Contractor: Dave Puente Construction
Photography: Sage Architecture, Inc.
Landscape Architecture: Dave Gibbons
Interiors: Sage Architecture & Cheryl Holben Design
Ranch House Remodel
Ranch homes are quintessential to California living, but sometimes their low slung roofs cause the point of entry to be indistinguishable. Such was the case on our Modern Ranch Remodel project. Our first goal became defining the entry and addressing our clients’ concerns that their home lacked character. While the interior had nice spatial qualities, the entry was dark and the main living spaces were large expanses of drywall surfaces and dated cabinetry. We started with the exterior, flowing into the house. To “celebrate” the entry, we added a new shed roof which pops up, beckoning you into the home. A trellis element beneath the tongue and groove ceiling has hidden LED uplighting which washes the underside of the roof at night.
The trellis element continues within the home’s entry foyer, along with the bluestone flooring, helping to blur the distinction between inside and outside. The original heavy wood doors have been replaced with patterned glass doors allowing natural light to flood into the entry. Within the home, custom thickened shelves and cabinetry softly define the living and family room spaces. The original light maple floors have been replaced with charcoal gray stained oak to highlight the new lighter taupe colored cabinetry. New and existing windows are all stained in a darker tone, along with the new decorative beam treatment in the family room. The old dark lava rock fireplace has been transformed into a modern statement with a creamy taupe plaster finish combined with light-washed cherry cabinetry and a walnut mantel. The anchoring element is a new corner banquette piece designed with a floating bench. Colors and materials throughout are deliberately soft and muted to allow the homeowner’s extensive art collection to stand-out. The natural wood tones lend warmth to the home’s clean lines. The transformation is completed by a new front garden space that acts as a buffer zone to the street and gently guides visitors to the front door.