Category: Outdoor Design
Schindler Beach House in La Jolla With an Ocean View
| November 11, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Architecture, Beach Houses, Houses We Love, Indoor-Outdoor, Interior Design, Naturally Modern, Notable Real Estate Sales, Outdoor Design, Vacation Homes |
Modernist architect Rudolph Schindler used movable concrete forms to create El Pueblo Ribera Court. This concrete, glass and redwood unit is one of six with views of legendary surfing beach Windansea.
Location: Windansea Beach, La Jolla 92037.
Year built: 1923
Architect: Rudolph Schindler
House size: Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, attached 2-car garage, ocean-view deck, bonus studio suite. 1,400 square feet.
Features: Redwood-beam ceilings, 1,500-square-foot deck, roof deck soaking tub, San Diego historic site designation, Mills Act property tax reduction. (via In La Jolla, a Schindler with a view – latimes.com.)
We love the way Rudolph Schindler designed this home for indoor-outdoor living. The home is U-shaped around the patio/courtyard with all the doors and windows opening up to truly experience the outdoors as an essential part of living in the home. The polished concrete floors shine with the overhead tech lighting system “floating” in between each of the redwood beams overhead. This house was definitely modern in 1023 and it is still modern by todays standards. The owners did an amazing job of adding their design sensibility with the furnishings (Kenneth Conbonpue) while letting the house itself continue to be the star.
(Photos: Jason Michael Lang Photography)
Private Retreat in Big Sur, CA
| September 29, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Architecture, Beach Houses, Events, Houses We Love, Naturally Modern, Outdoor Design, Travel, Vacation Homes, Wedding |
Big Sur is one of the most amazing places on the planet as far as we’re concerned. Aside from the spectacular, natural coastline, there is something very modern about this little slice of heaven. Its natural beauty is timeless and, yet, ever changing with the dynamic coastline and free wildlife. Eagles and condors in flight, ocean waves crashing, sun rising and setting…serenity defined. And, without cell phone reception, you’re forced to enjoy it. :)
One of the most exquisite private estates in Big Sur is known as Anderson Canyon. A long time celebrity favorite for weddings and retreats (it is rumored Natalie Portman and Anne Hathaway held their weddings here), it can be reserved for private rental, whether for a fabulous vacation or for a private event. Imagine yourself staying a week, or hosting an unforgettable soiree, at this amazing, natural, modern, coastal retreat.
(All images via AndersonCanyon.com)
Ocean Inspired Succulent Gardens for Your Beach House
| September 15, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Beach Houses, Color Palettes, Outdoor Design |
We love succulent gardens! While pretty much any combination of succulents in a gardens will likely look amazing because of their natural beauty and easy relationships to one another, there are some great how-to articles out there to help you go from good to breathtaking… Sunset magazine, which we adore, published an article on one of our favorite things – how to plant a succulent garden inspired by the ocean! Click on the link below to read the whole story.
“Succulents are … as jewel-toned as shells, sculptural as seastars, or fluttery as sea anemones. … The plantings create a spot-on connection between land and sea, as though they simply arose from the waves complete, like Venus on the half-shell, to their perch atop [a] bluff. [Succulents] thrive on little water and stay low enough to frame [a] coastal view without blocking it.” ( via Sea-Creature Succulents – Sunset.com.)
Outdoor Furniture as Functional Art
| September 5, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Decor, Furniture, Interior Design, Naturally Modern, Outdoor Design |
GardenDesign.com published a great review of outdoor furniture from the Milan Furniture Fair. We particularly like the press given to the idea of outdoor furniture as both functional and artistic. Why should the modern indoor-outdoor lifestyle be anything but beautiful and practical? We also like the trend in outdoor furniture becoming more richly upholstered – when you spend so much time “living” outside, why shouldn’t your outdoor furniture be on par with your indoor furniture? Our favorite here is the Ligne Roset Serpentine chair (pictured above). Can we say gorgeous enough?
One of life’s most fundamental acts, sitting, took on new meaning at the fair, especially with trends in outdoor furniture design. We saw many richly upholstered pieces for outdoor use—some with practical applications, others with elements of fantasy and whimsy. B&B Italia paired its retro line of Husk Outdoor recycled (and recyclable) plastic chairs with plush but decidedly eccentric waterproof cushions, a look that would work well poolside. Ligne Roset debuted its own equally arresting quilted and tufted Serpentine chairs by Eleonore Nalet.
Cabanas and tents seem to be ceding their traditional roles and evolving instead into true outdoor rooms, the most alluring example being Patricia Urquiola’s Cottage for Kettal—an inviting, pitched-roof structure with echoes of vernacular Polynesian architecture. (via All Dressed Up: Outdoor Furniture | Garden Design.)
Want your outdoor area to feel more like a true outdoor room? Here are a few tips from us at Naturally Modern:
- Furnish your outdoor space with high-quality, beautiful pieces consistent with those that furnish your interior spaces.
