Everyday Staycation
A Cape Cod vacation turns this California home into a traditional coastal space with relaxed, modern sensibilities.
From the buffalo-checked ottomans in the entry to the navy shibori curtains throughout the main living spaces, patterns introduce both color texture and into the space.
How can you combine the relaxation of a vacation with the bustle of daily life?
This was exactly the challenge presented to Blackband Design when the homeowners of a San Juan Capistrano, California, home were ready to renovate.
“They were really inspired by a vacation home they’d visited and really wanted to give this new home that vacation-home vibe,” explains project designer Ashley Porter. The original home had a very Tuscan look, and the décor hardly had the fresh feel of a vacation. “The key for our clients in hiring us was our being able to take this very heavy, kind of drab interior Tuscan space and create more of a fun, light, bright, Cape Cod feel,” explains Wendy Blackband, owner/designer of Blackband Design.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
A mix of pieces, trinkets and materials fills out each space, but the refined seaside look of this home all started very simply. “Some people might start with an artwork; some with an accent piece of furniture. We really feel like a lot of our design is driven by fabrics,”Wendy says. From the buffalo-checked ottomans in the entry to the navy shibori pattern on curtains throughout the main living spaces, patterns introduce both color and texture into the space.
The coastal feel of this home is a subtle one, and while many of the furnishings and spaces present as very traditional,
Ashley and Wendy used an elegant balance of mixed materials to craft an aesthetic that is refined yet thematic. Color, both imbued and natural, plays a huge role in setting the stage. “We used a lot of navies, grays and light, neutral whites and linens, but we also mixed in some darker leather tones with different colors of wood and burlap, then splashed
in some fresh teals and other kinds of accents and accessories,” Ashley explains. “It creates a nice, perfect blend that you can see throughout, and it still feels pretty simple but well put together.”
EBB & FLOW
In each room of this West Coast Cape Cod home, balance can be felt in every choice. Traditional versus modern lines, natural versus manmade materials, sophistication versus comfort, beauty versus practicality—each idea is given equal time and space to breathe, creating a home that is well designed and incredibly livable.
The living room, a space both formal yet inviting, is the epitome of this balance. “We really wanted to create a space where you could sit and chat and entertain but that also had a polished feel,” Ashley explains. “A well-thought-out balance achieved this sophisticated but casual room, which wasn’t crammed with too much and complemented the beautiful views of the backyard.” Chocolate leathers and burlap-backed chairs lend their natural textures to the crisp lines of the furnishings and the brightness of the space, while unique patterns break up the broad strokes.
The adjoining dining room too is a satisfying balancing act of
the traditional and the relaxed, every piece contributing to the larger goal of a harmonious aesthetic. “We’ve got that striped rug that feels a little bit more casual, and it’s kind of a coastal staple with that large gray-cream stripe,” Ashley says. They used a darker wood table, which feels more traditional, and they mixed it with more modern features. They combined different elements to have the room still feel casual but very polished and a bit formal.
Bright walls and a dark, imposing dining table make for a dramatic contrast— yet the look is softened by a gentle mid-tone found in the host chairs, a nice deviation from the cream linen upholstery of the side dining chairs. Choices like this turn what could have been a simple by-the-book coastal house into a well-appointed home. “The dark wood table is kind of unexpected in that space,” Wendy muses. “You think about how people are designing everything with this lighter kind of wood. It would have been a whole different space if we had gone in there with just a reclaimed-wood table. I don’t think it would have had as much pop and as much contrast. It makes it more interesting.”
EVERYDAY ELEGANCE
The heart of a home requires not just beautiful features but elements of practicality. To create a space that delights is fairly simple. To have that space delight even after daily life’s wear and tear is an entirely different matter. In the San Juan Capistrano home, those delightful spaces are the family room and kitchen, two rooms conjoined not just in location but in function.
“The fabric for the sectional is a slipcover, but it’s a nubby blended linen, so that piece alone sets the tone,” Ashley says. “It’s inviting and family friendly ... something you can use and sit on.” Neutral colors thrive in this space, adding both depth and texture, but also forgiveness. “Neutrals allow you to do that … you can create these real beautiful spaces that are also very practical,” Wendy explains. “[The homeowner’s] got kids coming in and out. As a mom, you still want your house to look great, but it has to be practical for kids and their friends. So the color of the sofa is very forgiving, but it is still very light and bright.”
Glistening in white, the adjoining kitchen is designed for everyday family life as well. A massive piece of gorgeous marble stands as the centerpiece, a result of planning for as much space as possible. “We went back and forth a bit on the island size, really allowing for extra seating, and it ended up being just the right size,” Ashley says. “The island is a beautiful natural white marble that we hand collected after combing through several different slabs to find one that had the right character and veining.”
To keep the spotlight on the marble island, Ashley and Wendy opted for a different feel— the semigloss concrete vibe of Caesarstone quartz—for the perimeter countertops. They mixed in a Jeffrey Court marble mosaic backsplash that “added a nice touch, really finishing things off in an elegant way, but also very livable and user friendly,” Ashley says.
And that’s precisely the challenge of turning a vacation experience into everyday living. Where a vacation on Cape Cod is designed for luxuriating the days away, basking in tantalizing designs and postponing the mundane routines of daily life, the home must be a space that serves you and your family first and foremost. “It all came together very perfectly,” Ashley says. “I feel that it turned out the way it was meant to.”