INSIDE: N Classified Marketplace, page 60 N Puzzles, page 61
Home Front
BARE-ROOT PLANTING ... Master Gardeners of Santa Clara County will offer a free class on “Bare Root Planting: Fruit Trees, Roses and More!” on Saturday, Dec. 5, from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Palo Alto Demonstration Garden, 851 Center Drive, Palo Alto. The class will cover perennial vegetables such as rhubarb, asparagus and horseradish. For information, call Master Gardeners at 408-282-3105, between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., Monday through Friday or visit http:// mastergardeners.org.
TOYS FOR TOTS ... Coldwell Banker local offices will be collecting new, unwrapped toys through Dec. 11, which will be picked up by members of the United States Marine Corps Reserve to be distributed to charitable organizations in time for the holidays. Toys may be dropped off at 245 Lytton Ave., Suite 100 and 2754 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto; 800 El Camino Real, Suite 300, and 930 Santa Cruz Ave., Menlo Park; 116 Portola Road, Portola Valley; or 2969 Woodside Road, Woodside. N
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LÞÊ >À Ê ÌâiÀÊUÊ« Ì }À>« ÃÊLÞÊ6iÀ V>Ê7iLiÀ hen one thinks of the Palo Alto architect of the 1930s, Birge Clark’s name quickly comes to mind. But few realize that Marcus Stedman and his brother Jim were building dozens of charming cottages during that period and beyond. Palo Alto Stanford PAST Heritage plans to give the Stedmans the credit they deserve on this year’s Holiday House Tour on Sunday, Dec. 13, when five homes designed by Marcus in Old Palo Alto will be featured. Susan and Jack Choquette recently renovated a quintessential Stedman home, near Jordan Middle School. The home was purchased in 1978 by Susan’s
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SUPER SOIL ... Alane Weber, who runs the education program of RecycleWork’s Master Composting Program for San Mateo County, will teach a class on the “Soil Foodweb” on Saturday, Dec. 5, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Common Ground Educational Center, 559 College Ave., Palo Alto. She defines the soil foodweb as “all the beneficial micro- and macroscopic soil critters that function harmoniously in our garden soil.” Cost is $30. For information, call 650-493-6072 or visit www. commongroundinpaloalto.org or http://soilfoodweb.eventbrite. com/. HOLIDAY GIFTS GO GREEN ... Michal Lenchner, founder of Avi Green Now!, will give a free ecopresentation, with suggestions for low-waste entertaining, biodegradable dinnerware, packaging and wrapping, holiday pollutants (candles, fireplaces) as well as environmentally friendly gift ideas on Monday, Dec. 7, from 2 to 3:15 p.m. at Avenidas, 450 Bryant St., Palo Alto. For information, call 650-575-1926 or visit avigreennow.wordpress. com.
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HOME & REAL ESTATE PA L O A LT O W E E K LY
parents for her grandmother, who lived there for 11 years. When Susan returned to the Bay Area, she purchased the two-bedroom, one-bath home from her folks. But even a single woman felt cramped in the original kitchen. She called in Tom Carrubba, from Square Three Design in Palo Alto, to expand the kitchen and update the bathroom. But she didn’t stop there. Without changing the footprint of the 1,513-square-foot home, Carrubba created a seamless transition to a three-bedroom, one-and-a-half bath home with a productive kitchen. Carrubba found the project, which they referred to as the (continued on page 51)
Marcus Stedman’s signature design elements include vaulted ceilings with rough-hewn beams (left), a wavy brick ‘beehive’ chimney (above) and a low-hung roofline and brick façade (below).
‘CARMEL’ COTTAGES IN PALO ALTO Homes designed by Marcus Stedman star in PAST Holiday House Tour
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