This stunning, modern Paso Robles home is right in the middle of a vineyard
The beauty of Varinder Sahi and Anita Kothari’s spacious modern home is rivaled only by its stunning views of Paso Robles and surrounding vineyards.
It’s one of three homes featured on the 2018 home tour sponsored by the Paso Robles chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW).
The tour also showcases a new Templeton home that is a reproduction of 1920s Spanish-style houses and a remodeled hilltop home in Paso Robles that blends contemporary and traditional elements.
Here is a preview of the three homes on the May 5 tour.
Sahi-Kothari Home
999 (1000) Kiler Canyon Road, Paso Robles
When Varinder Sahi and Anita Kothari purchased the Paso Robles vineyard that would become Copia Vineyards and Winery last year, a 3,300-square-foot house was part of the deal.
Remodeled in 2011, its clean-lined modernism appealed to the couple. They were also taken with its copious windows that take in sweeping panoramic views.
The house is ideal for entertaining – something the winery owners do a lot. The living room has two large picture windows, a 15-foot high open-beam ceiling and an open hearth wood-burning fireplace. Alongside the formal dining room is a temperature-controlled wine cellar.
The spacious, modern kitchen has alder cabinets and an island built from wood salvaged from a nearby barn.
Outdoor living spaces connect to the house via six sets of modern metal French doors. Open air amenities include a built-in barbecue, gas fire pit, and infinity edge pool, all with a view of the vines and newly-planted fruit orchard.
Sahi and Kothari decorated simply. “The contrast of the vibrancy of the outdoors works perfectly with the neutral and modern indoors,” Kothari said.
Rogers Home
230 Hollyhock Lane, Templeton
Kim and Dick Rogers once lived in Pasadena and admired the city’s Spanish-style homes, built in the 1920s and ’30s. When they built a new home in Templeton in 2016, those historic structures were its inspiration.
The couple worked with Ron Wulff Design & Drafting and builder Ben Graves to create a 2,400-square-foot residence with a 1920s character.
Central to its look are its Spanish clay tile roof, interior arches, exposed beams, Spanish decorative tile and Gothic arched front window.
Wrought iron is a recurring element, adding robust detailing to the massive front door that Kim and Dick Rogers found at an architectural salvage yard in Pasadena. Installing it meant altering the home’s floorplan – borrowing a few inches from the kitchen pantry — but the couple insists that it was well worth the extra hassle.
They furnished the house with vintage and antique finds from a variety of sources.
The couple always wanted a Jacobean-style dining table and chairs. They finally found a set on Craigslist and traveled to Santa Paula to acquire it. They painstakingly stripped the damaged top and cleaned the intricate carvings with a toothbrush.
Refinished and reupholstered, the dining set is now the centerpiece of their formal dining room.
Landscaping, designed by Gary Glandon, includes a fire pit, bar, covered patio and drought-tolerant plants such as yucca, salvia, palo verde tree, and sticky monkey-flower.
The couple installed the plants and irrigation system themselves.
Inside and out, they chose their color palette carefully, aiming for a vintage look. Their bathroom, for instance, is jadeite green and black.
Kim Rogers recalls someone asking whether the bathroom was original to the home. “She thought it was old – and that was exactly what we were going for,” she said.
Graves Home
1401 Greenwood Drive, Paso Robles
This home, built in 1952, sits among nearly an acre of oaks on a hill overlooking Paso Robles.
Owner Koene Graves purchased it in 2013 and hired architect Nick Gilman and builder Vince Vanderlip to enlarge and modernize the structure. Someday, she will retire there, but in the meantime, it serves as a vacation rental.
Interior designer Eliana de Leon worked with Graves to create an interior that is transitional in style, with clean lines and classic materials such as Carerra marble in the bathroom and a painted brick hearth in the living room.
The design scheme makes the most of space. A den sofa converts into a bed, so that the four-bedroom house sleeps ten people.
A small wall-leaning desk, just large enough for a laptop, takes advantage of a small space between the kitchen and living room.
de Leon used soothing, neutral hues, including pewter-toned walls that change dramatically with the light.
Interest comes from unexpected touches. A botanical mural by local artist Karen Hernandez graces a downstairs landing — “a fun surprise that fills an otherwise quite spot with cheer,” de Leon said.
Paso Robles AAUW Home Tour
The Paso Robles AAUW Annual Home Tour will take place Saturday, May 5, from noon to 4 p.m. Tickets include refreshments and cost $25 to $30, with discounts for groups of five or more; proceeds go toward scholarships. For more information, call Bev Howe at 805-239-1817 or e-mail martydiffley@charter.net.
This story was originally published April 24, 2018 at 3:47 PM with the headline "This stunning, modern Paso Robles home is right in the middle of a vineyard."