Name: Kana and Sam
Location: Venice, CA.
Size: 900 sq. feet
Years lived in: 2 1/2 years, Rent
Kana and Sam live downstairs from my boyfriend and I have always wanted to see what their apartment looks like. Kana, an owner of AT favorite Bahay Home has impeccable taste and is always way together. And with 900 square feet for two adults and a baby, I knew I'd learn a thing or two about living large in a small space. Let's just say I was not disappointed. Kana has been able to make something small feel very big...
Given the restraints of space and baby I expected at least a little chaos. Maybe it's because they've taken the route of less is more, but nothing about their home felt cluttered, stuffed or small. Even the smallest space, like the 1/2 bath underneath the stairs, has an airiness and lightness to it. And still their space is far from sterile: there are toys, books, a few tchochkes and some artwork from friends that adorn the walls. They've truly taken to heart the idea of only filling your home with the things you love and use.
And since Kana has access to all the furniture she wants, I also expected to see more furniture, but found careful restraint. The living room contains a comfortable modern sectional and a credenza with a media center. The built in book case houses baby books and coffee table books. In a room that could have been crammed full of furniture and decor, they took the simple route and the result is a space that feels comfortable to move around in, and somehow, large. The same goes for their front porch which runs the length of the living room/dining room and couldn't be more than 4 feet wide. Because of her potted plants and Sam's lemon tree, the porch is inviting and becomes a small extension of their main living space.
All around their house I found empty surfaces, carefully chosen art and objects and a sense of having room. And I felt jealous, in a good way. Great job Kana, thanks for giving us the tour!
AT Survey:
My/Our style: Modern, organic
Inspiration: Mostly nature
Favorite Room: Genevieve's room. I love the light in there...the coral wallpaper, and all her stuffed animals looking down on her as she sleeps.
Most Talked About Element of the House:It's very small, but designed well. Each bedroom has an attached bathroom. And there is also a powder room (1/2 bath) for our guests.
Biggest Embarrassment: Hard to say as it's always changing.... At the moment, I can't stand the green rug in the living room, but it has been great for the baby as she needed a lot of tummy time as she was learning to crawl, and now that she is starting to walk it's great padding for her little tush when she loses her balance. When we bought it, I was having a sort of " I need an outside space" moment, so the grass effect helped with that. In in our new place, we'll probably put it in the play room or Genevieve's room...we'll see how it all works out.
Proudest DIY: A built in shoe-rack in the closet, and Sam put together all the Ikea closets and dressers.
Best advice: Buy things that make you happy, move your art around every so often, and rotate your furniture from one room to the other so you don't get bored.
Dream source:Well, it's just a teeny bit biased,....but my favorite store in LA is Bahay. We have a really great collection of furniture and art, and our prices are really affordable....In regards to dream pieces, most currently, I am coveting the Togo collection from Ligne-Roset. And some new dining chairs, but I just can't decide which way to go, yet...
Cleaning or Organizing Tips: What works for me is having the garage as a storage, ....we park on the street....Also, having as many cabinets and drawers, and pretty boxes and places to hide things like all our papers, mail, magazines, and junk that is not really junk so we need to keep it....
Oldest Thing You Own: My grandmother's jewelry
Resources:
Furniture:Bahay. I wonder why....but I usually can get a pretty good deal there. Design Within Reach, Twentieth, B & B Italia, Ligne-Roset, (and of course, I think Ikea is just great....I definitely have a secret obsession with it...or maybe not so secret....)
Accessories: A + R design shop on Abbot Kinney, Moss
Lighting: Design Within Reach, Craigslist, Ebay
Rugs and Carpets: Bahay, Hollywood Love Rugs, and my friend Kim
Jordan makes the most beautiful fur throws....
Tiles and Stone: Manhattan Stone & Tile
Window Treatments: Ikea, Hunter Douglas
Beds: Bahay, Ligne-Roset
Artwork: My dear artist and photographer friends - Chad Attie, Peter Tunney, Britt Michaelian, Andrew Cramer, Kevin Ancell, Kwaku Alston.....and I like to support the artists down on the strand in Venice and check out who the local galleries are showing...
(Thanks, Kana!)
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Comments (45)
Only thing that would make me cringe is the pale sofa and the green carpet the baby.
I amt hinking about all the drool that babies make and how the green carpet would end up, and the fingerprints on the pale sofa -- or do the parents run around with wipes all the time?
i really love that rocking chair in the baby room. can i ask where it is from?
Wow, 900 sq ft and 2.5 baths! Thats amazing!
Your house is just wonderful.
Please tell me where you purchased the media stand that is in the living room!! It appears to be a zebra wood but I might be mistaken.
I actually really love that grass lawn rug. It works with all the light spilling into the room.
Second the pink chair comment - I saw it just the other day in white with light wood - - - somewhere. Love it, want it. . . anybody have any thoughts.
great place!!
did you do the bathroom? can you tell me the source for the faucet?
love the couch--who is the maker?
kristineve and kdear, Maxwell has one of those chairs from http://www.nurseryworks.net and here's his latest post on it: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/at-email/perfect-soft-rocker-the-sleepytime-email-from-81308-060319
I'll second that I think the green rug works well in this space. I can imagine my two boys loving a rug like that to play with all of their animals, etc. on.
Less is more? Mies is rolling in his grave about now. That is not minimalist.
The mismatched bedside tables are nicely pulled together by the identical lamps, though the difference in height is slightly jarring to my eyes. Maybe if they were different in scale it would work better.
The furniture seems to hug the wall, other than the dining table. A coffee table in the living room might help, or maybe replace the sectional with a smaller sofa and float it.
Who makes that incredible zebra wood media stand??
Hi Everyone, I believe Kana is on vacation at the moment but my guess for furniture is that it comes from her shop Bahay Home.
