When designers Christina Valencia and Kele Dobrinski of Colossus Mfg. first toured Dea and Sean Gallinger’s 1950s ranch home in Sacramento, California, they were awestruck by the number of unfinished DIY projects throughout the interior rooms and the outdoor spaces. “They’d started each one with gusto, but then decision paralysis—and life with two young children—set in,” Valencia says.

“Some of the walls were opened up, exposing wiring, and parts of the ceiling were unfinished and covered in plastic,” Dobrinski adds. “There was also different flooring in different places—it looked like a compilation of various construction projects that’d been started over time.”

Before: Kitchen

Frustrated with the kitchen’s dysfunctional layout and lack of storage, and tired of staring at the different ceiling heights and uneven floor levels, the couple and their young sons—Leo, age one, and Callen, age four—called on Valencia and Dobrinski to reimagine the kitchen, dining, and living room as one cohesive and balanced space. “The goal was to achieve connection, and a much more open concept,” Valencia says.

The designers’ first order of business was to relocate the island and pull back the side walls in the kitchen to create better flow and visibility between the public areas. Next, they receded the ceilings in the kitchen and the dining area, creating one level ceiling for the rooms, and placed two large support beams.

Before: Living Room

With openness and connection in place, Valencia and Dobrinski doubled the size of the kitchen window, flooding the public spaces with natural light. They placed the main kitchen sink below the expanded window and created a second sink-and-counter area for the wet bar. “The clients really wanted two sinks—one beneath the window, overlooking the backyard, and another for the bar,” Dobrinski says. “They love entertaining, so a sink in the wet bar allows cocktail hour to continue late into the evening, while dishes are being washed in the other sink.”

When it came to finishes, Dea sought a sleek, minimalist style, while Sean was interested in an industrial vibe that incorporates metal and raw wood. “We knew that a clean palette of whites and white oak would work for Dea, so we infused that with moments of dark wood, black, and metal,” Valencia says.

After: Kitchen, Dining Room, and Living Room

In the living area, the designers laid wide-plank vinyl flooring with a light blonde tone that matched the existing oak floors in the kitchen and the dining area. “It was left over from a previous project,” Dobrinski says. “This is an area where we tried to save money, versus ripping everything out and starting over.”

They delineated the living room from the entry and the powder room by employing a built-in screen of vertical spaced white oak boards atop a low-lying partial wall beside the front door. A custom white oak credenza rests against the partial wall, providing more minimalist texture for the space. “We wanted to ensure a consistent, streamlined sensibility—and to create privacy without blocking the light,” Valencia says.

In the kitchen, Valencia and Dobrinski rebuilt most of the cabinetry using more white oak. “The majority of the kitchen cabinetry has flat-front slab doors,” Valencia says. “One of the top goals for the kitchen was no clutter, so we wanted clean lines and a mostly monochromatic palette that would be visually striking, but not busy.”

The designers wrapped the range hood in rich walnut, and placed open walnut shelves beside it to add depth and warmth in an otherwise stark kitchen. “The easy decision would’ve been to carry the white oak cabinets all the way through, but we wanted to use a mix of materials to add contrast and asymmetry,” Dobrinski says.

They balanced the wood finishes by adding copper and a touch of black to the kitchen island and the wet bar area. “We used shou sugi ban for the backside of the island because it gives the texture, color, and durability we were looking for,” Valenica says. “We charred fourteen feet of red oak and affixed the planks vertically across the span of the kicksplash.”

Valenica and Dobrinski also installed shou sugi ban–treated red oak for the lower cabinetry in the wet bar, where they applied copper-colored glass tile to the backsplash. “The copper and black elements tie the zones together,” Dobrinski says.

To enhance the home’s indoor/outdoor connection, the designers created a landing area with a firepit between the living room’s sliding glass door and the backyard. Built-in steps, adorned with black-and-white geometric tile, span the width of the slider and provide extra seating for the lounge space, where they arranged a 48-inch concrete fire bowl, low-profile woven chairs, tree stump seating, and planter beds with drought-resistant species.

“Much of the yard was covered in old, cracked concrete,” Valencia says. “To visually break up the outside into room-like areas, and to inexpensively accommodate the new steps, we broke out most of the material close to the house and replaced it with decomposed granite.”

Before: Outdoor Dining Space

The designers recreated the carport adjacent to the firepit as an outdoor dining space. Dobrinski, a former graphic designer, painted a brick wall that sections the area with black, white, and red geometric shapes that tie in to the firepit area and the home’s remodeled rooms.

They revived a living wall by cleaning, restoring, and refinishing its original wood and working with Green Acres, a local nursery, to place the perfect plants. “We love giant birds of paradise because they’re stunning and don’t need much water,” Valenica says. A large teak table, a teak bench, and wood director’s chairs with white canvas seats and backs complement the wood of the living wall and the carport’s redwood ceiling.

After: Outdoor Dining Space and Fire Pit

If forced to choose her favorite aspect of the remodel, Valencia would have to settle on the fourteen-foot kitchen island. “It’s a showstopper,” she says. “When we first met the clients, they didn’t think an island this large could be achieved. But Kele meticulously worked and reworked ideas via CAD drawings and Sketchup renderings, and was able to make this massive island happen. It improves circulation and functions as the main place to congregate and entertain. And most importantly, it’s a work of art that draws your eye the minute you enter the home.”

More projects by Colossus Mfg.:

A California Couple Turn a Dated Camper Into a Dreamy Family Getaway

Before & After: A Couple Give Their Spanish Revival Home a Punchy Upgrade

Project Credits:

Design: Colossus Mfg. / @colossusmfg

Construction: Butch Hetzel, B+R Construction

Cabinetry: Sabin Sturtz, Eurowind LLC

Appears In

Before & After: Raw and Refined Materials Bring Harmony to a Jumbled California Home