A notable addition to Sonoma’s real estate inventory is the home of astronaut Russell “Rusty” Schweickart, who piloted the Apollo 9 lunar module that made way for the Apollo 11 moonwalk. The well-traveled Schweickart settled on a sweet patch of earth on Sonoma’s east side, where he has called home since 2000.

The three-bedroom, three-bathroom, 3,071-square-foot dwelling is now listed for $2,500,000.

At the entrance, the light-drenched, high-ceilinged foyer shines in this circa-1991 home. A grand double staircase leads to the upstairs, which includes a library.

An orangerie — a home addition designed to serve as a greenhouse — has repeating French and transom windows, plus skylights. The structure creates a light-flooded seating area with generous views to the gardens and, predictably, the stars.

The home includes an updated kitchen. The grounds are lush with mature plantings.

For more information on this home at 760 Fifth St. E. in Sonoma, contact listing agent Kathleen Leonard, Compass Real Estate, 135 W. Napa St., Suite 200, Sonoma, 707-287-4314, kathleenleonard.com, compass.com

The post Sonoma Home of Apollo 9 Astronaut Lands on the Market appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

A new luxury five-bedroom, six-bathroom home and casita in Kenwood is currently listed for sale. The modern dwelling, with a combined 5,200-square-feet of living space, is seeking $12,800,000 — the highest listing price in the tiny town’s history. 

Four of the home’s bedrooms are suites. All living areas have floor-to-ceiling views of the lush landscape and Sonoma Valley thanks to Portuguese glass door systems, some of which tower at 17 feet.

There’s a media room and a chef’s kitchen with a Lacanche range, a walk-in refrigerator, and a kegerator for the hops-happy Wine Country dweller.

The lush gardens include a 65-foot saltwater pool and spa, a full outdoor kitchen and a pool house.

Other architectural elements include custom steel fascia, white oak cabinetry, radiant heated floors, copper gutters and downspouts, and hand-milled cedar siding. The angular home with its natural palette gives a strong-yet-subdued aesthetic, which sits gently in the breathtaking setting.

For more information about this listing at 9777 Via Cantera, Kenwood, contact listing agents Caroline Sebastiani, 415-290-3123, 707-935-2277, or Ginger Martin, 415-516-3939, 707-200-2488, sothebysrealty.com/eng/sales/detail/180-l-1188-y4tzjf/9777-via-cantera-kenwood-ca-95452

The post New Luxury Home in Kenwood Is the Most Expensive Listing in Town’s History appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

A circa-1947 modern home on 1.2 private acres in Forestville is currently listed for $1,595,000. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom, 2,414 square-foot dwelling was originally commissioned by the Kellogg family and is the work of notable architect John Hans Ostwald.

The home exemplifies the Swiss chalet-meets-modernism style of Berlin-born Ostwald, who received his degree in architecture in Zurich. Sleek modern lines and repeating windows are warmed up with stained-wood walls and the intentional cozy connection to the woodsy outdoors.

A 1950 publication of Arts & Architecture praised the home for its u-shaped layout that shelters the pool and terrace and frames nature views.

The current owners have thoughtfully updated the vintage space. The kitchen and primary bath enjoy new natural stone, cabinets and fixtures that brighten but blend with the original warm finishes. 

Other updated amenities include a pool and spa, solar power and EV charging.

For more information on the Kellogg House at 11630 River Road, contact listing agents Tom Doran, 415-860-5138, or Jeannie Vandeweg, 707-480-1541, Vanguard Properties, timelessmidcentury.com

The post Historic Kellogg House by Renowned Architect John Hans Ostwald Up for Sale on the Russian River appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

On 3.36 acres of oak tree-studded land in Santa Rosa is a unique modern home listed for $1,999,000. The three-bedroom and one-bathroom dwelling is unusually shaped and aptly known as the “geometric house” or the “house of angles.”

Designed by Ken O’Connor, the dwelling has walls of glass windows providing dramatic two-story views of property, which includes a half-acre vineyard of Chardonnay grapes.

The home has a separate dining room, a lofted primary bedroom and multiple alcove decks with views — one of which includes a spa. The home also has access to the hiking and equestrian trails that are part of neighboring Safari West — a 400-acre wildlife preserve often referred to as the “Sonoma Serengeti.”

