Rancho Santa Fe, California Remodel
When I got the call to come to California to help my long time clients with a home they were contemplating purchasing, I jumped on the first flight out of Florida to see what was in store. There really is nothing better than working with clients you have a history with. It's just easier - all the stuff I usually have to figure out along the way, likes, dislikes, color preferences, and the like I already know.
I had no idea what the new house was going to look like, I was going in blind.
To make things even more interesting my clients were relocating from the East Coast to the West Coast.
And
They had sold the previous home which we designed together completely furnished.
All they were bringing with them to California were their two Bernese Mountain dogs, their art collection and a piece or two of furniture that was sentimental to them.
By the way, did I mention the design style of the new (to them) California house?
It was a mix.
Not one particular style, but a combo of Spanish meets California, blended with, a little bit of everything.
Nevertheless, it was definitely cute, charming and had "great bones" as many like to say. Additionally, it had been updated in many areas, but not quite...how does one say, to the taste level of..ehm...everyone.
Spanish, Traditional was quite a departure in style for my clients whose previous home in New York was a Modern Farmhouse. Well, more modern than farmhouse but, it happened to be situated on a large plot of land consisting of 88 acres of land with amazing views just 2 hours north of New York City.
We had worked together to build and design the East Coast Modern Farmhouse back 2008 to 2009.
Suffice to say, as we walked through the new CA house it was apparent we had a little bit of a challenge on our hands.
Marching Orders
Marry Modern Farmhouse, in a storybook, Spanish, meets California mixed traditional Hinz 57 house.
No problem!
Oh, and of course, we were on a deadline as well. Oh goodness yes, what fun would a remodel be without a deadline?
It shouldn't go without noting that this project was done, for the most part remotely.
I live in Vero Beach, Florida, and the project was in California. Not a problem.
I have found that out of town work is much easier than those projects at home. I have to be 100% prepared and organized, as do my clients. We tend to get things done quickly - because we have to.
THE ENTRY
The stage for the house was set at the entry.
A pair of large scrolled iron and glass double doors greet you at the entrance to the Rancho Santa Fe house.
Situated in the neighborhood of Fairbanks Ranch, a lovely little area north of San Diego.
Full disclosure - I am a completely in love with California! I had only visited LA once prior to this trip but know I would be back. Now I'm working on a plan that gets me out of Florida in the summer to spend it in CA. Who knows when or if it will come to fruition - but a girl can dream - right?
The entry is large and the perfect junction between room several rooms.
On the left upon entering was a formal Dining Room. To the right and two steps, down is a large Formal Living Room. Straight ahead you walked into the Family Room with glass doors out to the pool and patio.
THE FORMAL LIVING ROOM
The Formal Living Room needed to function as more than just a (useless) room that you look at and never use.
Oh no, this Large Living Room was going to be used.
Besides being large, the room came with a lot of great features, tall ceilings with beams (and hideous ceiling fans), a stone fireplace as well as great windows. It was Long and not so narrow, but long! Really Long.
The list of functions for this living room included not only a seating area but additionally a bar, home to a TV
and
it had to be dog friendly as well.
I'm sure it is not obvious from the photos that the sofa's in the room are 96" in length, that's generous!
Did I mention that the room was LONG?
An Antique Spanish Table is the anchor to one wall in the Living Room. We created a collage Art Collection above the table as well as a pace to display vintage and antique objects.
It was a bit of a struggle deciding what to do at the far end of the room. Playing into the Spanish vibe we sought out and found a vintage Spanish Table to anchor the Space. If you can believe it, this table was my first purchase from First Dibs.
Above the Spanish table art from the collection was hung in an asymmetrical grouping. The layout of the room left only one wall for art and there is still room for more. The little chair we found in vintage shop in LA.
Want to get a similar look?
The table below is a new table, available in black similar to the vintage piece in the photo above.
Click on the image below if you would like more info and a price on the table.
The iron and leather bench below as well as the art glass came from the New York house. Amazing (if I do say so) linen sheer draperies on an iron rod are a soft accent among all the hard stone and rigid lines of the Living Room.
The sofa fabric is an outdoor fabric from LINK and is a beautiful velvet performance fabric.
That's right solution dyed acrylic means no worries!
The coffee table was made locally in Solana Beach. It's nearly identical to the one made for the previous home.
We loved it so much we recreated it!
