A Renovated 1950s House Is Full of Colorful Tile Inspiration
A Renovated 1950s House Is Full of Colorful Tile Inspiration
Name: Stacy and Ben
Location: San Diego, California
Size: 2,930 square feet
Years lived in: 1.5 years, owned

Can't-Miss House Tours Straight to Your Inbox
Keep up with our latest house tours each weekday with our House Tour of the Day newsletter
It was the enviable views of the ocean and quirky mid-century details that appealed to Ben and Stacy when they bought this house, which hadn’t been renovated since it was built in 1958. Located in a bohemian beachside community in San Diego, the couple was expanding their family and looking for a place to settle where growing kids would feel comfortable for many years to come. They hired Jackson Design and Remodeling to help them remodel the house.
Ben loves to cook, Stacy loves to bake, and the kitchen was one of the first spaces they focused on remodeling. “We spend the majority of our time at home in the kitchen,” says Stacy. In the now expansive space, a large island allows room for the kids to work on art projects or help with kitchen tasks during mealtimes, keeping the whole family connected.
The rest of the home was designed to capture the couple’s desire for both natural and colorful elements. Hand-crafted details pop up throughout the home, including a hand-forged iron stair rail leading between the upper and lower levels. Two bathrooms echo the detailed tile design in the kitchen with their own vibrant color palettes and patterns. Open, airy, and full of light, the design looks stylish and interesting while also feeling relaxed and comfortable for family life. Ben and Stacy call it “Mid-Century Practical.”
Apartment Therapy Survey:
My Style: We still aren’t sure what our style should be called, but we love natural tones, colorful tile, most everything at West Elm, and we chose a lot of other mid-century modern decor during our remodel.
Inspiration: Our design inspiration relied heavily on websites like Houzz and Apartment Therapy. Thankfully there are a lot of creative people out there willing to share their great ideas.
Favorite Element: The kitchen! My husband is a talented chef and I love to bake, so we spend the majority of our time at home in the kitchen. We made the kitchen window bigger in order to see more of the ocean view, knocked down the wall between the kitchen to the living room, built a walk-in pantry, splurged on a wolf range and sub-zero fridge and built an island big enough to give our kids some counter space to help with meal prep and/or do art projects while we cook.
Biggest Challenge: We moved into the house one and a half years ago, and just last week we finally selected a light for our dining room. This sounds silly, but we have a large skylight over the dining room area, which makes mealtime during the day lovely, but it has been a challenge to find the right pendant that can be suspended beneath the skylight. It should be delivered next month and hopefully we like it!
Proudest DIY: The kitchen backsplash. We decided on an ombre geometric tile concept for the kitchen wall after looking at hundreds of backsplash examples online. With the help of our designer and one of my close friends, I spent several hours creating the tile pattern that is now on our wall.
Biggest Indulgence: Sub-zero fridge
Resources:
KITCHEN
Cabinetry — DeWils
Cabinetry hardware — Top Knobs
Kitchen countertops — Tutto Marmo Natural Stone Granite, Satin finish
Island countertop — Silestone by Cosentino_Quartz Suede Finish
Sinks — Blanco
Faucets — Hansgrohe
Range — Wolf
Hood — Zephyr
Refrigeration — SubZero
Dishwasher — Asko
Tile — Fireclay custom hand-made clay tile, custom tile pattern done by design team
Flooring — Galleher Montrichard European Oak
Lighting — Tom Dixon
Paint — Sherwin Williams SW7757 High Reflective White
ENTRYWAY/LIVING
Staircase and Railing — Skyhook Stairs and Rails Powder Coated Black Steel Rods and Wood Top Railing
Double Front Doors — Designed by San Diego Artist/Sculptor James Hubbell.
Fireplace mantel Paint — Sherwin Williams SW7068 Grizzle Gray
Vintage Timberworks driftwood planking
MASTER BATHROOM
Cabinetry brand/ vendor — DeWils
Floating Shelves — Restoration Hardware
Cabinetry hardware — West Elm
Countertop — Silestone by Cosentino Quartz
Sink, Faucets, Shower heads — Kohler
Tile Backsplash and Shower Accent — Island Stone Waveline Mini Fresh Matte
Shower Wall tiles — Crossville Shades
Shower window tile wall — Honeycomb White Concrete 3D Tile
Shower flooring tile — Lungarno Hexagon
Floor — Custom concrete hexagon flooring
Lighting — West Elm
Paint — Sherwin Williams SW7757 High Reflective White
Mesh in tall linen cabinet — Industrial Metal Supply
GUEST BATHROOM
Cabinetry — DeWils
Countertop — Silestone by Cosentino Quartz
Sink — Ronbow
Faucet — Kohler
Tile — Fireclay, custom hexagon tile pattern done by design team
Shower enclosure — Contractors Wardrobe
Lighting — Rejuvenation
Paint — Sherwin Williams SW7757 High Reflective White
Mesh in tall linen cabinet from — Industrial Metal Supply
KIDS BATHROOM
Cabinets — DeWils
Countertop — Marble Express Prefab Quartz
Sink, faucet, showerhead — Kohler
Shower walls tile — 3D wavy tile
Shower Niches tiles — Fireclay
Flooring — Custom concrete flooring
Lighting — Tech SoCo
Paint —Sherwin Williams SW7757 High Reflective White
Thanks, Stacy, Ben, and Jackson Design and Remodeling!
Share Your Style:
See More:
⇒ Recent House Tours
⇒ House Tours on Pinterest