Starter home

Tom Balamaci, left and Patrick Wildnauer balanced quality with savvy spending as they re-envisioned their 1927 cottage in Wilshire Vista. They worked with interior designer Amalia Gal. The results combine traditional elegance and personal style.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

June 1, 2017 6:32 PM PT

The style of the home evokes storybook cottages.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Now the entry is wallpapered with a darkly patterned Morris & Co. design purchased from Egg & Dart in Los Angeles.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

In the living room, there was no delineation between the walls and the ceiling. Molding was installed as a demarcation line. The walls were painted Union Springs in velvet by Dunn Edwards and the ceiling was brushed with flat, Dunn Edwards paint in Historic White.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Details of a bench and a couch in the living room.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A needlepoint pillow features the likeness of Buckie, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The living room features a gallery wall.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The previously purple dining room was repainted in Silver Lake from Dunn Edwards and features a set of French doors that lead to a private, pergola-covered patio. The table’s 1940s Hitchcock chairs were found on EBay.

LOS ANGELES, CA-DECEMBER 5, 2016: Patrick Wildnauer turns the lights on inside dining room of his English cottage style home, located in the mid-Wilshire area of Los Angeles, that was built in 1927. This is the original light fixture but the shades were changed from pleated white to black and gold. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Decorative plates adorn the dining room.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Ready for company in the dining room.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The hallway formerly featured canned lighting and little else. Now it has sueded wall panels with picture rails to showcase a growing art collection.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A St. Patrick Byzantine icon, right, is among the items displayed in the hallway.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The new wall covering in the master bedroom is by one of the couple’s favorite designers, David Hicks. The window seat is newly covered.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Homeowner Patrick Wildnauer is reflected in a faceted round mirror in the bedroom.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A bronze Buddha in the bedroom.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The redesigned guest room is accented by an armoire from the 1930s.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Deciding against the addition of an en-suite bathroom, the couple renovated the existing space with a decorative, period-appropriate tile floor, new medicine cabinets, paint and light fixtures.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

French doors in the dining room open onto a terrace.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

The exterior of the cottage-style home, which was built in 1927. It has great bones, so the updates so far have been redesigns, not renovations.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)