Home&GardenSan Francisco Chronicle and SFGate.com | Sunday, September 19, 2010 | Section L

THE DIRT By Joe Eaton and Ron Sullivan

When we talk (as we seem todo endlessly) about sustainablelandscaping, we count water,soil, appropriate plants; we takeinto account pollution, resourc-es, runoff, impact; we use theHippocratic principle: First, dono harm. That’s wise but in-complete. There’s a resource allgardens need to keep living, toendure.

They need love. Gardening is work. Some of

us like the work, but one thingwe always grow is tired. Naturalis not the same as low mainte-nance — we’ve changed theworld around us too much forthat now, especially by isolatingour own patches from the con-texts in which they could with-er and be renewed in cycles toolong for human lives to cherish.Even what most of us used tothink of as wilderness in Cali-fornia was carefully maintainedfor productivity, by planningand periodic grooming.

Gardens are human artifacts.Garden photographer SaxonHolt wrote, in Pacific Horticul-ture magazine, “The truth isthat there are no gardens with-out gardeners, and no garden isentirely sustainable withouthuman intervention.”

As we’ve witnessed with gar-dens like Western Hills in Occi-dental and the Ruth BancroftGarden in Walnut Creek, a gar-den that lasts must have morethan its own wells or drought-tolerant plants. When peoplefall in love with a garden, theybring its best hope of survivaland, at least figuratively, ofpropagating itself. Its aestheticsget spread within its culture; itbecomes a model and a meccaby buoying the spirits of peoplewho care for and visit it. It’salmost parallel to evolutionary

Secrets toenduringgardens

The Dirt continues on L3

Saxon Holt

A carefully tended borderthrives at the S.F. BotanicalGarden entrance.

Stylemaker Spotlight: Designer’sinspiration sourcebook L4

Golden GateGardener:The wronghouseplant L2

By Chantal LamersSPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

While some people detest theburdens of moving, others embraceit as an opportunity to purge, startfresh and, perhaps, redefine theirstyle.

That’s the case with VictoriaSmith, San Francisco’s iconic decorand design blogger better known asSF Girl by Bay (sfgirlbybay.com).Her signature bohemian modernstyle was feeling a tad stale. Sowhen a friend rang about a 1930sNoe Valley cottage up for grabs, shehurried to packing and put an arse-nal of ideas and resources into ac-tion.

“I’d been craving a change for a

Photos by Lea Suzuki / The Chronicle

The move to a new home gave SF Girl by Bay blogger Victoria Smith the chance to try out “a sophisticated brand of eclectic.”

INTERIOR DESIGN

What’s black, white and fresh all over?

Yellow cookware tops a classic black-and-white O’Keefe & Merritt stove.

A tabletop in the kitchen nook comp-lements black walls, white wall art.

Kitchen nook shelves are filled withdishes in shades of white.

Design blogger Victoria Smith relishes thechance to switch up her style in Noe Valley Blogger continues on L5

By Anabelle GaraySPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Gaze at bay views, lush gar-dens, cobblestone walkways,intricate woodwork and classicarchitecture in the Bay Areaduring fall home tours takingplace next weekend and extend-ing into October.

Four tours covering a rangeof architectural styles in Oak-land, Sausalito and Alamedafeature dozens of houses whereowners have preserved thequirky character or formergrandeur while enhancing withmodern comforts:

Sausalito Floating Homes TourNow in its 25th year, this

parade of the floating communi-ty includes seven homes neverbefore on the tour and two thathaven’t been part of it in years.

With 19 homes spread overfour docks, it could be hard tochoose what to check out.Among the must-sees are theAmeer, an ark still bearing itsoriginal design and the only arkon Richardson Bay; the OyamaFlower, a 4,000-square-foot,three-level floating home de-signed to resemble a Japanese

barn; and the Red Star, a homefeaturing wrap-around win-dows and etched glass, saidtour committee spokesman PaulWinward.

There’s also music by localacts, an art show, plus food anddrink at the Marina Green.

11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 25. $35advance; $40 tour day. Parking atGateway Shopping Center in Mar-in City with shuttle service toMarina Green. www.floatinghomes.org. (415) 332-1916.

By land or by sea, homes showcase Bay Area livingEVENTS

Ric Miller Home tours continues on L4

San Francisco Chronicle and SFGate.com | Sunday, September 19, 2010 | L5

DESIGN

long while,” says Smith.“It’s what I do. I livesomewhere for about fiveyears, and then I get theitch for a new place tooffer up a design chal-lenge. Maybe I’m tryingto grow up a little andgo for a more sophis-ticated brand of eclectic.”

Smith’s former resi-dence, a Victorian flat inPacific Heights, was acomposition of crispwhite with traces ofgirlish pastels in the wayof pillows, art and clut-tered collections as wellas some natural woodtones from an anthologyof beloved midcenturyfurnishings.

From there, the planwas to reimagine herhome without partingfrom the upbeat delightsthat reflect her style best.“It’s still very eclectic anda mix of midcenturymodern and vintagefinds, coexisting with afew brand-new pieces.I’ve been inspired by alot of black and whitelately, and Scandinaviandesign,” she says.

‘A new look’To build upon her

existing style essay, sheadded of-the-momentindustrial bends andsome intoxicating coatsof matte black chalk-board paint. “I’d beenwanting to paint somewalls in my old placeblack and was worriedabout the commitment tosomething so dramatic,so when I was able tomove into this newhome, it was the perfectopportunity to try out anew look.”

The dining room felt abit dark at the onset, butSmith wasn’t deterredfrom experimenting bysaturating one, theneventually four walls, inthe rich, ebony hue.

