It’s no exaggeration to say that I’ve been ready to share this put up with you for years. When you’ve been following for some time, you’ll know that in 2020, we went all in on our large dream to renovate a seaside home in Malibu. We fell in love with an acre of land overlooking Zuma Seashore, with views of a phenomenal horse farm and gardens overflowing with wild roses and olive timber. The breezes carried the scent of jasmine and salt water, and at night time the solar set simply on the level the place the ocean meets the mountains. It was love at first sight.
A few months later, we obtained the keys to the home and our journey started. We employed Doug Burdge, our beloved Malibu-based architect, to reinvent the ground plan and add 1,000 sq. toes. We obtained all our geese in a row and submitted the whole lot to town. After which started three years of ready as we slogged by means of the allowing course of with the Metropolis of Malibu. We didn’t know on the time how a lot endurance and uncertainty this dream of ours would require, however all through, we held tightly to our imaginative and prescient and refused to surrender.
In my Substack right now, I shared much more about our private journey and what it taught me, and the vary of feelings that come from constructing in a spot that’s so not too long ago been rocked by tragedy. If you’d like the total story (together with why we’re “crazy” sufficient to construct in a high-risk space) head over to the put up. Over right here, we’re kicking off the primary put up in our Renovation Diaries sequence, as a result of now we have formally begun development!
Since I’m going to have so much to share about our Zuma Seashore Home undertaking within the coming months, this would be the official spot the place you’ll be able to comply with alongside. My hope is that, for these of you who’re as design-obsessed as me, it is going to develop into a useful resource on your personal renovation journeys, in addition to a spot for inspiration and concepts. We’ll be getting granular on the main points: how we designed the kitchen island, precisely what supplies we’re utilizing in each area, and fixing these difficult choices that come up in each renovation undertaking. And sure, I’ll be asking you to weigh in, too.
It feels proper to start with a birds-eye view: a zoomed-out take a look at how the home will change, what we’re holding and what we’re altering, and an outline of the design fashion and references which have impressed us.
First, the “Before”
What to know in regards to the present home:
- 1950’s ranch-style bungalow—though it has some charming parts, this home is de facto all in regards to the property.
- 1,400 sq. toes with two bedrooms and two bogs
- 600-square-foot visitor home above the storage
- The property is just below an acre overlooking Zuma Seashore, with towering palm timber and plush citrus and avocado timber.
Points with the present home:
- A big electrical pole. It was smack dab within the middle of our seaside view. After two years of working with town, we lastly obtained it taken down and had the ability traces buried. It was a significant funding, however so price it to open up the view.
- No clear entrance entrance. Whereas there technically is a entrance door, it’s been utilized by precisely zero individuals since we purchased the home. While you pull into the driveway, the trail leads you down a sidewalk straight to the again door. So, nobody is kind of certain whether or not to circle round to the entrance of the home, or enter straight into the door of our laundry room.
- Lack of area. Other than the awkward ground plan, we’re additionally missing area usually. It’s a comfy match for our household of 4, so when household or pals come to stick with us, we’re bursting on the seams. There’s additionally nowhere for me and Adam to work (which is an issue while you each do business from home), so certainly one of us normally finally ends up taking calls from the bed room whereas the opposite sits on the kitchen desk with Air Pods in, praying that the children gained’t get right into a battle within the meantime.
- Closed-off rooms. When you’ve seen our Austin home, you already know that Adam and I are large on an open format. We gravitate towards an ethereal vibe, so a home made up of small rooms which can be separated from one another makes us really feel claustrophobic. We will’t wait to open this area up.
- Low ceilings. For my part, low ceilings are some of the regarding issues a couple of home as a result of they are often actually tough to alter—and infrequently, can result in a home feeling darkish and crowded. So, once we first thought of the acquisition of this home, ensuring that we’d be capable of increase the ceilings was a prerequisite. Extra on that later.
- Tucked-away kitchen. For me, the kitchen is the guts and middle of a house, so having a small kitchen awkwardly tucked into the nook of the home (with dated granite and cabinetry) was going to be the very first thing to go in any renovation.
I gave a full tour of the previous home right here and answered a bunch of FAQs in regards to the property and placement, if you wish to dive deeper.
The Renovation Plan
- The addition: We’ll add a 1,000 sq. foot nice room (a big open kitchen with residing area). Our architect Doug brilliantly discovered a method to maintain the unique footprint of the present home, however we’ll rework the non-load-bearing partitions to fully reimagine the inside ground plan.
