bench

Porcelain fishbone tiles continue throughout the home, including in the bedrooms. The updated master bedroom features new built-in wall storage and a bed frame designed by architect Dana Oberzon.

This custom-built timber storage unit serves as a counterpoint to the glass-walled study and injects a sense of honey-hued warmth to a mostly monochromatic palette.

Fitted with a new black-framed window unit, the new, light-filled living room features a sofa and coffee table from Beitili.

The custom bench in the media room was designed and built by Henrybuilt. Mill Valley, California Dwell Magazine : September / October 2017

In 2009 on a quiet Los Angeles corner, Mel Elias found a severely water-damaged, crumbling 5,000-square-foot house hidden behind a tangle of overgrown vegetation. Its former owner, the late Hollywood acting coach Milton Katselas, had filled his property with industrial skylights and enormous, wood-burning fireplaces. The glass-and-concrete construction was framed by high ceilings, rusted steel beams, and varied elevations across the single-story plan. Thanks to an 11-year long, multiphase renovation by designer Carter Bradley, the home—with all of its quirks and character—shines again.

Restricting storage to a monolithic bank of bookshelves and cabinets cuts down on furniture clutter. “If you put a lot of small things into a small space, it can feel twice as small,” Ryan says. “If you have an object with heft and mass, it makes everything feel larger. It seems contradictory, but it works.” He outfitted an Ikea Pax and Komplement closet system with custom doors and placed automotive felt over them to dampen sound from a nearby track of the Long Island Rail Road.

“We use the media room a ton. That’s our movie and hangout space,” says owner Jeff. Expansive sliding doors from Fleetwood connect the space to a previously inaccessible deck, turning the once dingy front room into a luminous, cozy family zone. “The cityscape is so beautiful from this angle,” says architect Kelli Franz. “The roofline with Sutro behind it is just as amazing, I think, as the rear view.”

In the playroom, built-in casework offers storage for toys. The yellow table was custom-built by the Kristin's father. The clear pendant lights are by Muuto. The "toy zone" is adjacent to the kitchen so that Lowell and Kristin can prepare meals and keep an eye on their yound children, aged three and five. "The residents wanted as little freestanding furniture as possible," Guess says. 'We did a lot of benches, which are made out of plywood so they're fairly inexpensive."

In the newly built media room, lower ceilings and natural wood flooring make for a straightforward character shift. “We always liked John’s minimalism,” adds Dave, and even such slight differentiation ably signals the transition to the home’s more private spaces.

Photo courtesy of Tobias Laarmann

Walnut storage, both open and closed, frames a black-painted wall with a fireplace at its center. The wall treatment can also hide a future television. "A dark wall is a great way to keep a large screen from feeling like a big black hole on the wall," notes the firm.

The bespoke timber dining bench allows generous seating and integrated storage. The upholstered back cushions are made from a yellow Rogers & Goffigon fabric with an irregular twisted weave that complements the natural veining in the oak timber. The impressive, tapered dining table is crafted from one slab of walnut by maker Rowan Shaw-Jones and adds an element of drama to the primarily light space.

The homeowners can now perch on a wraparound bench and look out to the backyard. The pendant lights in the corner are from Pop and Scott.

A close up of the walnut wood material from the custom millwork banquette

A reading bench looks out to the garden.