Tour Allure Allura

In the “now why didn’t I think of that?” department comes this bit of information: Homeowners redoing their kitchen sent their old cabinetry to a friend’s home for a “garage update.”

I’m thinking of the utilitarian shelves in my garage and picturing how much nicer the space would look with closed doors concealing cans of leftover paint and boards, tools, hardware, work gloves, hardware and miscellaneous items that don’t belong in the house but also don’t belong in the trash.

Now I am going to encourage my friends to renovate their kitchens. I got this inspiration from local designer Suzi O’Brien’s description of the Carlsbad project she’s presenting in ASID San Diego Chapter’s Excursion Tour this coming Saturday (Oct. 22).

Another Carlsbad residence on the tour was completely remodeled, indoors and out. Beppie Mostert updated the home to support the lifestyle of its owners, who were retiring here from out of state. The photo above shows the kitchen.

Ann Cummings is showcasing her work on a 1930 bungalow in Kensington. The back portion of the house was remodeled to create a new master bath and more usable closet space.

A couple who moved from a Craftsman home in Mission Hills to a downtown condo got help from Michelle Strausbaugh in maximizing storage in their smaller digs. She even created cabinetry in the master bath to conceal a kitty litter box.

Beth Booth faced the challenge of updating a 1950s-era ranch home in Oceanside that lacked a dining room. The owners love to entertain friends and family, so accommodating crowds was a focus of the new design that includes a new chef’s kitchen with three working ovens.

Lena Brion has a Vista home on the tour: a 1980s tract home with extensive renovations, indoors and out.

For anyone thinking about tinkering with a space in their home or all the spaces under the roof (or all the spaces including the roof!), tours such as this provide opportunities to see what local designers and homeowners have done to create beautiful and functional spaces, to learn about materials and to get insight from design professionals.

The self-guided tour takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 858-566-3345. Tickets are available at this link: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2696253