To delineate the blackwalls, she erected a shal-low white fireplace man-tel. She topped the shelfwith a collection of cast-off pottery, glass beakersand silver trophies (someshe repurposed intosucculent planters). Amodest silver wine rackis mounted in place oflogs. In the center of theroom, a hearty antiqueEuropean table (a hand-me-down from her moth-er) holds court. ButSmith, to no surprise,adds her own vintage-meets-modern twist byscooting in a collection ofwhite tulip chairs andblack bistro seats. Theroom offers a strikingjuxtaposition to her femi-nine panache.

Smith opted to givethe kitchen nook thesame black chalkboardtreatment. But here, theidea was to make it aplayful backdrop forscribbling menus andgrocery lists. In thiscorner of the house, thecool blackened walls alsoprovide an unorthodoxsetting for a sunny cor-ner that’s transformed byan industrial stainlesssteel cart serving as anindoor garden. A bountyof lush herbs shootsfrom a cluster of mis-matched terracotta pots.

An arched, built-inshelf also situated in thealcove provides Smith anopportunity to play withher display genius. Thepolished white shelf isbedecked with potteryand dishes, most ofwhich are white, glass orcream-colored.

A bit of a maximalistat heart, she successfullygrants her collections aminimalist appearance bysticking to a subtle colorscheme. The outcomehere, and throughout herhome, are liberal collec-tions that don’t feelcrowded or excessivelyedited.

Smith was slightlytaken aback by the inex-plicable combination ofyellow and burgundy tilein the kitchen. Neverthe-less, she weaves a pictur-esque, European-stylestory in the light-filledspace. Lots of plantsalong with yellow, whiteand stainless kitchenelectrics and accessoriestop the counter.

While Smith was ea-ger for a bit of refine-ment, she wasn’t aboutto make things superserious. That unfussyanthem is repeatedthroughout the houseand the living room is noexception. This space,which beckons guestsmost, is airy and ultracomfy. “People seem tobe drawn to the livingroom, which is nice, andwhat I’d hoped for.

“I like an eclectic look,and I was going for moreof a Scandinavian feeling,with lots of white and amix of vintage eras withmodern classics.” Thattranslated to a cushywhite sofa decked withfrolicky-feeling pillows.

Seating optionsThe gracious nature of

the space is palpablethanks to an abundanceof seating options: a pairof midcentury lounges, atufted-and-tapered leggedbench, a duo of whiteand black Eames rockers,and a solo butterflychair. The chit-chattyvenue is anchored by aGeorge Nelson crisscrosspear pendant and a neatlittle Saarinen coffeetable atop a coiffed whiterug. For cooler occasions,a corner fireplace is onstandby.

Throughout the house,

Smith uses black orwhite as the base colorsand “gives each room apersonality with a mix ofaccessories and artwork.”

“I get great sunlight injust about every room inthe house. I also lovehaving room to spreadout. I used to have mydining room, living roomand office all in one bigroom. I like being able tohave a room for each anddecorate according to thepurpose of the room.”

In her bedroom, Smithdeliberately held back bylimiting the adornmentsin hopes of evokingsleep-filled nights. “Istarted here first becauseI was certain of my de-cor plan. I wanted aroom that felt peacefuland relaxed and to high-light the beautiful lightfrom the windows in theroom,” she says. “I don’tsleep well, so I wanted acozy space, but nothingtoo fussy.”

The final touchFor the most part, that

meant a simple blacktallboy dresser, pairedwith an ornate, gilt mir-ror (she plucked for $20from an Urban Outfittersfixture sale). For the finaltouch, she ornamentedan overhead light withTord Boontje GarlandFixture, a sweet transi-tion to her bird-and-branch print Dwell Chi-noiserie bedding.

On her blog, Smithhas documented a goodmeasure of her processfor decor wrestling aswell as the big and thesmall design victoriesscored in her new cot-tage. Stay tuned. There’smore of that to come, shesays.

“It’s still really a workin progress. I tend tojump in and try things,and then sit back andwonder if I made theright choice. The goodnews, it’s always change-able. Nothing is foreverwhen it comes to decor.”

E-mail comments tohome@sfchronicle.com.

Photos by Lea Suzuki / The Chronicle

Snapshots and other images hang from a curtain wire over a white couch on which Lucy, Smith’s dog, lounges.

Black, white and fresh all over

Above: A low, white mantel over the fireplace helps delineate the dining room’sdramatic black walls. Right: In the kitchen nook, wire baskets filled withmagazines sit in front of a chalkboard used for scribbling tasks and menus.

Style shakeupHere are Victoria Smith’s tips for making a style transition:

De-clutter your collection: “As far as purging, I just triedto keep what really meant something to me, or I reallyloved the look of. I started a vintage Etsy shop, Le PetiteFlea, (www.etsy.com/shop/lepetiteflea) so I could sharesome of my discarded treasures with readers. That way, Iknew they were moving on to a good home.”

Find a source of inspiration: “I love the blog Door Six-teen (www.doorsixteen.com) for inspiration, and (thewriter) Anna (Dorfman) has given me countless newideas. She has amazing style and her DIY projects are sowell carried out.”

Start a design journal: “I love European design maga-zines, like Living Etc. I miss Domino but have all my oldmagazines and look through them all the time. I tear outimages I love and keep them pasted in design journalsfor future inspiration.”

Virtual pinboard: “I also use Pinterest (www.pinterest.com/home) a new online visual bookmarking tool. Youcan create virtual pinboards on any theme, like bed-rooms for instance, and when you see something in-spiring on the Web, you can pin it and save the imageand its original source on pinterest.”

— Chantal Lamers

Blogger from page L1

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