The Beach house project - a cape cod in California. A lovely 1920's home with great bones and plenty of charm. The clients inspired by east coast Cape Cod homes similar to their own wanted blues & whites to dominate the interior color schemes. R & M envisaged the house feeling like it belonged at the beach. My aim was to create a beachy laid back feel; East coast meets West coast. And to do so without using any obvious beach related decor. No anchors or ships in bottles for this house.
First stop in the living room was to paint the panelling a warm white and paint out the heavy dark beams in the ceiling - especially important as the rooms dont have particularly high ceilings. The fireplace was under scaled so I designed a new stone mantle & hearth with casework surround to push the fireplace out from the wall and create a focal point in the room. This also served to house and hide the tv above the fireplace. The blue & white scheme was warmed up and balanced with golden sand colors used for the sofa and rug.
The blue and white color palate was tweaked in the kitchen & family space. In this room the blues turn to aqua and the whites warm to soft yellows. I like to play with the formality of each room using color and since this was the most casual space, a brighter and more energetic color palate was integrated. The kitchen and family room needed a place for casual dining and a place for the children to play and relax and much more storage. To achieve all the practical requirements I designed a corner bench seat for the breakfast nook, and a corresponding bench seat for lounging that wraps the opposite end of the room and allows for plenty more storage opportunities. The rustic qualities of the Mulligan's painted furniture pieces add to the relaxed beachy feel.
In the dining room my inspiration was the beach at night, so the walls go dark inky blue and the Ironies chandelier acts as the moon. Artwork by Louise LeBourgeois courtesy of the Dolby Chadwick Gallery adds to the moody feel and rounds out the space.
Beach House AFTER
Beach House BEFORE
