Joyce’s Modern & Personalized West Oakland Loft

updated Feb 20, 2019

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About this tour

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Home Type

Apartment

Location

Oakland, California

Style

N/A

Bedrooms

N/A

Square feet

1500

Sq ft

1500

Name: Joyce Chen and her fiancé
Location: West Oakland—Oakland, California
Size: 1,500 square feet
Years lived in: 2 years; Rented

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When Joyce moved into her now-fiancé’s West Oakland loft a couple of years ago, she knew it would be a challenge to have the space embrace both their styles. The loft previously had a personal gym and bar area in the living room and didn’t quite give off the warm and homey vibe Joyce wanted in their home. Fast forward a couple years, and it’s clear that Joyce accomplished the difficult task of preserving the elements her fiancé enjoyed while adding lots of personalized pieces that provide character.

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

The loft space features many DIY and custom-made pieces, which are the couple’s favorite elements. The modern dining table, for example, was made by Joyce’s fiancé and his friend using a giant piece of solid cherry with a maple frame. Many of the pieces in the loft are also made from reclaimed wood: the coffee table, the coat closet at the entry, and the dining room bench. All of these pieces put together, plus the modern details of the space—such as the ceiling’s wood beams and the bedroom skylight—make the loft feel like home.

“We love the high ceilings, the open floor plan, and the amount of natural light in this apartment, and it’s the perfect size for the two of us,” they said.

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

Apartment Therapy Survey:

Our Style: Mix of high and low, old and new, rustic and modern

Inspiration: Interior design blogs, books, and magazines

Favorite Element: Having more space than living in San Francisco and two parking spots!

Biggest Challenge: Tiny kitchen, limited storage, and one shared bathroom

What Friends Say: That we have a lot of booze

Proudest DIY: My fiancé and his friend Andrew made the kitchen island and dining room table.

Biggest Indulgence: A highly impractical white rug in the living room that I once shattered an entire bottle of tequila on (oops!)

Best Advice: Start with inspiration photos so you have a sense of the big picture rather than randomly just buying pieces you like.

Dream Sources: Anything from theline.com, Dwell magazine, Kelly Wearstler, Maison & Objet Paris

Resources

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

ENTRY

Reclaimed-wood armoire: The Wooden Duck in Berkeley
Console table: Crate & Barrel
Stone-top side table: Crate & Barrel
Arrows in vase: vintage
Mask under glass cloche: hand-painted by friend
Glass demijohn: Domino
Fur throw: IKEA
White basket: CB2
Grey area rug: Overstock.com
Reclaimed-wood storage bench: This was actually a media console from the Wooden Duck that we re-purposed as an entryway bench for shoes.
Mini terrarium: Utsuwa Floral in San Francisco
Earth and moon globes on bench: vintage
White concrete planters: Terrene Products on Etsy
Art/light installation on wall: made by an artist who used to live in the space before us

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

LIVING ROOM

Couch: custom from Furniture Envy in San Francisco
Red pillow on couch: Crate & Barrel
Cream and grey pillow on couch: Design Within Reach
Throw on couch: Design Within Reach
Surfboard: Hess
Tall white standing bookshelf: Blu Dot
Coffee table: Crate & Barrel
White flokati rug: Gilt Group
Pendant light: custom from Dutton Brown
Terrarium: Utsuwa Floral in San Francisco
Acrylic side table: ’60s vintage
Desk: CB2
Chair: CB2
Sign above desk: vintage
Chevron rug under desk: Gilt Group
Oil can lamp on desk: made by friend
Turntable: Clear Audio
Large turntable shelf/record holder: Crate & Barrel
Console table behind couch: CB2
Speakers: Vienna Acoustics
Jack paperweight: Tom Dixon
Acrylic dish: Alexandra von Furstenberg
Everlast punching bag: vintage
Vintage gold pineapple: gift from friends
Black candle: Odin NYC in Posala
Coasters: purchased during our last trip to Tokyo
Red ice tongs on wall: vintage

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

DINING ROOM

Table: custom-made by my fiancé and his friend Andrew out of one solid piece of cherry with maple trim
Liquor shelves: custom
Red chairs: DIY with old wood chairs we sanded and painted cherry red
Blue tufted-top stools holding books and artwork: Target
Bench: reclaimed wood from Mt. Hood Woodworks
Copper bar cart: Dot & Bo