With our Book Club series, we hand over the proverbial mic to our Experts—letting them share their work, thought process, and best tips, all in their own words. The following is an excerpt from Sarah Sherman Samuel’s new book, Sarah Sherman Samuel: The Intersection of Art and Design, published last month with Abrams.

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It’s not every day that a client comes along with a storied mid-century house that remained virtually untouched since its completion.

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The completely preserved MCM in Palo Alto was originally designed by Frank Lloyd Wright protégé Aaron Green and built by Eichler Homes in 1966. True to form of the mid-century master, Aaron Green found an incredible site, smack-dab in the center of a city block.

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When I first visited the site, I couldn’t find it right away. Even with the assistance of Google Maps, I drove right by. The street view was no help because it only showed the small, traditional California bungalows typical of the area. There was not a dramatically winged roofline or an angular glass-walled atrium in sight. Initially, I thought I must have the wrong address. It wasn’t until I noticed the builder’s construction sign in front of a single-lane shared driveway that I realized I had made it. The long driveway served three homes, two of which are stacked in tandem, perpendicular to the road, which you have to pass before getting to the very end, where this truly hidden gem was tucked away.

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When our clients discovered this preserved masterpiece in the winter of 2019, they purchased it from the original owners and moved into it in its original state, and it soon became their pandemic sanctuary. By 2021, with a third baby on the way, they knew it was time to update the home with the utmost care to better fit their family.

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They assembled a team to thoughtfully expand the space while honoring its architectural legacy. We partnered with Schwartz and Architecture (S^A) for architecture, Boxleaf Design for landscape, and Marrone & Marrone for construction, all working toward the common goal of orchestrating the delicate dance between preservation and modern living.

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The scope of work included a complete renovation, restoration, and addition. Along the entire length of the back side of the house, the exterior wall was moved eight feet out, adding square footage to the kitchen and all the existing bedrooms, as well as making room for a mudroom, bar, laundry room, and powder bathroom. Additionally, we crowned the addition with a new primary suite, with full walls of glass and a glass border just under the roofline that gives the sense that the roof is just floating above the room and pays homage to mid-century aesthetics.

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Throughout, we celebrated the dialogue between the old meeting the new in a thoughtful way. The carport, for example, was converted into a sunken TV room, which we encircled with a built-in sofa in a nod to Aaron Green’s signature move of using similar sofas in his other projects. We leaned into the original nature of the home by designing additional built-in furniture wherever we could: a dining banquette, primary bed, and thoughtful storage solutions that feel period appropriate.

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Today, venturing down the long driveway reveals a transformed compound. The original winged roofline and glass-walled atrium remain, now joined by two stand-alone triangular structures that S^A added—a guest house and a home office—to seamlessly match the home’s original vernacular. Inside, we kept much of the home’s bones—original cinder block walls and Douglas fir ceilings—while building upon the material palette by adding board-form concrete walls, honey-toned cork floors, concrete tile, vibrant patterned wallpapers, and colorful jewel-toned fabrics.

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Legacy houses like this one can easily become museum-like. But when vintage architecture meets modern family life, this home proves that preservation and personality can coexist beautifully. It’s no longer just a masterwork frozen in time but a living, breathing sanctuary where three children dash through corridors, and parents find respite in sunlit nooks. This thoughtful evolution ensures Aaron Green’s vision endures, now enriched by the vibrant, young family that calls it home.

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Order Sarah Sherman Samuel’s new book for more inspiration, or book a consultation with Sarah to get personalized advice for your space.

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