Kitchen Makeover

The kitchen in this hidden gem Victorian house on the Westside of Santa Cruz was in need of a refresh.  The original Wedgewood range, which had originally attracted the owners to the home, had started to feel impractical and less functional than modern alternatives.  Once a new cooking appliance was being considered, the conversation quickly snowballed into new appliances throughout, updated island worktop and a new paint job for the existing cabinets.

Orchestrating the renovation during our clients' 3 week trip to Europe took a lot of advance planning.   Contractors and painters were lined up at the ready, whilst all of the appliances had to be pre selected, purchased and stored on site in the garage so they were on hand as daily progress was made.

The tone on tone jade colors were selected to offset the grandfathered in grey and black tiled worktops.  We swapped out the butcher's block worktop on the island for a black granite.  A modern range replaces the old stove, the addition of a hood brings the kitchen up to code.

The color upgrades significantly brighten the kitchen.  The base cabinets were painted deep jade and the upper cabinets stayed white which grounds the furniture in the space.

See below our 3D walkthrough of the space as presented to our client.

 

 

Mood Board: Living Room Refresh

For our client’s living room, we wanted to create a cozy coastal vibe that would make this room a sanctuary for the whole family. Below, our mood boards breaks down how we achieved this look in our renderings. Stay tuned for the before and after blog to see the completed space! 

Featuring new built-ins to turn an existing space into a media and storage unit, the living room layout will add flexibility to the space. The client did not want the television to be the main focus of the room, so creating a conversational layout with comfortable linen chesterfield sofas and modern leather swivel chairs will make the space multi-functional. Add a large, grounding red and blue rug, rustic coffee table, and bentwood pendant light and this cozy living room will serve their family well for years to come.  

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Gallery Walls We Love

Gallery walls are a great way to showcase beloved prints, photography, and paintings. Whether you go bold with an entire wall or just a few prints, a gallery wall makes an impact. The successful ones often employ a mix of scale, with tonally similar imagery. You can go large scale, covering a whole wall or take a more minimalist approach with just a few framed prints in a hallway. Here are 6 of our favorites: 

For more gallery walls we love, follow us on Pinterest

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Kid's Rooms We Love

Kid’s room can be a challenge because they need to serve many purposes and have the ability to grow and change as a little one does. A well thought out nursery can turn from baby’s sanctuary to colorful kid’s room with the addition of fun wallpaper, storage, and their favorite patterned bedding. From infant to preteen, here are six kid’s rooms we love: 

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For more of our favorite kid’s rooms, follow us on Pinterest

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Design with Blush

The blush trend has carried straight through 2017, with the hue popping up in restaurant design, living rooms, in accent décor and in tile. Blush is a wonderful tone to work with because it can function as a neutral, working well with a variety of colors, or it can be the bold centerpiece of a design infusing bright color throughout. Below are a few of our favorite applications, from upholstery to tile to paint and everything in between.

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Wallpaper We Love

It is no secret that we are a little obsessed with wallpaper over here. We love wallpaper’s ability to infuse a space with color and visual interest. It can be the perfect accompaniment to an intimate bedroom setting or a public space such as a restaurant dining room. From vintage florals to palm print to modern abstract design, wallpaper is one of the most exciting materials to work with. Here are a few of our favorites: 

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For more of our favorite wallpapers, follow us on Pinterest

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Before and After: Happy Valley Farmhouse

This 1900s farmhouse in the Santa Cruz mountains had so much potential, but was suffering from multiple remodels that seemed like a mishmash of styles. Paring back the color and material palette let the home's original beauty and detail shine through, while modernizing the space. 

Exterior

The buttercup yellow and stained door gave the farmhouse a dated feel. While cheerful, the color competed with the surrounding beauty. The fresh white paint gives the stately home an elegant and timeless feel, emphasizing the surrounding mountains. The black door and shutters give just enough of a modern edge to update the feeling of this classic farmhouse.

Living Room

Dark and heavy green stained paneling added visual weight to the living room, the natural light and high ceilings completely lost in the combination of dark beams and dark trim. The light floor pulled focus furthering the illusion of shortened space. White washing the walls, beams, and paneling opened up the living room, letting the inherent elegance of the sitting area come through. The bold black floors and staircase banister anchor the space with a point of contrast. Playful lantern lighting sprinkled across the ceiling is an unexpected touch that modernizes the sitting room. Natural textures and warm neutrals lend comfort and ease to the space, with hints of greenery bringing the outside in. 

Master Bathroom

The bathroom layout left a lot to be desired, with a funky shuttered opening looking onto the bedroom, and a lot of space being taken up by a hallway and small closet at the main entrance to the bathroom.The layout of the bathroom got an overhaul, with the hallway and closet removed to make the bathroom footprint larger. The bathtub bump out was closed off to create a much more functional and accessible closet. Inside the bathroom, a beautiful patterned tile runs along the floor and up a wall, creating the perfect spot for a soaking tub. A rustic vanity with soapstone counters and concrete vessel sinks is the perfect moody addition to the bathroom, with brass accents in the vintage inspired lighting and faucets adding warmth. The new layout even allowed space for a walk in shower, with beveled subway tile adding a classic element. 

 

For more photos of this beautifully updated farmhouse, click over to our Portfolio

Nightstands We Love

A nightstand is probably one of the last elements of our bedroom we think about when picking furniture and décor, but this functional addition lends a lot of style and make a bedroom feel complete. From mid-century to sleek and modern, there are nightstands at every price point that can contribute to your bedroom’s design. Below are some of our favorites. 

