Sunset
Before: Midcentury living room
Featured in Sunset’s May 1966 issue, this award-winning La Mesa hillside home near San Diego was considered a model of indoor-outdoor living.
From the downstairs office and family room, glass doors led to an outdoor patio and beautiful gardens.
A photo taken soon after the house was built shows the living room’s double-sided fireplace.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
After: living room
The living room now glows with new wood floors and a lighter, less-obtrusive shade of paint on the ceiling beams and trim.
Sunset
Indoor-outdoor living
A glazed breezeway and sliding glass doors opened onto shady decks that abutted the hillside of granite boulders and meandering pathways.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
An updated classic
A sensitive 2007 update by local architect Carmen Pauli and owners Jora and Bryan Vess kept the essential character of the 3,178-square-foot residence while incorporating modern eco-friendly materials, including Brazilian teak floors and ipe wood decking.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
Free flow
Steel post-and-beam construction eliminates the need for thick supporting walls in the living areas.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
View master
With the main living areas on the second floor, dining in the treetops is a daily treat.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
Kitchen in Plain Sight
Featured in Sunset’s May 1966 issue, this award-winning La Mesa hillside home near San Diego was considered a model of indoor-outdoor living.
The renovated kitchen retains the original footprint minus the overhead cabinets that isolated it from the dining area.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
Sense of place
Floor to ceiling windows in the living and dining areas offer a broad view of the surrounding landscape and valley below.
Photography by Thomas J. Story
Inspired by the outdoors
Natural tones of pottery complement the Southern California landscape.