Maximum Style

A couple transforms the worst house on the block into a gorgeous home full of the French/English aesthetic and maximalist style.

- AUTUMN KRAUSE

When Mitch and Trenna purchased their 1965 home 30 years ago in Yorba Linda, California, it was the worst house in the best neighborhood. It sat on a dreamy street among custom houses. However, in the proverbial competition to "keep up with the Joneses," it was dead last.

"At first glance, it was hideous," Trenna says.

Not only was the house an ugly rust color, it also sat on a halfacre full of neglected desert plants, concrete and rocks. In fact, the only green to be seen was the rocks!

"It was daunting, to say the least," Trenna says. "The house, though, had good bones!"

The couple began several phases of renovation, including structural work, a garage conversion and a total kitchen gut job, transforming the original three bedrooms and a half bath into a haven of four bedrooms and two and a half baths. Every space was then styled by Trenna, who is a self-described "risk-taking maximalist" who adores the French/English aesthetic.

INTELLIGENT DESIGN

By day, Trenna is a mother/baby RN with no formal interior design trainingaside from a few classes taken years ago.

But the passion for interior design runs deep within her soul: When she was 13, her idea of fun was going to tour model homes. In addition, she's always loved looking through design magazines and books for ideas.

"Certain staples have always spoken to me," she says.

Florals, color, stripes and plaids, oldtimey gallery walls (pre-Pinterest), French traditional style-these are, and have always been, her hallmarks.

For his part, Mitch, who is a real estate broker, weighs in on structural and design renovations but gives Trenna free rein when it comes to the décor. They make a dynamic team.