General Concepts

Andrew worked with

Circa-1940s documents that were filed with the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety credit William H. Thomas, who was a very close friend of graphic designer Alvin Lustig, as the house’s “certified architect.” After extensive research conducted by the previous homeowner, Andy Hackman, the current owner, Andrew Romano, believes the structure was in fact Lustig’s design.

The sloped roof of Carlton’s art studio grows a colorful mix of sedum species.

A tub zone lined in redwood connects to the master bedroom, which is furnished with a vintage Sergio Rodrigues lounge chair and Voyage Immobile seats from Roche Bobois.

The home's extra tall, 12-foot ceilings allow for huge windows facing a canal off the San Francisco Bay.

The bathroom is utilitarian with simple white subway tiles and bluestone flooring. The blackout

Arriving at the cabin is now a joyous ritual. “Every time we push the gates back and see the view it’s this sense of ‘we’ve arrived’,” Matt says.

The cabin's corrugated iron cladding (Colorbond steel in "Windspray") riffs on the quintessential Aussie beach shack's fibre cement sheeting. When not in use, it can be completely closed off with a sliding gate.

Madison points out that the pod concept would make it easy to add an extension if necessary. “We see it as a house that can grow with us—and that we can pay for as we go along.”

The footprint of the house remained the same and O'Herlihy kept the layout open and expansive.

In the primary bedroom, privacy glass encloses the stairwell, allowing the owners to switch to translucent glass during the daytime to welcome daylight into the space.

The slat wall opens to reveal a kitchen pantry.

The team replaced the rot-damaged shed with a new shed in the existing footprint.

The entry is full of function, including a washer/dryer that hides behind a mod arrangement of floor-to-ceiling cabinetry made from painted MDF with walnut detailing.