Gail and Marvin Smith have called their 4,900+ square-foot estate in Newhall "home" for over a remarkable-by-SCV-standards 35 years. In comparison to how old most of the pieces inside the formal French house are, though, that's just a drop in the bucket of life.

Gail Smith is a collector - and there's nothing casual about her penchant for fanciful, French, one-of-a-kind antiques that mark every corner of her expansive home. "You can tell I love my antiques," she says. "And these - you can't find this quality anymore. It's become a lost art. High-end antique dealers are impossible to find today. Years ago, Barbara, a wonderful dealer who became a friend, would go to Paris to find the best. She'd buy them and call me and I'd say, 'Yes, yes I want that!' We had the same taste, loved the same things. It worked out so great - but it's not like that anymore," reflects Smith.

The spacious living room is filled with rich texture and history. Tufted leather benches work together to serve as a coffee table while wingback chairs and hardwood flooring add more masculine energy to the space. The home's original beam work was too petite for the grand designs below; faux were custom made and installed to better coordinate with the feel of the room.


Massive pedestals crafted from iron required two muscled men to move in, one at a time. A French hutch displays hard-to-find plates while the dining-room buffet stores silverware and the like out of sight.


Glimmering granite countertops, rare antique serveware and hand-carved wood serve pieces from France establish a luxurious tone in the kitchen, but nothing can compare to the hand-carved-in-stone corbels that flank the range hood - though the impressive hand-carved wooden dough bin perched at the end of the grand island certainly does try.


It would be easy to assume that a fine-antique collector hails from a tony past, but nothing could be farther from the truth. "Marvin and I both came from very poor families. When you grow up poor, you dream of what you would have, what you would buy, if you ever had the opportunity," shares the homeowner. "We worked really, really hard when we were younger. Once we became aware of what we could afford, we began collecting and making a home we dreamed of. We both appreciate and love our home and what it represents to us. We will never move!" Here, Venetian plaster ages the space with a timeless backdrop for the beauties within. The flames from the custom-made fireplace illuminate creamy-gold finishes and revel in their reflection found in the massive, one-of-a-kind mirror from Paris.


A collection of Santas, all handmade with faces crafted in limited quantities from molds, each have a story behind their jolly smiles. Gail Smith loves decorating for Christmas. "Last year, I was sick - so I didn't get much done. This year, I feel so much better. I really went all out. It makes me very happy!"