I like the cabinets in their kitchen. Anyone know who makes them?
They're Ikea!
i assume the cable management for the television is run through the wall?
Monica, thanks so much for the rocker info!
Where does it say this is minimalist? Besides "less is more" doesn't necessarily mean minimalism.
@LA It looks like the media stand/buffet is Serra from Bahay.
Finally somebody who GETS IT. These are people who can actually afford to be snobs and they don't think IKEA is beneath them. The wannabes among us could learn a thing or three. Good design is good design, whether it is at DWR, Bahay, Target or Ikea. And it's all derivitave.
p.s. Loved seeing lovely clean-lined spaces that look like a real person actually lives in them. And I am currently lusting after the egg stool... (drool...)
Cool little house!
Lots of great ideas.
Is the shelf underneath the vanity custom made or altered to fit under there? I'd love to be able to find something like that.
That sofa is a dream boat of one.
Your space is very nice on the eyes. Your bedroom is so similar to mine. Except, I have grey walls . I am finally well after 17 years using my Eileen Grey bedside table as a bedside table, paired with a different table.
I love the art in your dining room, the red piece. Can you tell me the artist?
my favorite part? the KEITH HARING PRINTS! i love that guy.
and i'm sad that the green rug is a rug. i was hoping it was a sort of laminate rug with a realistic grass print. isn't that messy to clean? well.. it will be once the baby's running around.
gorgeous though. this is the one time i don't detest white and neutrals. with the properly placed pops of color, it's amazing.
cool breeze sounds like a graphic designer to me.
The living room needs a coffee table to ground the space.
Love the place and REALLY love the wallpaper in the nursery. Where is it from?
Like almost everything about this place. Love the rocking chair, and the egg footstool. Gorgeous!
I must say- this is one of the best home tours ever posted. It's a small space, has a variety of decorative elements, realistic and livable, and excellent use of color and pattern. I love this place! I love everything about it!!! Thanks for posting and inspiring me :)
Love the pink rocker, the grass rug, the light, the bathrooms, the use of space, the gold pig, the fab use of IKEA stuff, the... Heck, I love it all!
Great place. How did you do those shelves in the alcove in the living room? (Where are the shelves from? How are they mounted?)
hey does anybody recognize that etagere in the bathroom? where is it from? it's the least offensive one I've ever seen! lol and they can be pretty awful. But I so need the storage...
Please tell me where the grass rug is from!! I looove it!!!
tylerdurden: I didn't intend to be perceived as snotty, I was just trying to offer some constructive criticism as opposed to saying "I liked it" or "I didn't like it".
The fact that they managed to have such a pulled-together space is impressive given the limited area and the fact that they have a baby.
AT can be a forum for discussing design ideas too, no? Not just a place for asking where people buy particular design elements, or a place to chime in with "me too"?
I really think this place is great. So airy and fresh but yet not stark or cold. My favorite part is all the light it gets and how it does not seem to be trying to hard to be anything. Loved the family room, the small bathrooms, and the baby's room. Big question mark about those blinds in the kitchen! How did those sneek in there without replacement. Yuck. And then the master bedroom just doesn't do anything for me. Doesn't work for me. Other than that, I'd be so excited to live there.
Lilly, the green rug is from Bahay. I bought one myself and it has been a conversation piece ever since. It looks like real grass!
I think this is a lovely space. I would love to live here! The bathroom with all the blue tiling looks very inviting. As far as everything being pushed against the walls...when you have a small space, you don't want to make the living spae smaller by 'floating' furniture, cramming things closer to each other just so you don't have stuff against the walls. Sometimes, the floor space is more important than a sofa table. I always get chastised for having my sofa blocking the sliding glass window in my 700 sq ft apartment...but if it wasn't blocking the window, it would be blocking the door, leaving a tiny aisle that would make the room feel smaller than it really is....which is preferable? You gotta do what you gotta do.
that green carpet must be full of germs and/or bugs
yuck
Hi Laure, Hi everyone,
Thank you for your generous write-up and the comments. I appreciate all of them, well most....this last one from eldrickm is a bit out there...but anyway, moving on...
I think most of the questions have been answered...but I'll just go over a few:
Lorisf - the red painting of the tiger is by NYC artist Andrew Cramer - for more information - see his website: www.andrewcramer.net
Maggiemay - the wallpaper is from sherwin-williams.
For those who asked - the media center, the sofa, the egg stool, and the rug are all from Bahay.
I do also agree with a few of you who suggested the need for a coffee table, we moved it out bc of the sharp edges when Genevieve was beginning to walk....we do however, need something...maybe an oval coffee table might work...
Thanks again, everyone.
Kana
PS: I bought the rocker from www.modernnursery.com
PPS: Our website: www.bahayhome.com or come visit us
at our showroom: 3825 Main Street, Culver City
The rocker is 50% off right now - what a deal!
http://www.modernnursery.com/items.cfm/NurseryworksSleepytimeRockerinFelt/0/pcid/1/cid/222/
semidivine - the etagere is from bed, bath, and beyond - see link:
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=11784780&RN=370&
I am amazed to see a rental with such a great kitchen and bathrooms. Did you re-do them yourselves?
Hey Kana, what about an upholstered ottoman in place of a coffee table? Maybe something in a dark leather? You could set a serving tray on it when using it as a table, but also have extra seating and no sharp edges for Genevieve to hurt herself on. Plus they are more mobile and versatile than a traditional coffee table. I have a round slipcovered ottoman on casters in place of a coffee table and I love it! Just a thought! Take care!
that pink chair is delicious
Can anyone identify the white storage containers on the etagere in the nursery bathroom? They're lovely.
It's a beautiful, inviting home. Well done!