Houzz Tour: Farmhouse Touches and Light in Newport Beach
Natural wood, big windows and white walls open up a new home to the California sun
Entry: A skylight just above the front entrance brings natural light into the large entry hall. A wrought iron railing and arched doorway add a touch of Mediterranean flair. The doorway leads to a full bathroom, sandwiched between a guest bedroom — at the front of the house, to the left through the arched doorway— and a home office to the right.
Sconces: Visual Comfort
Sconces: Visual Comfort
Great room: A wall of sliding glass doors in the great room connects the inside and outside spaces. The backyard is only 10 feet deep, Aust says, “so we had to get creative on how to make the house feel like it wasn’t right on top of the neighbor.” The gas fireplace surround is honed Belgian marble.
Paint color on built-ins: Mole’s Breath, Farrow & Ball; lantern light: Visual Comfort
Paint color on built-ins: Mole’s Breath, Farrow & Ball; lantern light: Visual Comfort
Kitchen: The kitchen and great room seem even bigger when the glass doors are open to the outside. The island and buffet cabinet are white oak; other kitchen cabinetry is Shaker panel.
Pendant lights: Light & Living; wall sconces: Visual Comfort; cabinet hardware: Emtek
Pendant lights: Light & Living; wall sconces: Visual Comfort; cabinet hardware: Emtek
Open shelves, oversize windows and a palette of whites and natural woods add a modern-farmhouse feel. The countertops are honed Statuario Italian marble.
Pot filler faucet: Dornbracht
Pot filler faucet: Dornbracht
Office and playroom: An original plan for a two-story entrance hall morphed into an open homework area and play station.
Laundry room: At the back of the office and playroom, sliding barn doors lead to a laundry room. The white-oak ceiling beams, barn doors and cabinetry all have a clear lacquer finish.
Purist wall-mount faucet: Kohler
Purist wall-mount faucet: Kohler
Built-in cabinets in the laundry room provide plenty of space to store laundry and cleaning supplies.
Cabinet paint: Mole’s Breath, Farrow & Ball
Cabinet paint: Mole’s Breath, Farrow & Ball
Master bedroom: Light from large windows on three sides floods the room.
Master bathroom: Two separate vanities and an oversize window lend an airy feel to the space. The concrete floor tile is small gray hexagon mosaic tile.
Ceiling light: World Market; wall lights: Visual Comfort; tile: Cement Tile Company
Ceiling light: World Market; wall lights: Visual Comfort; tile: Cement Tile Company
Shower wall tile: matte white 3 by 6 inches and 2½-by-9-inch tile in straight-joint, herringbone and chevron patterns by Sonoma Tile.
Exterior: When Aust designed the clear glass entry, he worried about privacy issues at night since the entry faces the street. The solution: roll-down shades. To the right of the front door, a covered porch leads to the formal dining room; the room above is the master bathroom.
Floor plans show the full length (20 feet) of the large, light-filled entry hall, center, and the great room and kitchen, top.
On the second floor, a large master suite with walk-in closets, top right corner, is separated from the other bedrooms by the laundry room and office-playroom, center. Each of the upstairs bedrooms has its own full bath.
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House at a Glance
Location: Port Street neighborhood of Newport Beach, California
Size: 3,638 square feet (338 square meters); five bedrooms, four bathrooms
Designers: Eric Aust (architecture); Clayton Builders (builders); Julie Clayton of Homescapes (design)
Challenge: Build a new 3,600-square-foot home on the footprint of a 1970s-era ranch-style house with a small lot. The hardest part, says architect Eric Aust, who was hired by Clayton Builders to design the spec house, was “maximizing a small backyard and integrating the outside and inside so it flows.”
Solution: Aust incorporated lots of large windows and glass doors throughout the house for more natural light and a better connection to the outdoors. Julie Clayton designed the exterior finishes and interiors to give the home personality. “I don’t go for the vanilla, middle-of-the-road thing,” she says. Thanks to Aust’s design, Clayton’s touch with finishes and the help of professional stager Meridith Baer, the house sold within two weeks of going on the market.
The formal dining room, pictured here, is at the front of the house to provide a buffer between more frequently used rooms and the street. The 3-by-8-foot French doors open to the outside, providing great flow for parties. White oak beams break up the 10-foot-high ceilings and “bring some intimacy,” Aust says. The designer chose the raw-edged table in the dining room to pick up the rustic feel of the cabinetry and beams. “It’s so organic,” Clayton says.
Basket Cloche hanging pendant: Roost; walls and ceiling paint: White, Benjamin Moore; millwork and trim: DEW380, Dunn-Edwards