Not one, but two Thomas O'Brien Chandeliers from Visual Comfort hang in the Living Room.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING
Above the fireplace, a TV is hidden behind a vintage Asian Screen.
Take a look at this POST I wrote about where I found the screen, and how it works. It was a big design hurdle to get a TV in the room and not have it be the focal point.
Pop over HERE to see some more ideas for hiding a TV in your Living Room.
THE DINING ROOM
The Art Deco style buffet in the dining room is another piece that made the long journey to California. This piece was purchased for a home we designed about 15 years prior and it's made the cut every time.
Above the buffet is a collage of art from the homeowners' collection.
*see the above install photo*
With Host Chairs in a patterned fabric at each end of the table and simple faux leather side chairs the Dining Room is simple and chic.
A linear brass chandelier above the table brings the room to life.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING
THE FAMILY ROOM
The Family Room took on a major transformation with the remodel of the Fireplace.
It is not an easy task to re-imagine a fireplace. EVERYTHING inside must remain the same. It ended up with a new stone mantle much simplier than the original.
The Family Room Fireplace BEFORE
THE KITCHEN
Looking back it seems like not much was done to the Kitchen
Except
New Floors
New Table
Uppers Cabinets Added
You know, just a few minor tweaks to get it here.
The Stainless Steel and Glass Table was first done for the New York House. It worked so well, we had the same manufacturer create another for this house. Take a look HERE to see it in the other house.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING
Kitchen BEFORE
With the new Stainless and glass bar height table a separate dining table was not necessary.
Additionally just off the kitchen is a long outdoor dining table.
Outdoor Dining and Seating Area
THE POWDER BATH
The Powder Bath was
COMPLETELY CHANGED!
Not one single original item remains. Well, I take that back, the mirror is not new. Another one of the items that made the trip to California. It was a great find long ago on a shopping trip to NYC.
The bathroom got a new Carrara Marble wall. (Sooooo Pretty!!) This stone has the pattern laser printed on it.
In addition to a new free standing Single Vanity with a Basalt stone top and iron & steel base.
A decorative mirror above a bath vanity is a great way to add personality and character to a simple bath.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING
THE MASTER BEDROOM
The Master Bedroom is another room of the house that was Long and filled with challenges.
Despite all the obstacles of getting the house to function it also needed to have the clean line, simple aesthetic of my clients taste.
Two of the biggest changes to the Master Bedroom were replacing the bookcases and closing in the soffits.
I can't tell you how much I Hated the soffit that ran along the entire side of the bedroom, on both sides, with beams that floated above. It's a subtle change that most people would probably not even notice.
But How could anyone not notice? Beyond me!?! Made me crazy!!
Anyway, when you look at the two images can you see the major difference? I sure hope so.
Before Image of Master Bedroom Fireplace
Just to play it safe, we had the contractor mock up what closing in the soffit would look like. It gave the beams an ending point and if I do say, made a vast improvement.
It's a little difficult to tell from the photo, however the feature wall of the Master Bedroom where the bed is place has an amazing Phillip Jeffries Wall Covering in tones of gray.
A King size four-poster iron bed with an upholstered headboard in a darker shade of gray.
This is the same performance velvet that was used in the Living Room, just in another color.
In addition to the bed, the fireplace chairs are in the same fabric.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING
Here's a little video of the Before
I think if you watch this you might get a better feel for how much work was done in the Master Bath.
THE MASTER BATH
Sitting pretty, a little girl held court and made this photo! That's Roxy enjoying every minute being the center of attention!
This Master Bathroom is NOTHING like what it started as.
100% New!
The entire Master Bath was gutted, reconfigured and Brand Spanking NEW!
Click HERE to read all the nitty, gritty details of this Bathroom Renovation.
THE POOL & WINE HOUSE
Now, Outdoors is not my area of expertise (So I say) but I am willing to give my opinion at any time. (wink)
The renovations didn't end with the interior. The yard, the pool, the garden, the hill all got a face lift.
In addition to - the addition of - a little wine house on the hill.
This little wine house was built as an almost exact duplicate ( on the interior ) as the one built in New York. The last one was in a basement. So here, the wine house was built to blend into the landscape and look as though it had always been there.
One fun find was the antique Asian doors that were retro fitted to function as the doors into the wine house.
Here's a photo of the doors before they were ours, in the store.
So there you have it.
My bi-coastal - remote gut renovation. A California Story with a Florida Designer.
Hope you liked it.
Till next time...
