DIY

The couple use their prefabricated structure as a fully indecent guest suite thanks to its private bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. It’s also a showroom of sorts for their new company Steel Hut, which sells plan sets for residential Quonset huts in partnership with Skylab Architecture.

Marie Saldivar’s experimental metal-clad dwelling is the perfect place to host family—and proof of concept for her new prefab company.

In the kitchen, Carrara marble countertops are a luxe addition to the material palette.

The couple spent $30, 933 on windows and doors, including this sliding glass door outlined in wood.

Kim in her guest bedroom, on a daybed she fashioned out of a queen-sized bed and a plywood headboard she painted. The walls are cloaked in Farrow & Ball Inchyra Blue.

The couple added curved cabinetry and a window seat to form a breakfast nook, painted in Farrow & Ball Red Earth. The table is discontinued from Anthropologie, where Kara previously worked as a display coordinator, and the overhead light is the Lambert & Fils Waldorf Double.

A wall of storage in the living area has become a revolving display of souvenirs and found objects, either from their travels or shopping trips around the city. A wide window was installed to make the room feel like a treehouse. "I really wanted the home to feel bright and serene,

"The first thing you like is often the thing you should choose," says Nadine. "I ordered hundreds of tile samples for the bathroom, and I went with the first one I liked. The same with paint samples. I’ve tested every neutral shade out there, and it’s always the first one or two that I go with. Don’t overcomplicate things, and trust your instincts."

Londoners Nadine and Juls, who started revamping their first house just before the pandemic, share their tips on planning, budgeting, and DIY.

When the couple started the renovation, it was near impossible to get supplies from hardware stores shut down by the pandemic, so they began by gutting the house—namely, the bathroom. During the process, they discovered rotting joists under the floor, which all needed to be replaced—an issue that had been flagged by a surveyor before they purchased the home. "It’s definitely worth investing in a structural survey to give you an overview of what might be wrong with the property to help you budget and plan the renovation," says Nadine.

An Englander wood-burning stove warms the living room, and the two round windows were inspired by architect Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti, which the couple visited on a cross-country van trip.