The Shoemakers were building their home from the ground up. Inspired by their visits to the Historic Adamson House and their love of Southern California architectural history, the Shoemakers wanted to create their own version of a home in the California Mediterranean style.

They knew decorative tile would have to take a prominent place throughout the home. The tile needed to fit comfortably with their eclectic mix of furniture, art and whimsical objects that they’d been collecting over the years. We settled on a style we developed that emulated the historic D&M Tile Company using a variation on the cuerda seca technique but made in a way that gives the pattern a more painterly look. We selected a palette of colors, patterns and glazing styles that together created a unique and appropriate statement for this client’s dream home.

Once the Shoemakers settled into their new home and they become comfortable with their beautiful surroundings, the next phase of their project, the backyard landscaping, started to take shape in their minds. As with the interiors, the couple was very involved in all of the decisions for the tile that would embellish this space. They wanted the exterior space to have the same eclectic and colorful considerations as the interior. We created a tiled fountain completely custom to their space. We wanted it to resemble the shape of a partially opened triptych religious shrine and the corner configuration was the perfect placement to realize this design. We created the tiles in our Tunisian Style that has a vintage look in a high gloss finish for fountain applications. The fountain bowl was made by Gary Steinborn of Venice Clay.

All Photos by Jack Coble