A man wearing a red gnome hat is painting the door to a new whimsical playhouse in this part of the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. It’s one of three new nature-inspired Casitas, which won a design competition and are getting set to be unveiled to the public.
The gnome? He’s actually the designer of this playhouse, Matthew Caliguire.
“We wanted to make a gnome home and make it feel like a playhouse that a gnome or a family of gnomes would be living in as they inhabit this beautiful canyon,” said Caliguire, who also works professionally in construction…