The original La Serena Villas consisted of eleven 1930s cottages built in the Spanish eclectic style popular at the time. It was listed as a Class 1 Historical Property by the City of Palm Springs.

We started the project with the intention to create intimacy and privacy with courtyards and meandering paths filled with romance and intrigue, as if you were wondering through an old Spanish town. We brought back the details influenced by George Washington Smith, and imbued the existing structures with modern amenities. In addition, we added three new structures that houses a new reception/retail area, a restaurant building with roof deck overlooking the Palm Springs Mountains, and a quiet pool with private massage pavilion.

The hotel was recognized by the City of Palm Springs for the creative reconstruction of La Serena Villas.

Please click here to view a tour of the property.

Located where the famed Sunset Boulevard meets the Pacific Ocean, this unique board formed concrete building has served as an iconic entrance to Pacific Palisades for decades. Abandoned since the early 1990s due to financial issues, the building fell into condition of disrepair.

When the clients came to us, we saw the building shell as an opportunity. The concept is to give individual personality to each unit and create the vibe of separate dwellings rather than your typical apartment/condo living. Each unit now has a private outdoor space that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. Each unit retained its loft like nature of soaring ceiling and open plan. The coolness of the aged concrete is balanced by warmth of textured wood, Moroccan tiles, and native landscaping.

It is the ultimate synthesis of industrial chic meets California zen.

We transformed this 1920s former Sunset Boulevard Ford car dealership/grocery store/sofa factory into the West Coast Headquarters for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Preserving the original exterior and shell, the interior was transformed to house two floor of animal friendly offices. All materials used are organic and not tested on animals. The exterior Art Deco details were also preserved and restored to its former glory.

Check out the interior of the space from the dog’s point of view with Ella.

Located in the quiet setting of Los Olivos wine country outside of Santa Barbara, this large compound consists of the main house and six individual cottages. The property was used as a horse ranch, stagecoach stop and even camp for the small gauge railroad executives and workers traveling from San Francisco to Santa Barbara. The Client wanted to create a beautiful setting to host large charity events and family gatherings.

We worked closely with the Client on creating a vision and restoring each cottages to its own unique style. Stories were developed for each cottage to create a different look. There were the wine lover’s cottage, the ladies’ cottage, the newlywed’s cottage, and etc. The process was organic. We respected the existing landscape and simply followed its form to create natural gathering spaces.

For more of the ranch check out https://aubergelosolivos.com/auberge

Starting in 1966, The Levitt Foundation was founded with a mission to create community and human connections through free and live music in existing public spaces. In this post pandemic world, this philosophy is ever more crucial. The Foundation wants to reconnect physically within their office through hybrid work and rebuild a sense of community amongst staff. Located in the historic mid-century Rolf K. McPherson Building, the office has the advantage of being on the 6th floor in the tallest structure in Echo Park at the corner of Sunset and Glendale Boulevard with panoramic vista from Echo Park Lake to Downtown LA and the Hollywood Hills. The storied building was designed in 1967 by the Long Beach architects Francis Husel and Frank Homoka for California Federal Savings & Loan and later purchased by the Four-Square Church. This mid-century modern architecture is clad with prefabricated concrete panels punctuated with oval shaped windows that frame the surrounding view.

SUBU was originally engaged in 2014 with the original footprint of 3,000 s.f. of office Tenant Improvement project on site. However, the Foundation has grown significantly and needs more space for the staff. The brief in 2022 was not just to add more offices for the staff but to also create a stylish space for wellness and community building within the 4500 s.f. expansion. The CEO wanted the staff to feel like they had arrived at a luxury hotel rather than at an office. Inspired by the vista and the architecture itself, we wanted to maximize the view and celebrate the curvilinear architectural language into the interior space itself. This started with a sense of arrival into a multipurpose area with plenty of daylight and green hillside view through the oval windows that greet the staff every morning. This space is flanked by an oak clad niched-in bench upholstered in cream velvet fabric and a circular seating space that is anchored under a the Artemide cloudlike Logico fixture punctuated by the soft blue velvet curve sofa. Though the office is on the 6th floor, one never loses connection to the outdoors. Rather than creating another corner executive office, this precious real estate is dedicated to a large communal kitchen. You are greeted with a view down Sunset Boulevard warmed by the morning and afternoon light upon entering the kitchen. The custom sculptural stone kitchen island has plenty of space around it, so that it can function to be another gathering space for brainstorming or just sharing a meal. Every detail is considered, the Ann Sacks Dimensions backsplash details subtly mimic the curves of the architecture. The natural and tactile finishes are further accentuated by the watercolor blue and cream textured carpet by Tarkett throughout reflecting the Los Angeles sky and the outdoor surroundings. This variation in the LA sky is also reflected by the different shades of blue cascading down the hall at each office to create an ombré effect. All of perimeter offices have glass wall partitions so that it allows daylight and view out into the interior cubical space. Finally, one is allowed a space of refuge to be by oneself. A wellness room is created for nursing mothers, or if one just needs a moment to meditate or walk on a treadmill.

Today as the staff has returned to work, neighbors have often stopped by to look at the space. It not only has hosted office gatherings, but also cocktail get-togethers with neighboring tenants.

“We wanted to celebrate coming “back to work” and create a space that staff wants to come back to…”