Romancing The Ranch

By Robin McMacken, Special Advertising Sections Writer

Allison London's Woodland Hills ranch-style home is wall-to-wall girlie charm, all done with a delightfully easy hand. Sha has feathered her nest with heart, soul and a romantic, soothing style.

"It's very feminine, but guys come in here and they love it, too. It's not frilly, but it is peaceful," said London as she sat in the cozy den of the home she shares with her 12-year-old daughter, Samantha. "Men love to be here because it's not fussy, and they love the blues and the reds."

A worn green table found by the homeowner at an antique market and a flower-filled pink pot from the 1940s create an enchanting vignette under a row of windows inthe den.

In general, people of all ages and tastes love the home because London has happily incorporated a down-to-earth gracious style that instantly puts visitors at ease. And how could one not feel anything but welcome and joyous when a faux cow is the official gretter at the front door?

Inside, the look is open and eclectic, mixing antiques with modern furniture. Motifs of flowers, birds, cows and candy help create settings that take in all the feminine moods - from pretty-pretty in bedrooms, to fresh and lively in the kitchen, to classy and dressy in the dining room. But even in this room, london displays big pink and green china lemonade jugs in the buffet to add something unexpected and a touch of good-spirited fun. It's all a reflection of her and her daughter's bright personalities.

And indeed, the color chart at the home blooms in pinks, purples, greens and creams with occasional bursts of periwinkle blue and red to keep things from feeling commonplace.

“When it comes to pinks, greens and purples, we are all over it,” London said. Yet because of her fearless style, she was not afraid to introduce a bold red-and-green toile as window dressing in the dining room.

“There is thought put into this home, and yet what I like about it is it feels fun and not contrived,” she said.

Creating something that was comfortable was foremost in her mind when she and her daughter moved from Santa Monica 1 1/2 years ago into the one-story home. Samantha’s acceptance into a private school in the Valley precipitated the move, but setting up a home inland was not something either was looking forward to. However, the moment she walked into the front door, London knew this home would make everything all right.

“There was a solidness to it,” she explained.

Built in 1962, the home had just been completely remodeled. Sky lights, French doors, wood floors and cabinetry throughout were some of the additions.

“I didn’t have to acquire that much” after the move, London said, even though her previous residence, a three-story townhouse, was completely opposite in its architectural style. In the past year, she added custom window treatments, replaced the carpeting, painted the walls and obtained a few new large pieces of furniture.

And it was important, she said, to incorporate reminders of her and Samantha’s former beach-loving lives. It helps that the home has a pool and that many of the rooms open to it. In the den, London put together a look she describes as “beachy vintage,” using soft pink and green tones, tables and pillows with worn appeal, and shells displayed in shadow boxes and a giant apothecary jar. Samantha found a vintage sign that reads “Pool” to hang on a wall.

It is a great room for hanging out with friends after swimming, but it is not the most used in the home. All of the rooms were designed for easy living and get used equally, London said.

An antique wood cow with a flower box filled with hydrangea oversees the charming breakfast nook, which is brightened by an antique chandelier. The white wooden chairs around the antique pine table came from Room with a View. The handmade French pitcher and plates from Upstairs.

Mother and daughter are thrilled when they can throw open the doors to their dollhouse, as they like to call it, despite its generous size — 2,800 square feet — and host parties for up to 70 guests.

“I love to entertain,” London said. “We have parties all the time.”

Her gracious, lived-in style, she said, was inspired by the design store Room with a View in Santa Monica and its owner, Elizabeth Lamont.

“I have always loved that store,” London said. “For 15 years, ever since Elizabeth opened the store, I have gotten a lot of inspiration and have found things that are special and interesting to me. I happen to love things that have an impact on your senses, and I think Elizabeth supplies a lot of that.”

Eventually, London, who has a background in real estate and the entertainment industry, started working at the store as a saleswoman and designer.

“I loved it. I helped people create beautiful environments and that is what I have been doing on a freelance basis ever since,” she said.

Lamont, who helped London through the design process, said, “Allison is really talented and she has a great eye. It’s a wonderful, open, great-feeling house; it’s a very Room with a View house. It’s not a house that has a stand-back-and-look attitude.”

Lamont describes London’s look as classic with a feminine edge. There is a fine line between restrained femininity and all-out Victorian camp, Lamont said, and London did not cross it.

“You have to make it really classic, and you mix it with stripes and checks and you mix it with beautiful wood pieces,” Lamont said. “There is the Victorian look that is very drippy and goopy, and that is not our look in the store, nor is it Allison’s look.”

London said, however, there were a few challenges when she went to transfer the Room with a View charm she had assembled in her former place to the new home. It required her to think horizontally and to carefully consider scale and proportion.

She had to reconsider her artwork, for instance. Small prints seemed to droop against the dramatic wall space in the new home. London quickly remedied the situation in the dining room with prints from Grace Home Furnishings in Brentwood.

Allison London, shown with her daughter, Samantha.

“The reason I bought them is that I love the colors and they were both huge, and I had this massive wall space to fill,” she said.

Going large scale was also crucial with some of the new furnishings bought. In the living room, a large antique walnut coffee table from Rosemary McCaffrey Antiques in Santa Monica was chosen for the new home.

“I splurged on that table,” London said. “Everything in this room was light and I needed something to anchor everything else, and I chose that big square table.”

Whenever she could, London decorated with furniture from her former home. The worn green antique table in the family room, for instance, used to be her kitchen table when she lived in the townhouse. The perky chandelier in the guest bathroom was the lighting fixture in her former kitchen, while the pine antique table in the kitchen had been used as a desk.

“I reuse things over and over again. If I get tired of something, I just recover it,” she said.

Or she moves a piece of furniture to another room to give it a new lease on life. One of London’s strengths is her ability to repurpose home décor items with whimsy and imagination.

“The things that I put together are not necessarily what other people would think of,” she said.

Case in point: The cheery red vintage Coca-Cola cooler in the guest bathroom serves as an occasional table. A large African yogurt bowl in the entryway holds shoes, and if there is a dinner party, London moves it to the dining room table and fills it with flowers for a dramatic centerpiece.

London said she and her daughter love to go on the hunt for home accessories and don’t have a problem mixing inexpensive items with fine furnishings from high-end shops.

“I shop for all of my own antiques. Everything in this house was done, selected or made by my daughter and me,” she said. “I take my tape measure with me wherever I go. I am constantly trying to find something that is just right.”

As often as not, her daughter serves as her design consultant.

“I have to say, Samantha has incredible tastes and she will steer me right to something,” said London. “Whether it is a certain floral arrangement or a pillow she knows what will work. She has a great eye.”

For her part, Samantha enjoys shopping with her mother and having friends visit her home.

“Everybody thinks our house is really gorgeous,” she said. “It’s really fun to live in. It’s so comfortable and pretty.”

Mother and daughter keep fun in mind daily. “Whenever there is an occasion, we make it a party — [even if] it is just getting up and making pancakes for the two of us,” London said. “We like to make things look pretty and make every moment count, and I think you can do that by using your surroundings.”

Robin McMacken is a freelance writer based in Rosamond.

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