Woman of the Year

Notebook: April 2008

San Diego Architects Make their Mark in Baja: Vacationing in Baja may never be the same once you’ve stepped inside this Rob Quigley– designed luxury beach front home. The result of collaborative efforts among Baja-based Real Estate Development International, Quigley and San Diego landscape architect Andy Spurlock, this 4,000-square-foot model home features four bedrooms (two are master suites), three full baths, two powder rooms, a two-car garage and a series of tiered ocean-view decks accentuated with an exterior fireplace and infinity-edge pool hugging a creek. Interiors have been furnished with Armani Casa.

The home is among 119 beachfront residences to be developed along the northern Baja California coast. Noted San Diego firms Rob Wellington Quig - ley, Spurlock-Poirier Landscape Architects, Safdie Rabines Architects, Ocean Pacific Design and Studio E Architects have teamed up with REDI to create Terra Sur, a development sure to influence the future of binational design-build collaborations.

In addition to seven single-family detached homes, Terra Sur will include 112 upscale villas and condos, a resort-caliber spa and fitness facility, a high-end restaurant with full-service bar and other top-notch amenities, spread across 7 acres. The homes, valued from $400,000 to $2 million, are located at the Kilometer 17 marker on the coastal stretch of the toll highway between Tijuana and Ro sa rito, just 8 miles south of the U.S./Mexico International Border at San Ysidro and 3 miles from the Tijuana-Ensenada scenic highway toll booth in Playas. E-mail sales@terrasurbaja.com or visit terrasurbaja.com.

Avocado Trees and Beyond: The fourth annual Fallbrook Garden Tour takes place Saturday, April 5. Once again, members of the Fallbrook Garden Club open their private horticultural paradises for public visitations. Tickets and maps are available the day of the tour, starting at 9 a.m., at the Fallbrook Historical Society at 260 Rockycrest Road. “We began our first tour in 2005 for members only,” says Kathy Weber, the club’s publicity chair. “It was so popular we decided to expand it to include the public, charge a small fee and use the proceeds to assist local students with scholarships and our community with various projects.” This year’s tour includes stops at seven or eight gardens, she says, “and we’re adding vintage cars at selected sites.”

Fresh Vintage: Jennifer DeLonge’s furniture line for kids has been well-received by parents across America, including celebrities Gwen Stefani and Gwyneth Paltrow. Now the Allied ASID interior and product designer has also added adult furniture to her collection. Fresh Vintage features one-of-a-kind furniture, case goods and accessories hand-picked by DeLonge and then reupholstered and refinished. Items include a pair of mid-century tufted side chairs refinished in a high-gloss black lacquer and reupholstered with oysterhued linen. A reflection of DeLonge’s personal style and fashion sense, the pair depicts a balance between modern elegance and vintage style. These oneof- a-kind pieces are on a first-come, first-served basis. Info: 760-602-9403 or jenniferdelonge.com.

Stay True to Your Roots: For his examples of eco-conscious design, Alon Langotsky, founder and creative director of Chista, a New York–based design firm, explores the roots of both primitivism and modernism. To create his sculptural tables, Langotsky collects reclaimed roots of teak trees, studies their shapes, trims and slices them to organic perfection, then often adds a metal base or paints the contours of the wood—a proc ess that can take years to complete. It’s good design in more ways than one. To learn more, visit chista.net.

Design Collaborative: Interrobang, a collaboration among the San Diego chapters of four design organizations— the American Institute of Architects, American Society of Interior Designers, American Society of Landscape Architects and the International Interior Design Association—offers an intriguing lecture series featuring speak ers in all the design disciplines. This month’s talk, April 8 at 7 p.m. at the Neurosciences Institute on Torrey Pines Mesa, features James Richard and Kelly Bauer—architect and interior designer. Additional lectures are slated for the second Tuesdays of May, September and October.

Protecting Your Turf: If a testimonial from San Diego Charger LaDainian Tomlinson isn’t enough to make you want to convert to a synthetic EasyTurf lawn, you may find added incentive in the form of a water-conservation rebate. Currently, these water agencies are offering incentives to single-family homeowners for the replacement of existing natural grass with artificial turf: Vista Irrigation District, Helix Water District, Olivenhain Municipal Water District, Padre Dam Municipal Water District and the Valley Center Municipal Water District. According to Easy- Turf, outdoor landscaping accounts for up to 80 percent of total household water usage. Installing its FieldTurf landscaping can save 56,000 gallons of water per year, making it a conservation-minded alternative. To help protect Mother Earth, EasyTurf also offers these waterconservation tips:

  • Brushing teeth or shaving with only
    the water you need can save 60 gallons
    of water per year.
  • Fixing leaky toilets and faucets can
    save 180 gallons of water per year.
  • Installing a water-saving toilet can
    save 240 gallons of water per year.
  • Reducing shower time by just 1 min ute
    can save 365 gallons of water per year
  • Preventing water from running while washing
    your car can save 2,600 gallons of water per
    year.

For more information, visit easyturf.com. For more about the water-conservation rebates, visit the San Diego County Water Authority Web site at sdcwa.org.

Clay Creations: American Clay isn’t the colorful playtime material we grew up with. Instead, it is an eco-friendly wall plaster with no offgassing. Available in more than 40 colors, it also absorbs sound, provides humidity buffering and is sold in packaging that is biodegradable, recyclable and reusable. And while it’s not made for kid play, American Clay is nontoxic and resists mold growth—making it an excellent choice for children’s rooms. Available at Bayside Paint, Point Loma, 619-275-7800; baysidepaint.com. For more information, visit americanclay.com.