Marin designers showcase expertise at forty fourth Decorator Showcase – Marin Impartial Journal
This colorful bedroom for a teenage girl was designed by Eugenia and Emma Jesberg of EJ Interior Design in Tiburon for the San Francisco Decorator Showcase, which runs through May 29th.
The Seacliff neighborhood of San Francisco will host the 44th Decorator Showcase, which runs through May 29 and will feature 23 Bay Area design firms, including three talented ones from Marin.
The stylish transformations take place in a stately three-story Mediterranean-Spanish-style home built in 1927 and overlooking San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands.
Designers have reimagined 28 design rooms that include five bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms, a game room, a movie room, an elevator, a laundry room and more.
Marin’s participating design firms are Lauren Berry Interior Design and Shelley & Company Interior Design, both from Ross, and EJ Interior Design from Tiburon.
Cooking with sea salt
Lauren Berry (laurenberry.com) founded her interior design company more than 20 years ago and was a previous Showcase attendee.
In Showcase House 2019, she designed an en-suite espresso and cocktail bar, but this time she turned her attention to a larger space, the Sea Salt Kitchen. Her vision was to “create an open, gourmet family kitchen with off-the-shelf appliances that easily converts into a dramatic setting for breakfast and dining rooms,” she says.
Berry’s timeless color palette of warm whites, creams and soft grays was inspired by the California coast, she says.
A calacatta marble waterfall island anchors the elegant kitchen, whose form is referenced 10 feet above by a large LED-lit tray ceiling.
Marble also surrounds the large Hestan range, concealing the hood and sliding to conceal a pair of flat shelves that flank the range.
Photo by Mario Serafin
EJ Interior Design of Tiburon designed the ensuite bathroom in the Decorator Showcase.
Bespoke white oak cabinetry, wall panels and panels above the appliances give the marble a warm, tranquil backdrop.
A built-in sofa, complemented by Holly Hunt wall coverings and local artwork, is a comfortable spot to chat with the chef, check email, or watch the wall-mounted TV
Berry hopes visitors will notice Blisshaus’ “amazing plastic-free pantry organization system and eco-friendly Zip water filtration system that provides cold, hot and sparkling water on demand.”
Bubbling party
Eugenia and Emma Jesberg, the mother-daughter duo of EJ Interior Design (ejinteriordesign.com), a 30-year-old Tiburon-based company, took a vibrant, playful approach to a young girl’s en-suite bedroom, calling it ” Sadie’s Arty Party” and “Bubbly Bash”.
Although this is Eugenia Jesberg’s fourth Decorator Showcase over the years, it is Emma’s first and their first showcase room together.
“It was a lot of work and a lot of fun,” says Emma Jesberg. “Showcase is an opportunity to go big and bold and layer it, design for a dream client, discover new products and also highlight our favorite employees.”
Photo by Paul Dyer
Max’s Magical Playroom was designed by Shelley & Company Interior Design in Ross for the 44th Decorator Showcase.
The bedroom, bathed in wonderful natural light, is the fun setting for Sadie’s arty party, where the Jesbergs wanted a space that would encourage creativity and imagination to accommodate Sadie, their “client,” whom they describe as someone who is “the is party life, loves pink and has a strong imagination,” says Emma Jesberg.
Eugenia Jesberg agrees, and while it may have been designed for a young girl, “we think it may appeal to you whether you’re 6 years old or 66 years old.”
The focal point in the bedroom is a custom made statement bed inspired by the 1980s Memphis movement and designed by EJ Interiors using seven Pierre Frey cotton velvets.
The unexpected ceiling wall covering and window treatments, both in Pierre Frey’s Arty pattern, balance the bed “by creating a playful contrast to the bed’s soft geometry,” says Emma Jesberg.
A custom rug, a vintage desk, a pair of Gary Hutton cube-shaped side tables, artwork and a stuffed animal alpaca are among the curated accessories.
In the adjacent bathroom, designers created Bubbly Bash, where the walls are covered in custom-colored glass mosaic reminiscent of confetti. Floating countertops and shelves, colorful plumbing, and hanging orb lights continue the game’s theme.
“While our bedroom looks quite pink and colorful, the walls are white, further underscoring that this room is Sadie’s ‘blank canvas,'” says Eugenia Jesberg.
Magic playroom
The home’s water heater and wet room were given a major makeover when Shelley Cahan and Sarah Wilson of Shelley & Company Interior Design (shelleyandcompany.com) took over.
There was a water heater, a sink, a brick chimney, closets, washer and dryer hookups, concrete floors, and tons of plumbing and exposed piping, recalls Jenny Bittner Borden, operations manager for the San Francisco Decorator Showcase.
Photo by Bess Friday
Lauren Berry of Lauren Berry Interior Design in Ross designed this kitchen for the 44th Decorator Showcase.
The design firm “expanded the playroom by tearing down the north wall and creating its own boiler room, leveling the floors and bringing a light and airy feel to the dark and cold space,” she adds. “I think it was very difficult for most to see the potential of this space and Shelley and his team took on that challenge and made it happen.”
Showcase Tips
“Marin readers will love the location,” Borden says, noting the property’s proximity to nearby beaches, the Legion of Honor, and interesting restaurants and bakeries. “Make it a day and have a fun adventure.”
Your insider tips? Look for the “little hidden gems throughout the house, including hidden spice racks in the kitchen, an espresso bar in her office, a wet bar in his office, a backlit marble bar, and a wine cellar.”
She welcomes those who visit the Showcase on Friday nights to enjoy complimentary white wine and al fresco snacks during “Friday Nights at Showcase” from 5-7 p.m
• The 44th Decorator Showcase runs through May 29 at 625 El Camino Del Mar in San Francisco. Closed Mondays except Memorial Day. Hours of operation are from opening to last entry: 10am to 3pm Tuesday to Saturday; Fridays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $40 to $45. Tickets are available online or at the door and can be paid for with Visa, Mastercard and Discover cards or in cash. Call 415-447-5830 or visit decoratorshowcase.org.
More: The tour should last 60 to 90 minutes. Parking is limited and public transportation or ridesharing is recommended. Proceeds benefit the San Francisco University High School financial aid program.
Indicate
If you have a beautiful or interesting Marin garden or newly designed Marin house, I’d love to hear about it.
Please send an email describing one (or both) what you love most about it and a photo or two. I will publish the best ones in the coming columns. Your name will be published and you must be over 18 and a Marin resident.
Even more
• Join the No Mow May or Low Mow Spring movements this month and give yourself, your lawn, bees and other pollinators a break. Visit beecityusa.org for details and a free printable lawn sign.
• Residents of San Anselmo can trade in their (now banned) gas landscapers and apply for a discount on new electrical purchases by visiting the landscaper information page at townofsananselmo.org.
• Master Rosarians Paula Jaffe and Betty Mott share helpful tips for anyone who will be presenting a rose or rose photo at the upcoming Greenbrae Celebration of Roses May 9 at 6:30 p.m. at the Mill Valley Community Center at 180 Camino Alto in Mill want to submit gorge. Go to marinrose.org.
PJ Bremier writes on home, garden, design and entertainment topics every Saturday. She can be contacted at PO Box 412, Kentfield 94914 or at pj@pjbremier.com.
