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The home includes three full bathrooms—and a bonus outdoor shower with views of the surrounding meadow. The sheen and texture of the yakisugi comes alive in the sunshine. “I love how it catches the light,” says Ed.

“I love how we dealt with the drainage on this very unique roof,” says Marshall. “There are these beautiful rain chains coming down from the valleys.They’re functional and they look really, really cool.”

Bordering a 17-acre agricultural preserve, the home’s surroundings are historically agrarian—something the Workshop/APD referenced in the gabled form. “The gables speak to that language, as does the metal roof,” says Marshall.

In addition to aesthetic appeal, yakisugi is durable, sustainable, and requires minimal upkeep—it can last as long as 80 to 150 years without maintenance. “I was struck by the fact that besides being beautiful, it’s essentially indestructible—impervious to bugs and mold,” shares Ed.

Yakisugi from Nakamoto Forestry was selected for the home’s exterior. Each of the Pika-Pika® boards used was graded by hand 11 times to ensure the highest quality of authentic Japanese yakisugi.

Upon entry, the view expands to highlight the pool, wildflower meadow, and surrounding vegetation.

“The breezeway is covered, but it opens on one side to the driveway, and it’s completely open at the other end to the pool and the rest of the property,” says Workshop/APD associate principal Tyler Marshall. “So you walk through and experience this incredible view.”

Exterior Front

Inspired by a vintage Swedish design book, Ann gave the fireplace an asymmetrical shape and plaster finish, and the interior was rebuilt. The wood coffee table is by Muhly, and the metal one a vintage piece that Ann found later on, purchasing because she got a kick out of the similarities between them. "It made me laugh,

Hilary and her husband, Jimmy, opted for a functional, restrained material palette. In the dining room, Rejuvenation pendants hang above a table by Hedge House and chairs from Hay.

The builders removed the green carpet and placed Kaswell end-grain wood flooring in the living room. Furniture pieces from Room & Board and Loll Designs lend a fresh, comfortable sensibility.

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.

In the living area, a dry packet stone fireplace frames a fire grate that was forged by an expert blacksmith.

Though the original home didn’t have a foundation, Jes added one and raised the house about six feet to safeguard against potential flooding from a nearby river. The new house also includes a much larger second-level primary bedroom and en suite bathroom, plus a small balcony.

The whole project comprised only three months of design, two months of production (some 90 percent of which was completed at a Buenos Aires factory), one day of assembly, and five days of adjustments. The structure consists of just four 9-foot-8-inch-by-19-foot-7-inch modules supported by a foundation plate. “If we want to move it, we can,” says Teresa. “We could get a crane and disassemble it and then reassemble it on the coast.”

Movable slatted-wood panels allow Teresa and Nicolás to control the flow of light as well as the level of privacy from the nearby road. The space between the screen and home acts as a small deck.

The wet room connects to two half-baths on either side that are equipped with dual-flush toilets and WaterSense fixtures. Gray porcelain tiles from Statements Tiles line the room.