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We Want Your House to Shine
A lot of home goods are here today and gone tomorrow—whether that’s because the trend has passed, or the product was built so poorly it broke. Or both!
That’s frustrating. Over time it’s also expensive.
At Old California we look to the past for our inspiration. Our product design is informed by our favorite giants in the annals of architecture and design history. The small team at our Southern California factory manufactures those designs with a combination of contemporary technology and hard-learned handcraftsmanship. For over 30 years we have served customers across North America with the attention you receive at your Main Street shop.
We want your house to be the envy of the neighborhood (whether your closest neighbors are in the next apartment or miles down the backroads). Our time-tested designs and rigorous manufacturing will help you make that envy lasting.
Meet the Team
My brain is always working out how to build something. I’ve been learning to work with wood for 10 years. I built the cabinets in my home and a roof for my patio. I want to build a guest house in my backyard—it’s the project that won’t go away in my head. I lose myself in daydreams about the finished building. I’m a little intimidated about learning how to do the plumbing, but I love a good challenge.
I grew up getting pruney every summer in the Colorado River. In my early 20s I spent a summer working in Yellowstone National Park. Coming from Southern California I was a fish out of water, but I took advantage of every free moment to fish, hike and camp—whatever I could do. Now, I have to live near water. It’s still where I go to recharge my batteries.
Sculpture is one of my great passions. Being able to spend an afternoon with my hands immersed in clay is something that fills me completely. Immersing myself in the details that make up the work, removing or adding exactly what is necessary to achieve a result that evokes emotions, ideas, or memories—every time I see my sculpture, it has the ability to surprise me.
I love it when a plan comes together.
I’ve toured the country on motorcycles since 2004, and qualified for the Iron Butt Association by riding 1000 miles in 24 hours and 1,500 miles in 36 hours a few years ago. There are so many things to enjoy about riding—the freedom of the open road, the challenge and the rustic houses and shops when riding through the small towns you find following less traveled back roads.
The beach is my happy place. Well, really I just love the ocean. I can spend all day sitting and listening to it. But I don't go when it's cold. And I don't like the sand. And I don't go in the water—I'm not a good swimmer and the waves scare me. I get it. It's weird. You don't need to ask me about it. I still love the ocean.
The kitchen is my domain—I collect pots and pans. I have over 200 spread around the kitchen and the garage. During the work week I cook simple meals; weekends I get to experiment. My favorite set of pans is aluminum and easy to clean so I use them every day, but I pull out the fancy cookware for Thanksgiving. I don’t regret any of the purchases, only the ones I let get away.
My mom and I have been cultivating bonsai for over a decade. We have always loved Japanese gardens, and when I’m at her house my window looks out onto the garden she and my dad started 25 years ago. After working with bonsai for so long I’ve learned how to listen to them—the trees will tell you what they want, and what the next step is toward sculpting them into something beautiful.
I’m on a mission to visit all the state and national parks in California, adding an embroidered patch from each one to a Letterman jacket as I go. I’ve been to four so far, usually on a trip with friends or my son. When he was three years old we went to Little Basin and hiked the most difficult incline I’ve ever encountered. But we both made it, and the view of the redwoods and sky from the top was spectacular. Green and blue as far as the eye can see.
One Sunday morning I was soldering glass in the garage—it’s how I relax. My son sent me a text with a series of numbers separated by dashes. I didn’t understand it. I showed my wife. She was confused, too. Neither of us could figure it out, until suddenly it made sense. I understood it was measurements and I started to cry. My grandson had been born!
My son has been studying martial arts for several years and recently started competing. I’m with him at the studio a couple of hours every day and learning a lot as I watch him practice and grow. We go to Las Vegas for his largest competition, and it involves people from all over the world, which we really enjoy. His instructor has been asking me to join in the jiujitsu classes, but it might take a lot of convincing—I’m not as flexible as my son.
A lot of my life happens in the garage. I exercise there, take care of my tropical fish, watch movies and pass time in some of my favorite conversations with family and friends about life, politics, faith—anything that comes up. On a rare lazy day I can veg out in front of the computer with a long game of Civilization. I’m predictable, though; even after playing the same game for 25 years I always go for the military victory
As a kid I went to my family’s cattle ranch every weekend. I helped milk the cows and clean around the property. At seven years old I taught myself to ride the horses—and I rode every weekend for over 20 years. Riding gives me a sense of freedom, and I especially love the speed.
I love a good chance to travel through time with a history book or an old movie. Very little beats a good film noir in my book— the relationships are fatally complicated, shadows dominate, and even degenerates have a sense of sophisticated glamor only Hollywood could offer. I'm always glad to come back to the present reality—I probably couldn't hack it in the past.
My mom used to make homemade tortillas that were over a foot in diameter—she rolled them out with a soda can. Two of those with beans and queso fresco left you full for hours. She died when I was 15. I still throw together tortillas with beans and queso fresco. It’s quick and tasty. But I’ve never had tortillas like my mom made anywhere else, and they make all the difference.