Leeward House

Written By Tama Bell

Our clients reached out to us in the Fall of 2021, essentially wanting to modernize a 1990’s Sea Ranch house. I chuckle, looking back through the intake form, the client’s top five issues that caused her to call were;

1. Ugly home interior, and

2. Really not much else to say other than that...it pretty much speaks for itself...LOL

Just 1 and 2, no 3, 4 or 5. Straight to the point. We like that.

A kitchen with warm wooden cabinets, a warm wooden floor, and white tile countertops. There is a kitchen island with counter seating in the middle of the kitchen. The sink is below a window.

We started with a walk through of the space which was a fairly traditional Sea Ranch floor plan with bedrooms on the entry level and the living and master's on the second floor. It’s a good plan, as it allows better site lines and in this home they were spectacular ocean views.

We always start with looking at the floor plan with an eye for simple and smart. We aim to lose wasted space, simplify transitions and make the best use of what we have to work with when we are not changing the footprint.

Upstairs, the major issue was the lack of a powder bath to service the living areas. Guests had to walk through the master bedroom to use the bath on that level. We see this a lot in Sea Ranch, where each bedroom has its own bath, which is great for the guest staying in the room, but not having a public bathroom can be awkward when entertaining.

Being that this is a second home, we were able to create a small hall and use a walk-in closet to create a powder bath that feels like it was always there. Here is the original layout.

A floor plan with labels reading "We removed an awkwardly placed fireplace in the master which made room for a larger master bathroom," pointing at a space in the living area and "Here is the area we used for the powder bath" pointing at a closet.
A more fleshed out floor plan with furniture laid throughout the home and text reading "Here is the revised floor plan with the new powder bath" pointing to a bathroom where a closet was in the previous floor plan.

Here is the new powder bath in all her glory...

A bathroom with open shelving, textured neutral wall treatment, a modern light fixture, and a framed painting cisible in the vanity mirror. The vanity has a dark grey counter, rounded rectangle sink, silver faucet, and light wood cabinet.

Playing on the sea and sand theme, the powder pendant made us think of jellyfish, so we had to have them!

And, again, more soft color and texture with a natural grasscloth on all the walls and in the open shelving.

Grass cloth is one of the ways that we like to add color in rooms. It allows you more flexibility with stronger color but in a classic, lasting way.

After making the adjustments to the floor plan so that we felt like we were dealing with a good foundational backdrop, we got to work on the materials. We wanted to create a modern, organic, natural vision that felt fitting for The Sea Ranch. Our inspiration, naturally, was sand and sea as we selected hard materials and later furnishings.

 

The master went from a sharp teal paint color to a soft pale blue grass cloth that enveloped that space and created a calm, quiet space.

It is amazing what the right color will do for a room. The master bedroom was this sharp blue, which created a less than relaxing space.

A grayed, textural blue grass cloth added a touch of color but in a classic, timeless way that is calming.

Don’t you love a good before and after?

A bedroom with light blue walls, light carpet, light wood accents and a high metal bed frame.
A bedroom with a light rattan bed frame, wood floor, light rug, and layered neutral linens. The walls are light green and the windows have roman blinds.

And the living room after. We added a three sided fireplace which was plastered with Portola Paints roman clay and floating shelves to add an offset design element.

This is the living room before. Lots of 1990’s details that needed a refresh.

A living area with large dark leather couches, a dark stone fireplace, and a large wooden glass front cabinet along one wall.
A living space with a dark wood dining table, light wood rattan dining chairs, and a built in white cabinet. Beyond the dining area is an open living space with a built in fireplace, floating shelves, large art piece, couch, and brown swivel chairs.

And after. We love how the materials speak to Sea Ranch. It feels natural, organic and modern!

Kitchen and dining before. Lauren is working on getting the floor plan into CAD in this image, so we can start designing and transforming this home!

Lauren sits at a dining table. The kitchen is visible in the background. The floors and cabinets are light wood.
A dark dining table sits next to a built in white cabinet. Beyond the dining area is a bright, light kitchen with glass fronted cool tone wood upper cabinets, white base cabinets, and a white kitchen island. Pendant lights hang in both spaces.

And after, updated, calm and ready for guests.

One of the two bedrooms downstairs before…

A bedroom with a white wooden bed frame, grey linens, white walls, warm wood accents, and a neutral rug. The bed is framed by bedside tables with lamps. There is art on two walls framed in wood frames.
A bedroom with layered neutral and white linens. There is a modern black and gold sconce above a black square bedside table. Art in wood frames hangs above the bed. There is a wood floor and textured neutral carpet.
Tama Bell
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