When a young family came across a \u201csuper Eichler\u201d for sale in Walnut Creek, they knew the house was meant for them. Passionate about modern design, the family had previously lived in a classic Eichler home\u2014one of the many distinctive mid-century houses developed in California by influential builder Joseph Eichler\u2014and they loved its clean, open aesthetic. But \u201csuper Eichlers,\u201d which have more space than the standard ones and often feature light-filled atriums, are harder to come by, and the homeowners jumped at the opportunity to own one.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe love Eichlers for their architecture and history,\u201d the homeowners explain. \u201cWe\u2019d been looking for a bigger home for our family and were excited to find this 1971 five-bedroom Eichler in Walnut Creek. But the previous owners had used a lot of white throughout, and it looked kind of clinical, like a hospital. We wanted it to feel warmer and cozier, so we needed to find an interior designer who understood our style. Laura [Martin Bovard] was definitely the right person with the right vision. She totally nailed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Designer Laura Martin Bovard warmed up the living room with a tambour wood wall panel and chose a Saarinen Womb Chair to complement the home\u2019s mid-century aesthetic.<\/p>\n
Martin Bovard, who founded her Oakland-based firm LMB Interiors in 2003, is known for infusing her projects with warmth and character while still maintaining an elegant sophistication. \u201cI take a soulful, heart-based approach to design,\u201d she says, \u201cand I want people to feel relaxed and supported by their furnishings.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the course of getting to know the new owners\u2014a couple who work from home and have a young son\u2014Martin Bovard saw the need for an inviting space where the family could spend time together and two stylish but practical offices.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was excited that the owners were so fond of Eichler architecture because it has such a great vibe,\u201d says Martin Bovard, who worked closely on the project with general contractor Craig Beckner. \u201cBut Eichlers\u2014which are known for having concrete slab foundations and large aluminum windows\u2014can be a bit cool. And sometimes you want to feel like your space is giving you a big hug. Eichlers don\u2019t really hug you.\u201d<\/p>\n
To achieve maximum \u201chuggability,\u201d Martin Bovard warmed up the living area by adding a floor-to-ceiling tambour wood panel and a plush sectional sofa. She chose a mobile-like light fixture designed by Daniel Becker that \u201cbeautifully fills up the vaulted ceiling space in a Calder-esque way, without being too heavy,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n
Throughout the project, Martin Bovard mixed mid-century pieces, such as a classic Eames chair, with more modern but still complementary elements. For example, the dining room features a mid-century-style dining set along with a striking carved sideboard from Altura Furniture, a bubble chandelier from Pelle, and a collage by artist Jay Kelly of Stephanie Breitbard Fine Arts.<\/p>\n
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One of the house\u2019s two offices features a custom bookshelf with an integrated desk from San Francisco\u2019s Go Build Studio and an Eames lounge chair and ottoman.<\/p>\n
One of the home offices doubles as a guest room, with a custom queen-size Murphy bed that neatly drops down over the sofa\u2014meaning no furniture has to be moved to accommodate a visitor. The other office features a built-in bookshelf with an integrated desk designed by Brian Eby of San Francisco\u2019s Go Build Studio and a tiled bar area that conceals office equipment. \u201cThe office has a kind of Mad Men charm,\u201d Martin Bovard says, \u201cwith its wet bar and bespoke shelving.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe love how Laura found a way to cleverly hide functional features,\u201d the homeowners add. \u201cAnd she frequently used local resources and artisans, who did everything with such quality and care.\u201d<\/p>\n
The kitchen was the only room in which Martin Bovard and her team needed to slightly modify the house\u2019s original floor plan. To make better use of the space, they removed a wall and created an area for a coffee bar and wine fridge, designed to coordinate with the cabinet hardware and color scheme of the existing kitchen.<\/p>\n
In reflecting on the completed project, Martin Bovard says that it was the choice of artworks, curated in partnership with San Francisco\u2019s Stephanie Breitbard, that helped her achieve the desired result. \u201cI think that art is how you really transform a space,\u201d Martin Bovard says. \u201cIt\u2019s like how you can transform an outfit in seconds with the right belt and earrings\u2014that\u2019s how I feel about interiors. It\u2019s the finishing touches that make such a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the homeowners are delighted with the outcome. \u201c[The house] really fits us,\u201d they affirm. \u201cLaura knew how much it meant to us, and she really put her heart into it. Honestly, we can\u2019t imagine living in any other home.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When a young family came across a \u201csuper Eichler\u201d for sale in Walnut Creek, they knew the house…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":189250,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[110624,228,226,227,110621,229,88,110622,110618,110619,110620,110623],"class_list":["post-189249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-altura-furniture","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-craig-beckner","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-go-build-studio","tag-joseph-eichler","tag-laura-martin-bovard","tag-lmb-interiors","tag-stephanie-breitbard-fine-arts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189249\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/189250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}