Houzz Tour: Modern and Traditional Tango in a Spanish-Style Ranch
From leaky and drab to revamped and fab, this Southern California home with its own orchard is more than ready for guests
Shaw Coates and her husband, John, loved living in their four-level downtown San Diego house. Shaw, in particular, loved small spaces, having lived in Paris apartments. But when the couple — she's a marketing director; he's a hardware engineer for Qualcomm — unexpectedly learned that Shaw was pregnant, they went into overdrive to find a more habitable space in which to raise their family. The idea of having a nursery on the ground level and their master bedroom all the way at the top was far from ideal.
Rancho Santa Fe, a neighborhood north of San Diego with 1-acre lots, a country vibe, proximity to the city and beach, a horse culture and incredible schools, seemed like the best fit. But the traditional style of the houses worried Shaw, who was hoping for something more modern. A late-1970s house and its clean lines quickly grabbed her attention, though, offering the chance to bring some midcentury vintage flair to a classic design. John was less enthused. The ranch-style Spanish house hadn’t been lived in for two and a half years; there were leaks and it was falling apart. A huge revamp was in order.
Shaw championed the high ceilings, open floor plan and unique views of the valley as a good base packed with potential, eventually winning John over. Greenline Construction plus landscape designers Kendra Berger of Revive Landscape Design and Steven Letz of Letz Design stepped in to carry out the vision.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Shaw and John Coates, 2-year-old daughter Charlotte and poodle Monte
Location: Rancho Santa Fe, California
Size: 2,710 square feet on 1 1/2 acres; 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms
Budget: About $250,000
Year built: Late 1970s
Rancho Santa Fe, a neighborhood north of San Diego with 1-acre lots, a country vibe, proximity to the city and beach, a horse culture and incredible schools, seemed like the best fit. But the traditional style of the houses worried Shaw, who was hoping for something more modern. A late-1970s house and its clean lines quickly grabbed her attention, though, offering the chance to bring some midcentury vintage flair to a classic design. John was less enthused. The ranch-style Spanish house hadn’t been lived in for two and a half years; there were leaks and it was falling apart. A huge revamp was in order.
Shaw championed the high ceilings, open floor plan and unique views of the valley as a good base packed with potential, eventually winning John over. Greenline Construction plus landscape designers Kendra Berger of Revive Landscape Design and Steven Letz of Letz Design stepped in to carry out the vision.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Shaw and John Coates, 2-year-old daughter Charlotte and poodle Monte
Location: Rancho Santa Fe, California
Size: 2,710 square feet on 1 1/2 acres; 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms
Budget: About $250,000
Year built: Late 1970s
BEFORE: Shaw had this original brick inlay fireplace covered in Santa Barbara smooth stucco for a more contemporary feel. French white oak replaced the original carpeted floors.
All the original windows were replaced with more efficient low-E dual-pane ones.
All the original windows were replaced with more efficient low-E dual-pane ones.
More chartreuse — Shaw's favorite color — and black adorn the minimalist dining room.
Table: Design Within Reach; chairs: Room & Board; chandelier: Restoration Hardware; lamp: mixture
Table: Design Within Reach; chairs: Room & Board; chandelier: Restoration Hardware; lamp: mixture
Shaw loves the open kitchen and family space, where she can easily watch her daughter.
Sofa, coffee table, side chairs: Room & Board
Sofa, coffee table, side chairs: Room & Board
BEFORE: The Coates family doesn’t cook much, so they left the kitchen layout pretty much intact, moving a few appliances around. Sustainably harvested wood cabinets now stained espresso give the kitchen a warm and sophisticated look.
Shaw also added a single-sink basin large enough to hold big pots and pans. The countertops are Caeserstone mixed with recycled glass for sparkle.
The artwork is sparse but well chosen. This Andy Warhol "Double Elvis" print adds a snap of hipness.
Chairs: Room & Board
Chairs: Room & Board
The Coates family uses this space, technically a fourth bedroom, as an office and library. They mostly use laptops to work, meaning no unsightly cords dangle, and they put the desk in the “power position,” Shaw says. Four bookcases from Room & Board fit perfectly on the back wall, giving the appearance of built-ins.
A hidden closet houses a video surveillance system.
Bookcases, chair, rug: Room & Board; desk: West Elm; prints: antiques
A hidden closet houses a video surveillance system.