- Create a transparent entrance entrance. As talked about above, the present home lacks a transparent entrance and leaves visitors confused about the place they need to go. Within the transformed format, we would like anybody who arrives on the home to know precisely the place to park, with a transparent plan for find out how to enter. Do you know there’s an precise title for this subject? It’s wayfinding, and contains ideas like creating “well-structured paths” and avoiding “too many navigational choices.” Unsure why I’m obsessive about this subject, however I discover it endlessly fascinating.
- Open ground plan. For the areas the place we stay, eat, and play collectively as a household, I want a wide-open area that ideally opens to the outside. When you maintain studying, you’ll learn the way we’re attaining that with a 1,000-square-foot addition that’s principally one large kitchen.
- Vaulted ceilings. Once we thought of buying this home, I knew that for the funding, we’d want to have the ability to increase the ceilings. Fortunately it wasn’t too difficult right here, particularly since we’re holding it to at least one story. We’ll be vaulting the ceilings, which implies that we’re extending into the triangular area between the place a ceiling would usually sit and the highest of the roof. This won’t solely assist the rooms really feel bigger than they really are, but it surely’ll additionally let extra pure gentle into every area.
- Room for visitors. Whereas we wished to maintain this a reasonably modest-sized home, we additionally knew that this was a spot we anticipated internet hosting household and pals for years to return. By including a visitor suite and a bunk room, we’d make room for an extra 4 to 5 individuals to stick with our household in the principle home.
- Massive kitchen for entertaining. Because the kitchen is my completely satisfied place, I naturally need to have the ability to spend time in it surrounded by household and pals. I would like a kitchen massive sufficient to accommodate cooking initiatives, recipe photograph shoots, and plenty of individuals, since most dinner events find yourself with everybody gathered across the island. Based mostly on the present tucked-away nook kitchen, I knew this could require a whole reimagining of the area.
- Pure gentle. The present home already has nice gentle, however we knew that by elevating the ceilings and including extra home windows and doorways to the again of the home, we may create an much more light-filled area.
The Model: Japandi Trendy Seashore Home
We’re calling this a Japandi Trendy Seashore Home as a result of it combines the minimalism, clear traces, and pure supplies of Scandinavian design with the heat, tranquility, and concentrate on craftsmanship from Japanese design. Our priorities are simplicity, performance, and concord, bringing the indoors and outside collectively in a seamless circulate. We would like this home to really feel like a sanctuary, utilizing pure supplies, impartial tones, and handcrafted particulars.
The Visualizations: The place We’re Headed
We’ve been working with the staff at YouSee Studio to create real looking 3D renderings of our plans so we are able to actually visualize what we’re creating. I can’t suggest this course of sufficient. Not solely has it allowed us to make spacial choices in regards to the structure, however having the ability to check out totally different supplies and room layouts has already saved us from a number of choices we’d have regretted.
I can’t wait to share these visualizations of every area in the home as we undergo the design course of over the following few months—we’ll be capable of take a look at totally different comparisons and choices collectively as we make all these ultimate choices to convey the undertaking to life.
Right here’s the property overview that exhibits the brand new exterior. To the left, you’ll be able to see the good room addition with the out of doors terrace. The best facet is the present home that turns into the bedrooms, bogs, and media room.
Options of our Japandi Trendy Seashore Home:
It’s essential to Adam and me that each ingredient of this undertaking is an intentional mix of magnificence and performance. Listed below are a number of design choices which can be guiding your complete undertaking:
Exterior Design:
- Scandinavian-inspired wooden cladding. We’re utilizing stunning redwood from Humboldt Sawmill Firm in Northern California.
- Giant home windows and doorways that blur the traces between indoors and outside.
- Corrugated metallic roofing, including a up to date edge to the minimalist design.
Inside Supplies:
- Pure wooden floors and cabinetry for heat and texture. Our flooring are by Stuga, a direct-to-consumer wooden flooring firm that’s based mostly within the US and works with Scandinavian producers.
- Stone accent partitions that floor the area and replicate the encompassing setting. I can’t wait to indicate you guys the stone that we selected from Eldorado Stone—it’s beautiful and can be such an announcement.
- Easy, useful layouts that maximize area and light-weight.
Design Philosophy:
- A concentrate on pure parts like olive and citrus timber, agave, and native grasses within the panorama.
- A impartial coloration palette of black, wooden, creamy plaster, concrete, and stone for a relaxing vibe.
- An emphasis on craftsmanship and high-quality, long-lasting supplies.
General Ambiance:
- A mix of Scandinavian hygge (coziness) with Japanese wabi-sabi (magnificence in imperfection).
- Areas designed for peace, leisure, and connection to nature.
