San Diego Beach Retreat Interior Design Transformation
Today I’d like to tell you how we transformed a Tuscan-inspired house into a light, beachy home retreat for a young family in San Diego.
A San Diego Interior Design Example
Our client’s purchased a home in the perfect location for their family, but they were not thrilled with the overly Tuscan feel of the house. They dreamed of a light-filled, beachy retreat with a kitchen and family room that represented their relaxed lifestyle in a unified entertaining space.
The clean, open feel of the new space is highlighted with classic white cabinetry that extends up to the ten-foot ceilings. Bringing the cabinetry all the way to the ceiling makes the space feel much larger and also gives the homeowner the opportunity to showcase some of their unique collectibles.
The homeowner also wanted a kitchen with an island that acts as a kitchen table, and a gathering place for friends and family. The original space had a completely different orientation, and had a very small island. The former kitchen did not have a good flow. So we re-oriented the entire space, turning the island the other way, which opens it up to the family room and makes the room appear much bigger and more user-friendly.
The new kitchen space plan includes a large center island featuring Silestone, Lagoon quartz in a suede finish. This material gives the appearance of marble, without the maintenance. The new island seats six people, and also includes a sink, dish washer and plenty of storage. The island is flanked with a bead board cabinetry door, which coordinates with bead board accents in the open shelved on the refrigerator wall. It also features a large stainless steel sink and Waterstone faucet.
The chandelier above the table/island is a large, antique silver and crystal beads piece that softens the lines of the kitchen with its curved, sculptural form and adds a sense of sophistication and whimsy to the space. The feature wall of the kitchen showcases a marble stacked stone backsplash, curved, white custom hood, and seedy glass upper cabinets with puck lights. Hand selected pottery and accent pieces complement the room décor in the display areas of the kitchen. This continues to transform the kitchen into an entertaining space that if far more than utilitarian. The refrigerator wall features an appliance garage, pantry, and even a desk/workspace for the homeowner so she can have a central station for files, phones, etc. This space is broken up with an open bookcase that further accents the furniture style feel of the space.
To add to the overall beach style, we added a hand-scraped, natural oak wood floor, Malibu Alta Vista. This flooring extends through the entire first floor of the home. Rustic, dark architectural beams were added over head in between the kitchen and family room for a slight delineation of space, but also flow nicely between the two spaces. The overall result for this project is a fresh take on the relaxed beach style and gives this young family all of the functionality that they need for many years to come.