We are pleased to share the Big Reveal of one of our favorite spaces at our Bighorn Golf Club project -- the entry!
The house itself is 8000sf and was built in the desert contemporary style. It sits high up on the hill in Palm Desert and is located in Bighorn Golf Club.
Above: the front exterior
The Entry - Before
The entry "vestibule" is quite large; at least 20 x 20 feet. It features a tray ceiling that was covered in a rather drab wallpaper. I commented that the paper was "fine", not offensive, but wasn't quite suited to our client's taste.
The center table that came with the house, shown below, was very large at 72" diameter, but still way too small for the space.
Above: Harley lends scale to this photo of the large entry space. All my clients are incredibly gracious and welcome Harley into their homes.
Above: I noticed that the entry's tray ceiling already had an electrical j-box in its center for a light fixture, but none was ever installed. Score! I knew that a dramatic light fixture would help to give this entry space the pizzazz that it needed.
My client looked at me and asked tentatively, "Would a pool table be tacky?"
She felt that the large room was just "too much real estate" to not assign a function. A pool table would be a fun and functional gathering point for this vacation home.
So, our mission became to create a chic and impressive entryway to this grand home, without making it feel like you were walking into a pool hall.
The Design Plan
To communicate our design intent to clients, we employ a variety of tools.
We create mood boards to show the design and materials. In this board below, you will see preliminary selections for the wallpaper, light fixture, pool table, and other items in the entry. The pool table evolved into the final, more sculptural one and the footed side table was relocated to the main bedroom, but other elements remained the same.
Above: Our preliminary design ideas for the entry.
We also create detailed CAD plans to clearly outline our design intent and to make sure that everything "works" as we envision it.
Below is the scaled floor plan of the entry, showing the rug, bench, and side table. The unique shape of the light fixture is also reflected over the pool table, to truly help us envision it in three dimensions.
Our team's architectural designer, Chris Porter, did a fantastic job of drawing the sculptural forms of the light fixture and pool table in AutoCAD, helping us to accurately visualize the scale of each piece.
The elevation below shows the pool table, tray ceiling, and light fixture as they will be seen from the living room.
The Entry - After
We could not be more pleased with the results!
Our careful planning paid off.
We commissioned a hand-carved walnut pool table from Elevate Customs, covered in rich and unexpected mocha-colored felt. No billiard hall green in this space!
The sculptural legs supporting the table look dramatic from all angles.
Above: The walnut billiards table is truly a piece of art. We repurposed the home's original area rug.
I knew I wanted a dramatic light fixture to anchor the space and draw your eye upward.
Thankfully, the space had a j-box for a light fixture. We commissioned this striking, sprawling light fixture from Apparatus Studio. We replaced the maudlin wallpaper in the tray ceiling with a subtle, but textured, vinyl wallpaper from Elitis.
Above: The entry-turned-pool-room leads into the grand living room.
All about the Details
Our team finished off the room with an original artwork, a side table from our retail shop, and a bench from Lawson-Fenning. The bench is made of light oak and covered in olive green hair-on-hide from Moore & Giles.
The striking yet soothing artwork is by Carlos Ramirez through L&G Projects in La Jolla, California. Investing in artwork by black and brown artists was especially important to our clients.
Selecting artwork from underrepresented communities, especially black and brown artists, was a directive from our client on day one.
We love all the details and the soothing color palette that takes its cues from the surrounding desert landscape.
I hope you enjoyed this tour!
xo
CK
Sources-
Paint: 'Almond Milk' by Sherwin Williams
Photography: Public 311 Design
Styling and flowers: Keith Fortner
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