For more information on 10045 Loch Haven Drive, Santa Rosa, contact listing agent Rachel Swann, 415-225-7743, Coldwell Banker Realty, swanngroupsf.com/properties/10045-loch-haven-drive-santa-rosa-ca-us-95404-325020147

The post Geometric House With Unique Modern Design Offers Dramatic Views in Santa Rosa appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

The so-called “Williams-Sonoma House” — once owned by W. Howard Lester, the late president and CEO of the kitchenware brand — has recently hit the market. The three-bedroom, four-bathroom residence with a pool, spa and guest cabin on nearly 9 acres adjacent to Jack London State Historic Park in Glen Ellen is listed for $9,250,000. 

The updated circa-1975 home has an exciting take on modern farmhouse style beginning at the exterior. The board-and-batten cladding is painted a wonderfully farm barn-red. In the 6,018-square-feet of living space are grandly sized French doors, wood floors and vaulted ceilings.

Natural light and white walls give an airiness to the open floor plan, but the look is accented with a whimsical, if not gutsy, use of color. Accents in plum, red, forest, teal and sunshine yellow provide pleasing visual surprises throughout the space. The decor maintains all the tranquility of the typical neutral-palette farmhouse, but without the predictability. 

The great room is divided by a plum-hued raised panel wall with a fireplace. Dual red credenzas give a bold balance to the look. A hint of red is pulled into the adjacent dining area via a geometric glass pendant.

The kitchen has classic styling with marbles, tin tile ceilings and an ornamented hood. A lemony yellow on the cabinets gives the space an impossibly sweet vibrance.

More sunshiny yellow extends into the trim work of the main bedroom — an inspired choice given the use of brick around the fireplace and stained-wood slatted walls, which are typically paired with neutral colors.

Bathrooms each have their bold accents — brick-red cabinets in one, deep green and sage in others — that enliven the classic marbles and traditional fixtures with shaded sconces.

The park-like grounds include a pool and spa and several spots for al fresco dining, including one under an ancient oak tree. Hiking trails provide an opportunity to explore the lush acreage. The property’s pond can be enjoyed from the home’s deck and crossed via a footbridge. A modern and rustic creekside cabin can provide accommodations for some very lucky guests. 

For more information about this home at 1500 Morningside Mountain Road, contact listing agents Daniel Casabonne, 707-494-3130, 707-939-2222, or Gina Clyde, 707-529-8504, 707-935-2288, Sotheby’s International Realty – Wine Country – Sonoma Brokerage, sothebysrealty.com/eng/sales/detail/180-l-1188-q9kd7b/1500-morningside-mtn-road-glen-ellen-ca-95442

The post Home of Late Williams-Sonoma CEO Hits the Market in Glen Ellen appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

A home on 2.6 secluded acres in Sebastopol is currently listed for sale. The Eichler-inspired midcentury home with two bedrooms and three bathrooms is currently listed for $1,599,00. 

An open floor plan and floor-to-ceiling trim-less windows give a view to the remarkably lush outdoor setting that includes oaks, manzanitas pines, bamboo and Japanese maples. The great room and main bedroom have terrazzo floors with radiant heat.

The 2.6-acre property includes a permitted casita for guest quarters, a studio or home office. There’s also an octagonal workshop space with lots of practical shelving and, to pass the time pleasantly, views into the garden.

For more information on 1450 Tilton Road in Sebastopol, contact listing agent Kimiko Ages, Hive Real Estate, 510-689-6896, 708 Gravenstein Highway N., Suite 1007, Sebastopol, HiveRealEstateCA.com

The post Eichler-Inspired Midcentury Gem on 2.6 Lush Acres Hits the Market in Sebastopol appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

A renovated 1915 bungalow is currently for sale in Petaluma’s Oakhill-Brewster neighborhood, known for its variety of heritage homes. The two-bedroom, one-bathroom craftsman has been renovated with modern conveniences, but it maintains its classic style. The asking price is $1,099,000.

Quintessential craftsman details remain in good repair: the handsome coffered ceilings in the dining room, wide molding around double hung windows and a built-in glass-paned hutch in the dining room. Additionally, the original brick fireplace creates a charming spot to lounge in the living room, while the vintage tile in the bathroom makes a bold period statement. 

The kitchen has been updated with stone countertops and a professional Bertazzoni range. Generous square footage in the kitchen, no doubt, spurred the addition of an island. 

The two-car garage has been finished to function as a studio. The ceiling has open beams, painted white, and barn doors to create a welcoming entry to the auxiliary space for lounging, working or entertaining. 

