History
The house was built in 1893 by A.H. Coy, but by 2006 it had been converted into apartments and painted all white. Painting antique homes in white became popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It was a way to make an older building look more modern, and cut down on the cost of a multi-color scheme. After World War II the trend sadly continued until the 1970s when multi-colored homes once again became fashionable.
Victorian Day Spa
The article in the Morgan Hill Times begins this way: “When Steve P bought the crumbling Victorian house on Sixth Street, he may have gotten a little more than he bargained for.” The story goes on to talk about the discoveries of Victorian era collages inside the walls. I saw great hidden potential in this lovely Victorian with all its great exterior gingerbread woodwork.
Goal & Solution
Goal
Being on a commercial street this is a highly visible building. The owner had leased it to a Day Spa and wanted it to look “Classy, with a little fun.” He understood that it had great architectural features and wanted those to show through to customers as well as those who drive by on the busy street.
Solution
The house needed a strong color scheme that allowed it to compete with other, more modern, and colorful structures on the street. I saw great hidden potential in this lovely Victorian with all its great exterior gingerbread woodwork. A gray-green two-colored body was selected and a period red/brown trim was employed to outline the building and provides a strong, colorful contrast. A combination of white, gray-yellow, and red accents were used to highlight the many great woodwork features.