Bookcases, chair, rug: Room & Board; desk: West Elm; prints: antiques
Referred to as the Gold Room, this guest bedroom is splashed with the color. A closet previously spanned the back wall, but Shaw had it chopped in half. “I wouldn’t want guests to stay that long where they’d need all that closet space anyway,” she says.
The carpet has a plastic-wrapped pad underneath, making the floor kidproof and petproof.
Headboard: Ikea; bed frame: Design Within Reach; comforter, side tables: West Elm; lamps: mixture; sea urchins wall installation: SoLo
The carpet has a plastic-wrapped pad underneath, making the floor kidproof and petproof.
Headboard: Ikea; bed frame: Design Within Reach; comforter, side tables: West Elm; lamps: mixture; sea urchins wall installation: SoLo
John’s mother hand tinted the photos of Midwest landscapes that hang above this workstation in the guest room. The gold frames made them a perfect addition to the Gold Room.
Desk: West Elm; chair: Room & Board; side table: vintage
Desk: West Elm; chair: Room & Board; side table: vintage
Often faced with more guests than there was room for, Shaw put a full-size bed in their daughter’s room.
Crib, lamp, curtains: Ikea; dresser: Room & Baord; decals: Etsy; side table: mixture
Crib, lamp, curtains: Ikea; dresser: Room & Baord; decals: Etsy; side table: mixture
BEFORE: The master bedroom came with a challenging nook.
Among the questions: how high to hang the curtains? Shaw decided to hang them on the outside ceiling of the nook to match the ones covering a window opposite.
The headroom throughout the house was a big selling point. “I always feel like high ceilings are less oppressive,” Shaw says. “So that was on our wish list when house hunting, for sure.”
Bed, stools: Crate & Barrel; rug: West Elm; dresser: Room & Board; sleeper sofa: Design Within Reach
The headroom throughout the house was a big selling point. “I always feel like high ceilings are less oppressive,” Shaw says. “So that was on our wish list when house hunting, for sure.”
Bed, stools: Crate & Barrel; rug: West Elm; dresser: Room & Board; sleeper sofa: Design Within Reach
The family uses the nook as a reading area that looks out to a courtyard patio.
There was extensive water damage in the master bathroom, so the Coateses took that as an opportunity to knock down superfluous walls and interior doors to open the space. They added vintage subway tiles and a soaking tub.
The washer and dryer area had been in the garage. Shaw converted a storage room and bought the smallest units she could find. She then used a leftover slab of rosemary Caesarstone to create a workstation to hide soaps in and to lay clothes on.
To help the exterior blend in with the environment, she had it redone with smooth Santa Barbara stucco for a more natural color.
BEFORE: So much work was needed on the exterior, Shaw notes. From afar the heavy lace-white stucco caused the house to pop out.
BEFORE: The pergola deserved some special attention.
Adding a contemporary custom iron gate, flattening out the pergola's beams and wrapping it in a grapevine helped spruce it up.
The entryway now features Spanish tile, a fountain and lush ornamental grasses.
The family didn’t want a huge lawn like the previous homeowners had and many of their neighbors have; water bills for those, Shaw says, can run up to $1,000 a month. The family added decomposed granite and succulents, including golden barrel cactus and blue flame agave.
The low-maintenance, minimal-water approach was a success. “I interviewed landscapers and basically told them I didn’t want to do anything,” says Shaw, adding that her water bill is between $70 and $150 per month.
The low-maintenance, minimal-water approach was a success. “I interviewed landscapers and basically told them I didn’t want to do anything,” says Shaw, adding that her water bill is between $70 and $150 per month.
An orchard is replete with grapefruit, lemon, orange, peach, apple and apricot trees.
BEFORE: The pool area had been a huge mess, Shaw says.
AFTER: The equipment was ruined, so they converted the pool from chlorine to saltwater and added an azure stone to the interior to make it sparkle. They also expanded the entertainment area.
BEFORE: On the old outdoor patio, a large wall would block your view of the valley if you sat down.
AFTER: A simple, inexpensive Home Depot fence now lets the view take over.
Sofa: Room & Board; pillows, coffee table: Restoration Hardware; dining table: Pottery Barn
Sofa: Room & Board; pillows, coffee table: Restoration Hardware; dining table: Pottery Barn
Looking for a statement piece that would complement the Spanish style, Shaw added an outdoor lamp from Restoration Hardware to the living room. Black and chartreuse accents update the predominantly gray and white interior. She chose the color scheme because she wanted something serene and restful for the busy family; plus the greens work with the outside plants.
Sofa, rug: Room & Board; tables: CB2; floors: French white oak