For more information about this home at 619 Liberty St., contact listing agent Rob Sullivan, 707-772-9171, Coldwell Banker Realty, 619liberty.com

The post Renovated Craftsman Bungalow For Sale in Historic Petaluma Neighborhood appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

An early 1900s-era church and parsonage in west Sonoma County that was converted into a home and cottage are currently listed for sale. The modernized dwellings are on half an acre in Camp Meeker, once a logging community that later transformed into a summer retreat. Today it’s a small community of full-time residents, plus vacationers and weekenders. The asking price for this wooded property is $1,295,000.

The former church at 100 Railroad Ave. is a two-bedroom, three-bathroom home with cathedral ceilings and a grid of floor-to-ceiling windows that provide a showstopping view of redwoods. The original pine floors and siding remain.

The kitchen has been renovated with a dramatic Calacatta marble. Cabinets are painted deep blue that lands on the sophisticated side of playful. A floating bar of old redwood growth adds a warm reference to the surroundings and town’s history.

Other upgrades include fiberglass windows, copper plumbing, heated bathroom floors and a tankless water heater. 

The former parsonage next door at 97 Railroad Ave. is a stylish one-bedroom, one-bathroom bungalow on 618 square feet with vaulted ceilings. Updates include soapstone kitchen counters, adding modern sleekness to warm wood finishes.

The home epitomizes serenity with maples among the redwoods, dramatically sized boulders and a koi pond.

This compound is just a short distance to Occidental and the Sonoma Coast. 

For more information on these homes at 97 and 100 Railroad Ave. in Camp Meeker, contact listing agent Ross Bostock, 415-592-4420, or Greggory Onzo-Tasher, 415-609-5451, Vanguard Properties, vanguardproperties.com

The post Early 1900s Church in Camp Meeker Transformed Into Charming Cottage for Sale appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

Turn off a quiet street in an older residential neighborhood in Sebastopol brings you upon a hillside home of towering freshness, as emblematic of the future as the young family that built it.

A 16-light window fronts both floors of the 2,250-square-foot contemporary home, highlighting an expansive view. Inside, the white walls and high ceilings shimmer with the reflection of the sky. “I like this house so much,” says Juna, 6, holding his favorite Lego helicopter and beaming with pride as his little sister, Runi, 2, jumps up and down in joyful agreement. This is clearly a happy home.

Their parents, Stephen and Wina Leander, have accomplished the seemingly impossible, creating a home with airy sophistication that’s also family-friendly. The monochromatic decor of white and a medley of grays has a pop of fun in the great room: a bright-green free-form sofa. Two leather beanbag chairs sit in front of a low-hanging flat-screen television. Beside it a thin sheet of quietly elegant gray marble surrounds a gas fireplace. Stephen recalls that getting it to hang properly turned out to be an unexpected challenge.

On the deep landing between the two flights of stairs that lead to the upper level sits a child-size tepee outfitted with a toy telescope for peering out the mid-flight window. Encountering it there is as wonderful as it must be to play inside. When the children are older, it will be replaced with a daybed.

In 2008 Stephen, a California native, took a two-year teaching assignment in Indonesia, where he met Wina, who was teaching English to adults in her native land. When Stephen returned to America to finish his degree in social work at Wheelock College in Massachusetts, he and Wina knew they couldn’t live without each other. She moved, too.

They were married in 2011 and had their wedding reception at the Carneros Resort. After enduring New England’s “snowiest winter in 150 years” in 2015 they knew their long-term plan to return to California needed to happen quickly. They had bought their Sebastopol land in 2014, and it was time to call Amy Alper, the Sonoma-based architect they admired because she was on the team that designed the Carneros Resort. “We interviewed her and liked her so much we never even called anyone else. She was with us from beginning to end — and beyond,” says Stephen. The couple now consider her a friend.

Sawyer Construction built the home, which was a challenge to design and build because of the steep grade of the one-third-acre site and restrictions for not blocking the neighbor’s view. The drought-friendly, understated landscape design is by Merge Studio, and Rochelle Silberman Designs did the interiors.

The Leander family moved in in February 2017, and will be hosting Thanksgiving dinner in their new home for the second time.

The family eats fresh-cooked, mostly vegetarian meals, and they use the kitchen constantly. “With two little kids you don’t get out a lot,” Wina says. Their sleek, PentalQuartz island gives them ample space, and the GE Monogram cooktop is set into the countertop behind it. The other appliances, along with the washer/dryer, are hidden in a pantry-like room off to the side, contributing to the serene feel of the open kitchen.

