Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Historic Portland House Gets a Modern Makeover
A designer stays true to an Oregon home’s American Foursquare roots while infusing it with contemporary style
When Sandy Riedman and her husband, Aaron Matusick, bought an American Foursquare house in Portland, Oregon’s Historic Alphabet District — a neighborhood of beautiful homes where trees line streets named in alphabetical order — there were layers of dust in the 1907 home, which hadn’t been updated in many years. After giving the home an exterior makeover, they enlisted interior designer Ashton Ford to take on the interior. Ford was hired to work on the kitchen and bathrooms but ended up revising the floor plan — moving and taking down walls, and adding numerous built-ins to maximize space. Riedman’s brother, Tommy Riedman, served as general contractor.
Before: A paneled wall separated the dining room from the kitchen, seen through the doorway in this photo.
After: New and traditional elements abound in the kitchen, where a classic farmhouse sink and Shaker-style cabinets surround a contemporary walnut butcher block island with vintage stools under clear glass globe pendant lights. The original Douglas fir floors were refinished.
Countertops: Thassos PentalQuartz, Pental Surfaces; backsplash: Fog, Design & Direct Source; cabinets: MH Custom Cabinetry; lighting: Rejuvenation; sink: Shaws Original fireclay, Rohl; faucets: Traditional PLP pull-down, Waterstone Faucets
Countertops: Thassos PentalQuartz, Pental Surfaces; backsplash: Fog, Design & Direct Source; cabinets: MH Custom Cabinetry; lighting: Rejuvenation; sink: Shaws Original fireclay, Rohl; faucets: Traditional PLP pull-down, Waterstone Faucets
Before: Ford knew she needed to add lighting in the formerly dark kitchen. “My main focus when choosing lighting is the light output, knowing that you need a lot of light in a kitchen and bath in order to use the space properly, or setting the mood in a dining room or living room with ambient lighting.”
After: Fun blue-and-white patterned tiles line the wall above the Thermador oven. Ford says her design philosophy is to meet the needs of her clients while still challenging them a bit. “I’m the designer, but it is ultimately their style. I like to push the boundaries with what they might expect, but I would never force a client to get something they aren’t comfortable with.”
Tile: Scraffito in Indigo, Pratt & Larson; range hood: Zephyr
Tile: Scraffito in Indigo, Pratt & Larson; range hood: Zephyr
A mix of eras is reflected in the living room’s design. Local stained-glass specialist Chuck Franklin Glass Studio refinished the original windows. A turquoise-colored modern metal rocker adds a pop of color to the comfy space, along with macramé wall hangings and a pendant light from local company Rejuvenation that was inspired by a 1930s design from an antique Japanese fishing buoy. The dining room’s new pantry-buffet is seen on the left.
Pendant light: Yeon, Rejuvenation; sconces: Tryon, Cedar & Moss; chairs: Acapulco, Sitte; lamps: Target; macramé art: Ciocco Design Co.
Pendant light: Yeon, Rejuvenation; sconces: Tryon, Cedar & Moss; chairs: Acapulco, Sitte; lamps: Target; macramé art: Ciocco Design Co.
Matte black hardware, sconces, plumbing fixtures and dark tile grout lend an industrial-vintage feel to the completely remodeled guest bathroom, which has the same large-format floor tile as the adjacent mudroom.
Wall tile: Standard in pure white matte, CW series, Design & Direct Source; toilet: Eco Drake, Toto; vanity, sconces and hardware: Rejuvenation; mirror: AllModern; tub: Pose, Maax; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs
Wall tile: Standard in pure white matte, CW series, Design & Direct Source; toilet: Eco Drake, Toto; vanity, sconces and hardware: Rejuvenation; mirror: AllModern; tub: Pose, Maax; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs
A new mudroom adjacent to the guest bathroom has built-in cubbies for storage and large-scale porcelain floor tiles with radiant floor heating.
Pendant light: Rejuvenation; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs; floor tile: Up in black, Pental Surfaces
Pendant light: Rejuvenation; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs; floor tile: Up in black, Pental Surfaces
A handsome leather-and-wood chair against a richly hued teal wall anchors a reading corner in the first-floor guest bedroom. “The room was actually completely full of built-ins,” Ford says. “I imagine it was a dry pantry or storage room in the home prior to us renovating and remodeling.”
Floor lamp: Target; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs; paint on walls: Mountain Laurel AC-20 in flat finish, Benjamin Moore; chair: Clayton, Sitte; browse similar chairs
Floor lamp: Target; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs; paint on walls: Mountain Laurel AC-20 in flat finish, Benjamin Moore; chair: Clayton, Sitte; browse similar chairs
A leaded-glass window in the entry was restored along with all the home’s windows, one of the first things Ford did for the homeowners, she says.
Lighting from Rejuvenation accents the space.
Lighting from Rejuvenation accents the space.
A built-in cabinet designed by Ford fits next to an original window seat in the landing of the stairway that leads to the second floor.
