When Lori Richardson bought her Curtis Park bungalow in 2015, she wasn’t chasing a grand architectural vision. She wanted something simple and personal.
“I bought the house for the neighborhood,” Richardson says. “Curtis Park, first and foremost. But when I walked in the front door and saw straight through to the backyard, it felt green, expansive. And honestly, I bought it for my dog, Larry. I wanted him to have a yard and a park nearby.”
At the time, Richardson just returned to Sacramento after 15 years in the Bay Area, where she worked as a video producer at Pixar. A job change, aging parents and the cost of Bay Area living brought her back to her hometown.
“My friend and Realtor Paloma Begin suggested Curtis Park might be a good fit,” she says. “She was right.”
The house is nearly 100 years old and showed its age. Many original details remained, including the wood floors, but there wasn’t much updating.
“It wasn’t terrible,” Richardson says. “But it wasn’t modern, and it wasn’t really me.”
For eight years, she made no improvements. She knew old homes come with quirks—windows painted shut, things that don’t work.
“I’d lived in old Victorian apartments and houses my whole life,” she says. “You just adjust.”
Clarity struck in 2023. “That’s when I finally figured out what I wanted to change.”
What followed was a substantial remodel that transformed the house from a compact 1,064 square feet to a more livable 1,440. The back was extended 10 feet, changing the floor plan.
“Originally, it was two bedrooms with a Jack-and-Jill bathroom,” Richardson says. “I hated that. If you have guests, it’s so irritating, someone flushing a toilet next to your head.”
Today, both bedrooms have bathrooms. A central powder room adds functionality. The former kitchen serves as a mudroom, while the addition holds a new kitchen, dining area and visual connection to the backyard and Curtis Park.
“I love that I can stand at the doorway and see the park from the kitchen and dining area,” Richardson says. “From the glass front door, you can see the backyard—it’s this big, beautiful stretch of green.”
The remodel required Richardson to move out for six months, an experience she describes as brutal. “Everyone warns you, and it was worse than I could imagine,” she says. “But I got through it.”
She moved back in February 2024 to a house that feels intentional and personal.
Design-wise, Richardson gravitated toward what she calls “modern Spanish.” Dark gray large 2-by-4 feet porcelain tiles replaced original wood floors.
“I love how they stay clean and cool in the summer,” she says. “There’s definitely a European feel.”
Black-framed windows, iron details and an eclectic but restrained palette round out the aesthetic. She credits her friend Jamie Jones—a self-taught collector and designer—for encouragement and inspiration. But Richardson made the design decisions herself.
One principle guided the remodel: respect for the neighborhood.
“I didn’t want the house to look different from the outside,” she says. “That’s really important in Curtis Park. Every house here is unique and special, and I didn’t want mine to feel like it didn’t belong.”
Art plays a central role in the new interior. Richardson’s appreciation for art runs deep—her mother and grandfather were artists. Many paintings on the walls are her own, created for the space.
For Richardson, participating in the Curtis Park Home Tour isn’t just about showing off a beautiful remodel. It’s about possibility.
“One of the reasons I decided to do this is to show what you can do with one of these dinky little houses,” she says. “You can make them more livable, more modern, without losing their soul.”
Richardson’s home will join the Curtis Park Home Tour presented by Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Association on Saturday, April 25, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 on tour day, and available at sierra2.org or the Sierra 2 office at 2791 24th St.
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