Come In--The Door Is Open at This House

Like many a new homeowner, Ron Sanchez called in the decorators after he closed the deal on his 60-year-old colonial-style home in Fullerton this year.

Hardly remarkable--until you see his method. A designer himself, Sanchez invited his colleagues--the entire membership of the Orange County chapter of the International Society of Interior Designers--to showcase their skills by transforming the property he dubbed “Foxglove Manor” into “Design House ‘88,” a joint fund-raising project for the society and Bowers Museum in Santa Ana.

The first group of visitors dropped by Friday evening for “The Hunt Ball,” the equestrian-themed unveiling of the designers’ handiwork, complete with live horses and hunting dogs on the front lawn.

Although Bowers and the society will split the proceeds from the monthlong open house at Foxglove, the $75-a-person premiere event was strictly a Bowers benefit, bringing in about $10,000, according to museum spokeswoman Ria Carlson.

Organizers hope sales of general admission tickets ($10 at the door, $9 in advance, $5 for students and senior citizens) through Nov. 6 will increase the proceeds to about $45,000, equal to the amount raised at the first society/Bowers design house in 1986. Judy Fluor Runels and Margaret Kuhn are co-chairwomen of “Design House ’88.”