Off the great room’s dining area, a massive deck flanks the front of the home and is frequently used for outside relaxation. In the rear there is a secluded courtyard, where their first lemongrass is blooming, and above it there’s a small lawn area and a play set for Juna and Runi.

The Leander family moved in in February 2017, and will be hosting Thanksgiving dinner in their new home for the second time.

The family eats fresh-cooked, mostly vegetarian meals, and they use the kitchen constantly. “With two little kids you don’t get out a lot,” Wina says. Their sleek, PentalQuartz island gives them ample space, and the GE Monogram cooktop is set into the countertop behind it. The other appliances, along with the washer/dryer, are hidden in a pantry-like room off to the side, contributing to the serene feel of the open kitchen.

Off the great room’s dining area, a massive deck flanks the front of the home and is frequently used for outside relaxation. In the rear there is a secluded courtyard, where their first lemongrass is blooming, and above it there’s a small lawn area and a play set for Juna and Runi.

A guest room and bath on the first floor transforms into a private suite with the pull of a hallway pocket door. Upstairs, Juna’s bedroom has shelves full of books and a high window where three porcelain elephants peer down at him from their perch. Stephen and Wina’s master has endless views and a private deck. The room is pristine white with pops of blue provided by the bedding and accent tile. The view-graced family room on the upper level holds the electric piano Juna is learning to play and the family’s computer station.

Wina had never seen snow before she moved to Massachusetts, and doesn’t miss it at all. The family is thrilled to be in Sonoma County, and just may live here forever.

The post Home With a View: A Young Family Builds Their Dream House in Sebastopol appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

If not for an old-fashioned newspaper story, Dan and Sue Hirsch might never have found their dream home. Four years ago, Dan saw the San Francisco Chronicle’s weekly “Walk Through” feature, which showcased a dramatic open-plan home and historic apple orchard on 14 acres in Sebastopol. Intrigued, he called his broker. “The style of the house just spoke to us, with its big, open living spaces,” says Dan, a consultant.

“The first time I came up, it was bright and sunny. I remember I walked out back and there was a coyote right there staring at me and running off. The plum trees were going, and we spent as much time walking around the orchard as we did inside.”

Now the family, including Dan’s wife, Sue, a psychotherapist; their young daughter; and their dog, Messi (named for the soccer star), spend weekends cooking with friends, swimming, and exploring the organic orchard.

“We think there are about 2,000 trees. I keep encouraging my daughter to do a tree counting project — go through the rows and multiply,” says Dan.

With at least six apple varieties and mature, dry-farmed specimens dating back 75 years, the orchard is a constant source of inspiration for the family. Dan makes delicious rustic apple galettes summer through fall, and guests from the city never leave without a huge bag of fruit to take home.

Dan and Sue have always been thrilled with the design of the main house, with its 22-foot ceilings and open kitchen and breezeway, but shortly after moving in, they decided to remodel the landscape to forge a deeper connection to the surrounding hills.

They worked with Cary and Amy Bush of Sebastopol’s Merge Studio to add a pool, pavilion, outdoor kitchen, and additional decks while celebrating the rural character that keeps the modern home feeling grounded. Cary made a key decision early on to site the pool parallel to the orchard, stepping down the hillside, as if a swimmer could just reach across and pluck fruit straight from the trees.

Sue loves how the character of the landscape, both old and new, changes with the seasons. “The look of the orchard becomes the opposite. Instead of fruit and leaves, in winter the rows become grassy and green and the trees are bare, like shapes you might see in Joshua Tree.”

Summertime’s morning fog is a welcome transition into warm, breezy afternoons and evenings by the pool, with lights glowing from the new pavilion. “I love that it’s never fully socked in here, like in the city. The fog eases me into the day,” says Sue.

She and their daughter spend most of their days reading, exploring with the dog, and swimming, while Dan is an ambitious gardener and host. (“He’s not so into relaxing. We all relax and he’s the bartender!” laughs Sue.) Last year, Dan grew yellow raspberries, pluots, asparagus, kale, and a 65-pound giant pumpkin whose seeds were saved to plant again. This summer he has plans for a new pickling garden — hot peppers, okra, cucumbers, and bush beans.

The family’s ongoing goal is to slow down and savor these next few years with their daughter. “Now’s not the time to lock myself away in an office. I know I’m not going to be able to redo this period of her life,” says Dan. “The way of the land has really struck us, and the sunset can be so spectacular. … We love it more and more with every day we spend here.”

The post A Dramatic Open-Plan Home in a Sebastopol Apple Grove appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.