1912 Beach Cottage Restoration & Remodel
During the design and restoration stage, the home underwent a massive alteration. Part of the fun was designing the details that would turn a previously dull cottage into a period cottage that included fun details.
A client purchased a rare beach cottage in Santa Cruz, CA. It still had the original lathe and plaster interior, the only bathroom was badly remodeled in the 50’s, and the kitchen was one large space that didn’t have a lot of cabinets. Areas of the home, like the hallway, chopped up the small cottage.
The challenge, to add a bathroom and make the home’s value increase without adding a second floor. The solution was to turn the project into a restoration, but also flipping the front to the back. The actual front of the home is along a street, but there is no direct access from the street. Everyone uses the alley way to access the homes along this street. Since both guests and owner arrived through the alley, my solution was to turn the back yard into an entry courtyard and add a new front porch area and new front door in the back of the home. We kept the original front door area that faced the street to preserver the street view.
Interior spaces were opened up to allow more natural light into the entire home. The hallway was converted into a 3/4 Bath and the other bathroom was restored to a vintage look. The original cabinets were kept but new doors were built. A really cool aspect of the kitchen was the original wood cooler (you call them ice boxes), which we kept, improved and now is used as a pantry area that keeps food naturally cool.
Vintage light fixtures were refurbished, new door hardware installed (bought through vintage hardware company), and the color scheme was to bring indoors the colors of the ocean outside. Now the home is bright, fun and usable for the owner. The value of the property is now in the fact that it is a vintage 1912 Beach Cottage.