“We made sure to utilize any and all spaces available, so I designed this built-in,” Ford says. “The window seat was already there, but it was trimmed out to where you couldn’t really sit on it. Now it’s an adorable window perch.“
“We made sure to utilize any and all spaces available, so I designed this built-in,” Ford says. “The window seat was already there, but it was trimmed out to where you couldn’t really sit on it. Now it’s an adorable window perch.“
The shower has wall tile and pebble floor tile that complement the charcoal tile and black fixtures in the rest of the space.
Shower wall tile: Shore in Ocean Crackle, Esperanza series, Design & Direct Source; shower floor tile: Perfect Pebble in Medan Charcoal, Island Stone; Pental Surfaces
Shower wall tile: Shore in Ocean Crackle, Esperanza series, Design & Direct Source; shower floor tile: Perfect Pebble in Medan Charcoal, Island Stone; Pental Surfaces
The master bedroom presented another challenge. “I always design the layout of the walls and windows with the layout of furniture in mind.” But every arrangement she tried in this room threw something else out of balance. “There needed to be enough space to walk into the room and not have a nightstand in the way,” she says.
The solution? “They ended up keeping their bed centered on the wall and getting smaller nightstands. Win, win.”
The solution? “They ended up keeping their bed centered on the wall and getting smaller nightstands. Win, win.”
Before: The attic was a dark space, and the original windows had a painted wood detail.
After: Ford worked some magic in the attic, transforming an area that was “an odd hallway to a window, completely useless” into a bathroom with striking tilework. “We opened up the wall between this tiny hallway and the stairwell to make it a bathroom,” she says.
She ran yellow tiles vertically on one wall of the shower because running them horizontally didn’t produce an even match. “I wanted to be even more funky and do that shower curb in that same yellow. This is one of my favorite bathrooms!”
Tile: Design & Direct Source; toilet: Toto
She ran yellow tiles vertically on one wall of the shower because running them horizontally didn’t produce an even match. “I wanted to be even more funky and do that shower curb in that same yellow. This is one of my favorite bathrooms!”
Tile: Design & Direct Source; toilet: Toto
Before the remodel, the basement was “completely uninhabitable,” Ford says. After they excavated 3 feet down, the space was transformed into a rentable accessory dwelling unit. The unit’s kitchen now boasts stainless steel appliances from local dealer Basco Appliances, white oak custom cabinetry, quartz countertops, bright subway tile and classic lighting.
Countertops: Thassos PentalQuartz, Pental Surfaces; cabinets: MH Custom Cabinetry; lighting: Laurelhurst (over island) and Conical (over dining table), Rejuvenation
Countertops: Thassos PentalQuartz, Pental Surfaces; cabinets: MH Custom Cabinetry; lighting: Laurelhurst (over island) and Conical (over dining table), Rejuvenation
Also in the basement is a shower that is separate from the accessory dwelling unit. It has large-format black tile and pebbled floor tile similar to the main floor’s bathrooms.
Floor: Perfect Pebble in Medan Charcoal, Island Stone, Pental Surfaces; wall tile: Up in Iron, Pental Surfaces; shower fixtures: Kohler
Floor: Perfect Pebble in Medan Charcoal, Island Stone, Pental Surfaces; wall tile: Up in Iron, Pental Surfaces; shower fixtures: Kohler
The welcoming front porch is furnished with a mix of traditional lighting and contemporary chairs that seem right at home in their historic surroundings.
Pendant lights: Hood with opal cylinder shades, Rejuvenation; chairs: Acapulco, Sitte
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Pendant lights: Hood with opal cylinder shades, Rejuvenation; chairs: Acapulco, Sitte
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
House at a Glance
Who lives here: Sandy Riedman, owner of Mandala Medicine & Wellness, and her husband, Aaron Matusick, a real estate lawyer
Location: Portland, Oregon
Size: 2,390 square feet (222 square meters), plus a 744-square-foot (69-square-meter) rental unit in the converted basement
Designer: Ashton Ford
Ford gave the space a fresh look, blending midcentury modern elements with updated classics in a palette of mostly subdued blues and grays. Throughout the home, the designer used compatible finishes and styles in adjacent rooms, and did the same with lighting. “As I’m mixing finishes and colors, I try to find lighting with similar shapes or details. Maybe they aren’t so apparent at first glance, but overall [they] complement each other.”
The team removed a wall between the kitchen and the dining room to unify the space. A long bench window seat was constructed in the dining room, with faux leather cushions that pick up on the blues used throughout the home. Lighting in the adjacent spaces is a mix of pendants and sconces in a variety of finishes and styles. The brass-and-glass globe chandelier adds an elegant midcentury touch over the table.
Dining table: Peak, Bolster Furniture; rug: Abbasi Fine Rugs; chandelier: Cedar & Moss exclusively for Rejuvenation; sconces: Wyatt, Cedar & Moss