A couple rebuilds a gorgeous sanctuary in Fremont after a fire destroys their beloved home.
Standout pieces in the living room include a couch from Lee Industries, a coffee table from Vanguard and art from Saatchi.
THE PROJECT
After reeling from the loss of their home due to fire, a couple—he runs a tech company, and she’s a leader in the healthcare industry—picked up the pieces of their lives and began to plan anew. With two children (preteen and a teenager), they knew redesigning and building a new home from the ashes would be both daunting and exciting.
THE TEAM
The couple chose Mary Jo Fiorella, principal and founder of Fiorella Design (fiorelladesign.com), to tackle the project. She planned all the interiors and collaborated with the architect on the overall indoor and outdoor aesthetic for the 4,300-square-foot home.
“My design aesthetic is motivated by my clients’ input,” says Fiorella. “We listen, interpret and collaborate with our clients. The client may send inspiration images from Houzz or Pinterest or a house they visited to explain things they like. We take that information and build on the design more specifically for their home and architecture—and what our clients need and desire.”
The highly functional kitchen is a gathering place for the family. It also boasts plenty of storage, including a paneled wall that holds a refrigerator-freezer.
THE GOALS
“After living through a fire where they lost all of their belongings, the project was an opportunity to start new with a fresh outlook toward the future,” says Fiorella. “We had open-minded clients who wanted our help to guide them to the place we ultimately created for them. They were most concerned for their children; they wanted a new home for their kids that they could grow up in and cherish.”
From a design standpoint, Fiorella says her clients craved wow factors while also having a vibe that was contemporary yet inviting and warm. “Each room needed to flow nicely from one space to the next,” she says.
A table from Villa & House and chairs from Lee Industries grace the dining room.
LIVING & DINING ROOMS
One phrase describes Fiorella’s approach for this space: Bring on the color. Hues draw guests into the home and provide a welcoming feeling to look around, sit and breathe in the atmosphere, says the designer. “The living room faces an outdoor side yard that, when the bifold doors are fully opened, makes the room expand beautifully to the outdoor deck,” she says. “The stair is a focal point in the opposite direction.” Standout pieces include a sofa and game chairs from Lee Industries (leeindustries.com), swivel chairs from Bernhardt (bernhardtfurniture.com), rugs from Jaipur (jaipurrugs.com), a coffee table from Vanguard (vanguardfurniture.com) and a game table from Arteriors (arteriorshome.com). Art selected from Saatchi (saatchiart.com) also graces the room.
The dining room boasts a custom table from Villa & House (vandh.com) topped with Calacatta Arabescato Supreme by Pietra Fina (pietrafina.com), along with chairs by Lee Industries.
The primary suite features lamps from Visual Comfort, nightstands from Redford House and a bed from Vanguard.
KITCHEN
“The kitchen had to be large and inviting,” says Fiorella. “It faces the family room fireplace and is the perfect gathering space for the family and friends to gather around and not feel confined. We created a lot of storage on one wall with a paneled refrigerator-freezer.”
PRIMARY SUITE
The primary suite conveys an ethereal sense of calm; every inch is elegant yet cozy, according to plan. Lamps from Visual Comfort (visualcomfort.com) offer lovely lumens to the room, which also features a bed from Vanguard, a bench from Bernhardt and nightstands from Redford House (redfordhouse.com). “The bathroom has black accents for some contrast, but the colors are still muted grays and white,” says Fiorella. “It’s classic and timeless.”
Outdoor spaces serve as a visual extension of the home’s interiors.
HOW THE HOME IS LIVING
“The goal for our team was to give this family new spaces they’d love because of the trauma they experienced after the loss of their previous home,” says Fiorella.
“From the darkest days of touring the fire-ravaged remains of our home to the final days of hanging beautiful art on our walls, Mary Jo listened and took us on a journey of a lifetime,” says one of the homeowners. “As Winston Churchill said, ‘We shape our buildings and, afterward, our buildings shape us.’ This home has shaped our lives for the better—the lives of our children, our family, our friends and our entire neighborhood. We live near a walking trail, so we have a regular stream of people walking by our place. People stop and take pictures on a regular basis. We don’t have the biggest home one could imagine, but it’s turned into the most incredible space that we admire every morning when we wake up. We feel lucky and blessed.”
DESIGN DETAILS
Home Type
Single-family
Location
Fremont
Interior Design
Fiorella Design
RESOURCES
Lee Industries
Sofa, games chairs, living room; chairs, dining room
Bernhardt
Swivel chairs, living room; bench, primary suite
Jaipur
Rugs, living room
Arteriors
Game table, living room
Saatchi
Art, living room
Villa & House
Table, dining room
Pietra Fina
Calacatta table top, dining room
Visual Comfort
Lamps, primary suite
Redford House
Nightsstands, primary suite
Vanguard
Coffee table, living room; bed, primary suite
Photography by: VIVIAN JOHNSON