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Collections We Love

Most of us have objects we are drawn to, yours may be wooden spoons that remind you of your grandmother’s house or antique pictures of couples on their wedding day. Whatever it is that you find delightful, one way to elevate it from “that pile of stuff over there” to “wow look at that beautiful collection” is to display it in a creative way. By playing with scale, shape, texture and color in your collection, you can create a meaningful display for your home. Below are a few collections we enjoy:

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Best of May

As spring turns to summer, we are heading into May with hopes for warm weather, and weekends filled with adventure. To help us achieve our wish, we have scoured the internet for fun Bay Area events, great recipes, and design articles. Below are our picks for a great May: 

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1.     Bay to Breakers is a long standing San Francisco tradition in which (mostly) costumed runners go from San Francisco Bay to Ocean Beach. They run the length of San Francisco, going through Golden Gate Park and ending up at a celebration by the ocean. For those of us who are not runners, the back of the pack turns into a dance party slash parade that is always a good time. This quirky event takes place May 21. Via Bay to Breakers

2.     Green interiors are having a major moment, and we can understand why. Green is a soothing color, and its many hues can be sophisticated, bold, or playful. Take a peek at this list of green and brown interiors over at Design*Sponge to satisfy your craving for green interiors. Via Design*Sponge

3.     While Bottle Rock in Napa is already sold out, we just had to post about it. The festival takes place May 26-28 in scenic Napa with food and wine galore accompanying the music. You can still try to snag a pass through the websites ticket exchange or just beg your friend who is going for theirs. Via Bottle Rock Napa Valley

4.     This sweet home tour has a lovely subtle color palette throughout, unifying the spaces without feeling “over-designed”. We love the velvet couches and all the hand painted wall treatments. Via A Beautiful Mess

5.     Cinco de Mayo is upon us again this year and there are celebrations happening all over the state. This family friendly street fair in San Francisco’s Mission District looks like a wonderful way to learn about Mexican heritage and culture while enjoying food, music, and live performances. This event takes place on Saturday May 6th. Via SF Cinco de Mayo Festival

6.     We love a good lunch salad, and right now is a great time to be taking advantage of spring produce. It’s easy to get sick of the same old salad routine. These three warm salads are a great way to whip up a quick, satisfying dinner or lunch. Via MyDomaine.

7.     It comes as no surprise that we love a good wallpaper, so that’s why this renter-friendly list of wall decals (that seriously mimic the look of luxe wallpaper) is so appealing. Perfect for switching up your summer style easily. Via Apartment Therapy.  

8.     We love when a collection is displayed in a well thought-out manner, anything can become great décor when it is elevated through placement and attention is made to color, size, and proportion. This feature shows off some very effective and beautiful plate displays. Via Design*Sponge

Design with Velvet

Velvet is a timeless fabric, but people often picture their grandmother’s sofa collecting dust in an attic when they think of the material. Not anymore, velvet has made a huge resurgence with so many lovely applications from tufted headboards and sofas to chairs and restaurant banquettes. Velvet adds a layer of vintage, luxurious charm and can also feel modern and exciting with linear upholstery techniques. 

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Rugs We Love

Rugs can bring together an entire room, by anchoring a color palette or layering in texture with natural fibers. A rug can be the focal point or fade into the background to let other pieces shine. From modern to traditional, muted tones to overdyed, we love rugs in every category. Check out our picks below, and then follow us on Pinterest for more of our favorites. 

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Staircases We Love

A staircase is one of those liminal spaces that can fade to the background, but we enjoy when someone has taken the time to make their staircase a showstopper. Whether they have floating wood clad steps, tiled fronts, brass banisters, or are painted brightly, there are endless ways to make a staircase standout. Here are just a few of our favorites: 

For more of our favorite staircases, follow us on Pinterest

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Color Analysis: Stacked Crates

Inspiration can come from the strangest places, like when you see a stack of perfectly color coordinated carts against a corresponding wall. The energizing color combination of rusty red, juicy orange, and raspberry is balanced by blue based deep grays. These tones might work well in a restaurant or office. If you feel inspired by this palette, click through their coordinating paint colors in the link below

For more color inspiration, follow us on Pinterest and Instagram. 

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Before and After: Home Office Remodel

Before: 

Our client approached Stripe in 2016 wanting an update to their home office. To maximize the living space in their studio, they had commissioned a built in desk to run along one wall. While functional, the finishes were generic, with a black laminate top and matching handles making the piece feel heavy and dark. The pink terra cotta tile floor felt out of place stylistically from the rest of home, and the blank white walls pulled focus to the television. 

Mood Board:

While the space did not demand a huge overhaul, an update was needed to pull the room together. First, we presented our client with a rendering of our design. We began by tackling the desk, replacing the laminate countertop with a Caesarstone material. The brown cabinet hardware was modernized with stainless steel bar pulls. We used a Shibori wallpaper from Amber Interiors to create visual interest and had white floating shelves built above the desk so our client could take advantage of the wall space. The shelving also balanced the walls, making the space feel larger by emphasizing the expanse of the wall. Our client was not ready to replace the tiles, so we found a large dusty blush rug to cover the floor space, tying together the tones in the desk and the wallpaper. To top it off, we added a lovely fabric desk chair from Restoration Hardware that is both beautiful and functional. 

After:

Today, the home office is a serene and inviting space. Sometimes a client will have a great idea (like a built-in desk) but will ask us to help them bring the room together. With the right finishes and decor, any project large or small can become the space it was always meant to be.