Volume 31 • Issue 09 • September 2006

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Team effort
$200,000 Edgemoor remodel involves
team of local craftsmen, merchants

by Hilary Parker


Tony and Diana Pechthalt’s home sits on Post Point in south Bellingham’s Edgemoor neighborhood overlooking Bellingham Bay. The family moved into the home last September.

At the western most point in Bellingham’s exclusive Edgemoor neighborhood Tony and Diana Pechthalt found the home they had been searching for – for five years.
They’d come close to purchasing homes during their five-year search; making offers on three homes, withdrawing those offers when they realized the homes weren’t quite what they were looking for.
Tony Pechthalt, a financial adviser and partner in the Edward Jones investment firm, had five criteria for a new home: It had to be an exclusive home; have a flat, large yard; have space for a gym; have a media room; and be near the salt water.
The Sid Nesbitt-designed home met those criteria. The 7,500-square-foot home sits on nearly an acre on Post Point, the clang of the Post Point buoy an audible reminder of the location. Built in the early 1980s, the home boasts an indoor pool and plenty of room for the family of five.
The home, occupied by its original owners, had seen little in the way of updating in its 20-plus years, so Tony and Diana decided to call in the assistance of interior designer Mela Mac Vittie, owner of Integrated Interiors in Ferndale to give them a few pointers on choosing colors for the walls and picking out flooring and furniture.
When Mela saw the home she urged the couple to think beyond a few cosmetic changes and a new couch. She proposed taking out a bank of cabinets that blocked the kitchen’s bay view and adding a wall in the living room to obscure the pool from the view of the formal entertaining area.
Tony and Diana agreed and couldn’t be happier with the changes, especially in the living room.
“It’s a completely different house,” Diana said. “We would never have thought to put a wall there. Now it’s the focal point of the whole room.”
The room’s warm color palette and lodge-like feel was inspired by the exposed old-growth ceiling timbers as well as a set of chairs purchased at Samuel’s Furniture in Ferndale, where the majority of the home’s furniture was purchased. In fact, everything for the remodel was purchased in Whatcom County.
“We went out of our way to make sure everything was [local],” Tony said. That included retailers Village Lighting, Fairhaven Frame, Fairhaven Rug and Reference Media, among others.
“We had a lot of artisans involved,” added Tony, including Larry Howlett of Howlett Construction (“He’s absolutely the best finish carpenter I’ve seen in my life.”); painter Miguel Briones (“He put in a great effort on this place.”); and general contractor Ed Knorr.
And, of course, designer Mela Mac Vittie. “This house wouldn’t be what it is without Mela.” Tony said.
Mac Vittie has served as interior designer to the stars, including Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas, and Patrick Swayze – for three different homes. She’s also served as a Feng Shui consultant for Sylvester Stallone. Her work has been featured in InStyle magazine.
Her work on the Pechthalt home included the master suite. With bronzes and rich greens dominant in the color palette, the room has an opulent, den-like ambiance.
The rich color palette moves throughout the home, with warm golden-brown tones accented by rusts, as seen in several century-old Persian rugs on the main floor.
Downstairs the media room is painted burgundy to accentuate the theater-like quality of the room for movie nights. The audio-visual equipment, including flat screen televisions for the media room and bedroom, was purchased from Eric Wrolson’s Reference Media. Reference Media also wired the home for all it’s A/V requirements, a project that took a week to complete.
Tony’s weight room is among those wired for sound and video. Down a long, steep flight of stairs, accessed through the furnace room, the weight room used to be the garage for a third car. The no-nonsense room has a full complement of weights and benches plus cardio machines.
It’s a retreat for Tony, who worked in professional football for several years, including as an athletic trainer and then strength training coach for the Seattle Seahawks. His second career, as a retirement investment planner and financial adviser with Edward Jones, still merges with his old career on occasion, as he serves as an investment adviser for several current and former NFL players and management.
In total, Tony manages nearly a quarter-billion in assets. He is ranked among the top in his company, and recognized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as one of the nation’s top 50 retirement planning advisers.
Taking time out from his busy schedule at work, Tony often takes advantage of his Edgemoor home’s location just minutes from his office, and comes home for lunch. He enjoys his sandwich as he takes time out of his day to appreciate the view from his dining room table.
“It’s a livable, peaceful home.”

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Family friendly: The Pechthalt family’s home is elegant yet livable. Pictured are Teddy, age 9, Tony, Ilana, age 7, Aleah, age 5, and Diana.



The home’s living room make it a favorite spot for relaxing. The far wall was once a sliding glass door into the pool room.



The formal dining room takes advantage of the home’s sweeping views.



Kitchen, take two: The Pechthalt’s removed a bank of cabinets from the kitchen to open the space to the living a dining areas as well as maximizing the view. They also doubled the size of the kitchen’s island and added granite countertops in place of the original Formica.



The 30-foot, 20,000 gallon pool was given an update by painting it a deep blue.



The master bath’s tub and shower boast a bay view. The rich colors complement the rest of the master suite.