The livin’ is easy in this custom-built, rustic mountain style home nestled among the manzanita and native oak on a hillside west of Redding. A secluded driveway conveys the visitor to two welcoming olive trees from the William Randolph Hearst Olive Ranch in Happy Valley. Rod and Sandy Dole’s home is the realization of their creative vision and effort. Working with contractors and artisans, many of whom are family friends, they have created their distinctive home. At 4,481 square feet, the home offers wonderful areas to relax, dream, and create.
Completed in 2013, the house is built with 2×6 construction and R60 insulation assuring that it is both sturdy and energy efficient. Rustic alder with blackened highlights and Three Rivers Stone are found throughout this house and fill it with old world charm and dramatic effect. This is a warm and comfortable home with open spaces for family and friends to gather, relax, and enjoy. Beautiful vistas of the surrounding hills are seen from both front and back.
This home will be one of four unique and notable homes featured in the 44th Annual Home Tour and Art Show on November 1, sponsored by the Redding branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW). Each year distinctive homes are showcased for their design, individuality and innovation. This year the tour will also include the historic Behrens-Eaton house where docents will guide visitors on the tour.
A beautiful home with “lots of love in it,”Rod and Sandy Dole have woven pieces of artwork the home, created by friends and family. Paintings, pears, and standing floral arrangements lend color, design, and a personal touch to their family’s home. Both Sandy and her daughter have their collages and keepsakes boxes on display as works-in-progress, which a glance into the office/craft room will show.
The large, open living room features vaulted ceilings, hand-made, open beam accents, and a large, wood-burning fireplace which is both decorative and functional. Heat from the fireplace is conducted throughoutthe house viaa duct system and contributes to the energy efficiency of the home. Propane supplements the wood heating system. Fifteen feet of picture windows which overlook the outdoor living spaces and natural vistas, including a view of Mount Lassen, seem to transport the outdoors inside.
The master suite features his and hers sitting areas, a walk-through shower and granite tub. The tub is one of Sandy’s favorite features in the home. Open beams and the wood look used in the bedroom are made to match the scenery which may be seen through the room’s windows.
In contrast to the color palette used in the rest of the house, the child’s bedroom seems to explode on-the-scene with vibrant hues of purple. A wall coated with blackboard paint encourages artistic expression and perhaps even some homework. And a finishing touch is added with a beautiful chandelier hung above the room’s sitting area.
The heart of this home is the kitchen; lovely and functional, it is where Sandy likes to can produce grown in the family garden. Kitchen appliances are hidden by decorative cabinetry with doors featuring hand-made wrought iron handles. Cabinets are accented with lighting from above and below. Radiant heating “mats” in areas of the kitchen keep the Travertine tile floor warm in cold, winter weather. An oversized T-shaped island features two large granite slabs weighing 1600 pounds each. Included in the island are a double copper farmer’s sink and twindishwashers making it a superb work area.
And if this were not enough, exit the kitchen through double doors into a second, out-door man-cave kitchen featuring smoker, barbeque, Three Rivers Stone fireplace, and atmosphere. A big-screen TV, comfortable relaxation areas, attached pool room, and adjacent infinity pool give “eating out” a whole new meaning.
But the day begins on the front porch with coffee and contemplation. A meandering mock riverbed, sitting area with olive trees, bench, and statuary characterize the front of the home. Hummingbirds and butterflies zip through the front yard although bear, bobcat, fox, and turkeys have also been known to wander through.
Drought tolerant landscaping surrounds the home. Native and ornamental species comingle to create outdoor living areas as welcoming as inside. Statuary creates landscape focal points to ponder. And with attention to water conservation, the home is designed with a collection system which captures rain from the roof and stores it in tanks on-site for landscape use.
Rod and Sandy’s home is a creative and unique expression of their love of art, family, and function. They have created their expression of outstanding and memorable living spaces both inside and out.
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Home Tour Information
What: 44th Annual Home Tour and Art Show, presented by the Redding branch of the American Association of University Women
When: November 1, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Featuring: Tour three Redding-area homes and a bonus historic home. Enjoy refreshments and an art show featuring the works of local artists. A drawing will be held for gift certificates and other prizes.
Tickets: $25. Tickets are available online through the Cascade Theatre Box Office Community Events Page at www.cascadetheatre.org and locally at Holiday Quality Foods, on Shasta View and Placer in Redding and Cottonwood, That Kitchen Place, Enjoy the Store, Jose Antonio’s, Marshall’s Florist and Fine Gifts, Parmer’s Fine Furniture, Wild Thyme Gifts and Garden and Palo Cedro Gift Gallery
Proceeds: Money raised will fund local scholarships and the AAUW Educational Foundation. More than 335 local scholarships have been awarded. Please partner with us to change the world, one scholarship at a time.
Contributing Authors: Lana Hill, Claudia Brousseau, Martha Hamon
Editor: Dr. Andrea Williams
Photographer: Robert Rappeport
