape, managed by Magrane Associates, now includes manicured pathways and plantings kept trim by a flock of sheep. A freestanding exercise studio and stables for horses rounded out the property. This phased approach allowed the homeowner to spread costs over time and to live with the initial results before deciding on subsequent improvements.
Conclusion: What a Colorful Whole House Remodel Teaches About Home Restoration
The transformation of this 1907 farmhouse demonstrates that a colorful whole house remodel is about more than paint. It is about seeing potential where others see problems, about honoring historic materials while introducing modern safety standards, and about trusting a disciplined color palette to unify a complex project. Selma describes the payoff as equal parts honoring the past and breathing new life into a house you love. The result is a home where visitors feel a sweet calm despite the bold colors, because every choice was made with intention and respect for the original structure. Homeowners planning their own renovations can learn from how this project balanced the practical demands of seismic safety with the creative freedom of a coral front door and blue kitchen cabinets. For additional inspiration on reconfiguring challenging layouts, the Row House Kitchen Remodel reconfiguring awkward layouts for modern family living shows how similar principles apply in urban settings with different spatial constraints.