- Use textures including richly upholstered outdoor pieces, pillows, blankets, umbrellas, etc.
- Landscape, landscape, landscape – whether minimalistic in design or not, make the landscaping in your outdoor area like the artwork displayed in your home.
- Do not underestimate the power of outdoor lighting – whether small ambient lighting dotting a pathway, or embedded in a fence… to full-on outdoor lamps and overhead lighting. We especially like lighting on dimmers to create just a “glow” when you don’t need the full light spectrum. Candles can also not be underestimated – tea lights can be your friend.
Good luck with your design. We’d love to hear your tips for luxury, modern outdoor living!
PS: If you like the look and design of the Ligne Roset Serpentine shown at the top of this post, you might also like the new richly textured and upholstered pieces from Kenneth Cobonpue called “Rapunzel” – see below:
Design Ideas for a Beach Picnic
| May 18, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Decor, Food and Drink, Outdoor Design, Travel |
Happy Friday! We have beach picnics on our minds for the weekend here at Naturally Modern. If the idea of a picnic on the beach uplifts your spirits… here’s some picnic design ideas to help inspire a gorgeous, modern beach picnic, day or night!
Photo credits above: 1 – Kiwicollection.com; 2 – 100 Layer Cake wedding blog; 3 -Mysparrowblog; 4 – Viceroy Anguilla; 5 -Sale Resorts in Samui.)
Outdoor Living Rooms
| May 11, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under All Posts, Architecture, Outdoor Design |
In honor of getting ready for the weekend, we wanted to share with you some of our favorite outdoor rooms. We live for outdoor living here at Naturally Modern. If you’re looking for some design ideas for your outdoor room, hopefully these will give you a little inspiration. Today we chose rooms that combine natural and modern elements and are integrated into the overall design of the home so that the interiors perfectly transition to the exteriors. Its about seamlessness and intention. Depending on the space, you might choose your favorite modern outdoor furniture or custom built-ins. Modern pergolas and overhead beams add architectural interest. And if you really want to kick it up a notch, adding an outdoor fireplace can really complement the space and extend your enjoyment of the outdoor room throughout the seasons. Finally – don’t forget the role of landscape design. It can really drive the indoor-outdoor seamlessness. Enjoy!
(Photo credit: Fernanda Marques Architects.)
(Photo via California Home + Design magazine / Photo credit: Mariko Reed / Design Credit: Erin Martin.)
Absolutely gorgeous outdoor living area with built-in seating and a fireplace by Neil Architecture. The wood give the space such a natural, protected feeling. (Photo via Bejoku.com.)
Love this. Double take – tricks the eye into what is outdoor, what is indoor. (Photo credit: Fearon Hay Architects.)
Stunning outdoor living space by Robert Mills Architect. (Photo via Glamour Drops blog.)
We love how the designer for this contemporary seaside villa in Cape Town defined the various outdoor areas with their own covered pergola or cabana-like structures, all modern with the slatted wood. This gorgeous outdoor area is ready for dining, lounging, swimming and all-around relaxing good times. (Photo via SAOTA.)
The “Serra Barn” house in Malibu. (Photo via MLS.)
Step off the deck of this serene outdoor living room in a private residence of Santa Barbara and you’re in the sand. This outdoor lounge area is an extension of the beautiful coastline – or is it the other way around? That seamlessness is what we love – and it takes the right landscape design in order to achieve the idea. (Photo: Neumann Mendro Adrulaitis Architects/ Katie O’Reilly Rogers Landscape Architecture/ Richard Hallberg and Barbara Wiseley Interior Design / Photos: Ashleyrohe blog via Veranda Magazine.)
Beach Houses We Love
| May 1, 2012 | Posted by naturally modern under Architecture, Houses We Love, Interior Design, Outdoor Design |
We’re always so inspired by great beach house design and architecture. Here are a few of our favorites….
Gorgeous, timeless, cliffside modern house. Pierra Koenig’s LaFetra Beach House in Malibu. (Photo: Takesunset.com.)
Southampton beach house with private wood footbridge to the sand by Alexander Gorlin Architects. (Photo: Alexander Gorlin Architects.)
Modern architectural beach house in Tiburon, California, by Andrea Ponsi Architecture. (Andrea Ponsi Architecture via Architecturenewsplus.)
Vivi Nevo’s stunning Malibu beach house on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. (Photo via Vanityfair.com.)
Beautiful white beach house with palm trees. We love the layered architectural design incorporating the lush landscaping, which contrasts so nicely with the white of the house. Also loving the very cool offset stairway path up to the house – it complements and enhances the linear and angular nature of the design. The rock accents with the palm trees keep a relaxed vibe to the whole ensemble. (Photo via Allhousedesign.com.)
(Photo via Homelife.com / Photography credit: Brian Cully.)
R.M. Schindler’s Lovell Beach House in Newport Beach, private residence. (Photo via Architecture Week Design Community.)
