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The two-room coastal cabin was in massive disrepair when Nick kicked off the renovation. Rebuilding the windows, doors, framing, and floors, Nick brought his close eye for detail and sought to recreate interior elements in the spirit of the original midcentury design, but with a contemporary edge.

“The cabinetry in the kitchen and the primary bedroom is really standout work,” says Nathaniel. “We found a really great cabinet maker who did everything in character-grade oak.

The kitchen reveals the detailed precision with which the Thoms assembled their home: Exact cuts, joins, and cantilevers bring the whole house together.

The kitchen cabinets are decorated with hardware new and old (the bottom drawers feature cast iron pulls from a friend, Mike Ruiz Serra).

The "appliance garage

The kitchen cabinets are made of incienso wood, and the countertops and backsplash are made of Carrara marble.

The dining room is located steps from the kitchen and opens to a balcony overlooking the Palm tree–dotted surrounding landscape.

Pine plywood sourced from Specialised Panel Products has been fitted between the dining rafters and under the kitchen rafters, as well as in door frames throughout the ground floor.

In the living room and kitchen, soft-but-tough Expanko cork flooring provides comfort and stands up to dings and scuffs. While the kitchen was designed primarily with Surendra and a caregiver’s needs in mind, it also accommodates the five-foot-radius of a wheelchair.

Kitchen countertops are Dekton; plumbing fixtures are from Signature Hardware, and counter stools are Brooklyn Counter Stools by Vondom.

In the new kitchen, Hylton-Daniel opened up the attic above and added skylights. Cabinets are by Kith, and pendant lights and wall sconce over the sink are from Seed Design.

Nick adjusting the blinds, sourced on Amazon, in his kitchen. The light is a DIY he made by flipping a floor light horizontally and stringing it up from the ceiling.

The kitchen was in a "miserable state" when the couple moved in, Nick says. Half of the kitchen is now blanketed in a serene shade of blue. The crumbling cabinets were also replaced with secondhand ones enhanced with an Ikea worktop, while the cracked floor tiles were covered with removable black vinyl flooring.

Engelsman gave the kitchen an L-shaped layout with a large island workspace at the center, and pushed the tall storage into the garage, to create a wide circulation space to access the dining room and backyard.

Hao designed the open kitchen, which features belian shelving, a Verde Alpi marble countertop, and a copper sink. “I do everything in the kitchen, from work to play,” says Emylia, who calls the space an “idyllic” environment for both physical and psychological nourishment.