Near the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias – and one of the oldest mountain resort hotels in California — The Wawona Hotel was built in 1876 in a classic Victorian era style. An anomaly in northern California with its white clapboard siding and deep, wraparound verandas, The Wawona might have looked even more at home had it been built in New England.
We were familiar with The Wawona, as we’d been guests at the hotel and had once even decorated it at Christmas to include in a book project. When we were asked to refresh the hotel’s lobby – populated then with dark wood, marble topped tables and antique, red velvet sofas – we went back to the National Park Service archives to better understand the hotel’s history.
Though someone along the line had decided that those low, uncomfortable sofas were “Victorian,” our research revealed that the hotel had in fact once been furnished with wicker. Wicker was very popular with the Victorians because it was lightweight and easy to clean, and in time it came to be mixed with oak pieces in the California mission style.
Using the historic photos as a reference, we removed all that dusty, dodgy old furniture and replaced it with durable, wicker seating clusters, integrating a mix of frame styles, finishes, and fabrics to successfully reflect the original spirit of those public spaces. We also replaced a mix of glass shades on the wall sconces (some of which revealed glaring, compact fluorescent bulbs) with opaque milk-glass shades in a historically appropriate style. Our efforts yielded a solution that was far more comfortable and economical than anyone — including ourselves — had forseen.
