A '60s flash forward

Pete Riolo’s dream house has coastal views to die for, but the Los Osos residence built in 1969 was showing its ‘Brady Bunch’ age. His solution was to update the interior and in the process create the perfect solution for the 21st centur

By Written by Rebecca Juretic Photographed by Lance Kinney

His daughter’s bedroom, with its canopy bed, reflects the girl’s love of horses.

• A '60s flash forward

SCHOLARSHIP HOME TOUR

The Riolo home will be one of four homes featured on the First Scholarship Home Tour presented by the San Luis Coastal Teachers Association on Sunday from 11 a. m. to 4 p. m. Proceeds will fund scholarships to graduating local high school students who are pursuing a career in the teaching field.

Tickets, $15, may be purchased the day of the tour from the Biddle Home at 559 Pismo St. in San Luis Obispo. For more details, call 528-0566.

DESIGN TIPS FROM THE RIOLO HOME

STICK WITH THE STRIP

For colors that coordinate but offer subtle variation, use more than one hue from a paint chip strip. The effect is less jarring than using contrasting colors. Use the lighter colors for trim and ceilings, medium tones for walls and the darkest hues as accents.

MOVE YOUR TV

Keeping your media room separate from your other living spaces allows family members or guests to enjoy television and games without disturbing the rest of the family. This is especially helpful if you have a great room where a television can intrude upon dinner, quiet time, or other activities.

HOLD THE STAIN

Dark stains are no longer the latest look in wood. Instead, people are opting for clear finishes that allow the natural grain of the wood show through. Woods will naturally darken and mellow over time and some, like cherry, will acquire reddish undertones.

RESOURCES:

Design and construction:

Bob Crizer Construction

Cabinetry:

Master Craft Wood Products, Cayucos

Electrical Contractor:

Meisner Electric

Stepping into his Los Osos house for the first time felt like a flashback for Pete Riolo.

“It was like “The Brady Bunch” house,” he said of the residence, built in 1969.

Among its less-than-groovy 1960s features: red embossed felt wallpaper, shag carpeting and the heavy use of avocado green —on cabinetry, the bathroom sink and even the commode.

Riolo did his best to look past the cosmetic shortcomings of the house and focus on its dramatic ocean views and prime location just a short distance from Montaña de Oro State Park.

The house had another plus: a 1,700-square-foot unfinished basement. Riolo envisioned it as a hangout for his two teenage kids who stay with him every other week. The main level would be a sanctuary exclusively for him.

He purchased the house in October 2006 and immediately went to work. Bob Crizer Construction in Los Osos helped design the remodel that took eight months to complete.

They started with a blank slate. The house was completely gutted, retaining only the brick fireplace wall, a few windows and a staircase railing.

The basement was transformed into a teen-friendly space, the centerpiece of which is a large media room equipped with a flat panel television and gaming computer. A large storage area was converted into a bedroom. A second bedroom and bathroom were added.

Riolo kept the upstairs decidedly more adult. Between running his kids to their activities and managing his business, Pro-Coatings in San Luis Obispo, he has little time for things like cleaning. So he designed it to be stylish, yet low maintenance. “I wanted it to be simple, nothing fancy,” he said. “Just a nice laid-back feeling.”

Riolo loves to cook, so he selected easy-care materials in the kitchen, like CaesarStone counter-tops and brushed stainless steel appliances. He installed cherry flooring throughout the house and composite decking outside. Overall, he kept fussy details to a minimum.

Because he owns a painting business, Riolo is a pro at picking colors. This time, though, he opted to let natural hues take center stage. He opted to leave his American cherry floors and alder cabinets unstained, with only a protective finish. “Nothing looks monochromatic, and the wood ages richly over time,” he said. “The clear finish just enhances the grain patterns.”

One of his favorite wood features in the home was original to it: a hand-carved center ceiling beam in the living room. Like everything else, it was suffering from age so he had all of the ceiling beams refinished with a rich walnut stain.

Riolo chose the color palette for the rest of the house to coordinate with the beams. His trick: Pulling several hues from one paint chip strip, the type you find at any paint store. He selected a range of warm golds, using lighter colors for ceilings and trim, medium tones for bathrooms and darker tones for most of the rest of the house.

The gold walls worked well with Riolo’s furniture, which is a mix of contemporary and rustic, including several handcrafted Mexican pieces from San Luis Obispo’s Luna Rustica. A variety of art offers evenhanded pops of color throughout. “There are ambers and reds in the art. It all jives when it’s against the wall color,” he said.

Riolo afforded himself some grown-up pleasures. He is a music aficionado, so his living room is equipped with high-end audio equipment. He installed a hot tub on his deck and positioned the bathroom window to frame a view of Morro Rock. His final indulgence: a sauna in the basement area. “It was my little present to me,” he said.

Today, the former “Brady Bunch” house is the perfect solution for a very 21st century family. “They have their sleep-overs and stay up late, and I can go to bed early and not hear them at all,” he said. “It’s worked out great for all of us.”