STYLE: Mid-Century Daylight Ranch
SIZE: 1400sf (Daylight basement)
LOCATION: Portland, OR
DATE COMPLETE: 2021
MY ROLE: Design. Space planning, material selections, cabinet layout & design, minor demo (the hubs did most of that), dirt mover, sheetrock sander, amateur tile installer, brick cleaner, painter, wood finisher, stager…homeowner & AirBnB host.
SPECIAL FEATURES & DESIGNER TOUCHES: Fully functional studio kitchenette, gas fireplace, original glue-lam beam (complemented throughout), custom terra-cotta floor and custom Pratt & Larson backsplash tile. Bold green cabinets. Floating shelf with recessed LED tape lighting with hidden wiring. Designer furniture & linens throughout.
NEEDS OF THE HOME: The home was vacant for most of a decade, so although it was in really great condition for a 65 year old house - there were (and still are) lots of areas that need a little TLC. The home is a Daylight Ranch, and it fits that profile. So while I want to have a little fun with the style, I don’t want it to read too mid-century, too contemporary, too traditionally Ranch-y. I want to put all the best of those together. There are a number of houses of the same era around this neighborhood that all went super modern (or modern farmhouse), and I don’t want to emulate or compete with that, but rather stand out from it.
There are still areas that aren’t finished in this basement remodel - those will get done soon enough though.
WHY IT WORKS: The terra-cotta floors connect the inside with the outside by coordinating with the pool tiles, and provide a great amount of slip resistance for wet feet. The natural material will also patina beautifully over time, so I’m excited about that.
The kitchenette was completely non-functional before, and we knew we needed a fully functional kitchen for longer term (month or so) rentals, but also for hosting summertime pool parties. We needed a fridge small enough to not take up too much space, but big enough for plenty of food and drinks (bonus - if you open up the Dutch-door, you can grab a drink without bringing wet feet inside - it’s perfect for summertime). Same with the induction cooktop and counter oven - renters typically don’t need much for cooking, but we needed something that didn’t eat up a bunch of counter space, but still did the job for us and for them.
Overall - I’m so proud of how this turned out. It doesn’t just work - it works really, really well. And if I end up working with you, I’d be happy to show it to you.