apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

The article, entitled "Not a Scrap of Gingham", by LA Times writer Craig Nakano, describes the house as L-shaped, made up of two wings and wrapped around a pool. The owners, Vanessa Choy and Andrew Wong are both architects, who gave up their Hong Kong practice to move to Los Angeles with their family (three kids) in 2003. When they bought the lot, they originally considered creating "'a flat-roof modern box, which would have been beautiful as well, or try to blend with the neighborhood," says Choy, who put her career on hold to oversee construction. "We chose the latter."'
Although much of the house has cement floors and a white-on-white color scheme, they were able to inject a lot of warmth, using lots of wood and functional touches. The stairwell is just plywood and we love the converted Crate & Barrel console they used for the children's bathroom. Being an Asian-American myself, the image that warms my heart the most is the shot of the grandmother cooking in the minimal kitchen. Nothing says home than a home-cooked meal!
Read the rest of the article here, which goes into more of what they did as well as the community's reaction. Be sure to check out lots more images at the slideshow over at LA Times Home and Garden Section. They also have a helpful related article that gives some budget saving ideas if you're considering a remodel or doing any major construction.

[ images by Wally Skalij for LA TImes ]