SOUTH BAY DIGS | Digital Edition Online

68 DIGS.NET | 4.2.2021 S W E E T D I G S | 2 2 0 8 T H S T R E E T • M A N H AT TA N B E A C H M A R K E T here are two things that drove this project," says interior designer Tim Clarke of the rustic stone-clad home rising along one of Manhat- tan Beach's most dapper walk streets, just south of Downtown. "One is the idea of the staircase, and the steel windows that become the skylight above the staircase." He's referencing the airy entrance, a space marked by a floating staircase—angular, with thick slab steps. To one side, a bank of custom windows—slender, with black steel casings; modeled after an L.A. factory circa the 1920s—stretches along the entire side of the approximately 4,200-square-foot house, three stories in all. At the top floor, windows continue in the form of a massive skylight interrupted only by reclaimed barn wood beams. "I was thinking of these vertical spaces in Paris," the designer says of the distinctive window scheme. "There's a sense of history—like, what was this before?" Aside from evoking another time and place, there's a practical side-effect of this fenestration: It casts the whole home with a special, toasted California beach light. "You can see the blue sky through the skylight," adds Clarke. A few years ago, Clarke was brought on board this project by archi- tect Brett Buchmann of Buchmann Design, hired by the homeowner to take the newish house down to the studs, and completely re-build. The 2017 result is a four-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bathroom house with panoramic ocean views that articulates a free flowing yet high-tone coastal atmosphere—a specialty of the notable interior designer whose book, "Coastal Modern: Sophisticated Homes Inspired by the Ocean," expresses his lifestyle-driven design premise. On this project, his client was a well of creativity, making for a satisfying collaboration between architect, client and designer. "She had a strong vision for what she wanted the house to be," Clarke states. "I like people with opinions. I think that's interesting and it makes my job more interesting." The culmination is an undeniably beautiful—and ultra-livable—three levels of space filled with ever-changing seaside vistas and simultaneous nods to both Old World (antique French doors and Italian chandeliers) and warmed-up Industrial style (abundant black steel rail systems and factory windows). "As you reach the top level, you see ocean views all across the house," notes real estate agent Jen Caskey. "It's like a wall of blue." This smooth mashup of clean lines and distinctive luxury, with warm woods and eyefuls of Pacific Ocean, complements the location's high-end beach atmosphere and offers a nice paradox: a high-style home with remarkable user-friendliness. For starters, the master wing on the entrance (or middle) level is a self-contained cocoon of luxurious ease, starting at the slender wooden doors at the entrance, imported from a French chateau. An ocean- view bedroom leads to a classically ornamented bathroom with heated floors and intricate tile and stone work. A creamy free-standing tub is for soaks alongside sunlit windows. En route to the office, where noon breaks happen on the fresh-air balcony, one strolls through the master closet, which is fashioned after a dream-come-to-life retail space. "Every woman that has come into the house has said, 'This is the best closet I've ever seen,'" Caskey says of the bright space, where the arrange- ment of shelves, nooks and drawers can accommodate a trove of shoes and garments. Head upstairs to a convergence of everyday living spaces, collected under a perfectly mediated mix of open and separate spaces. Case in point: the dining wing—home to a sunlit kitchen with ocean views extending to Catalina, and a covered al fresco eating area with gorgeous gray-blue tiles—is separated from an open-plan living room by a couple of steps. Decorative ceiling configurations, utilizing beams, curves or just decked solidly in wood, further separate each space. The leisurely fresh-air terrace on this floor starts indoors, with floor-to-ceiling glass doors that invisibly extend the room to the outdoors, complete with perfect views of Manhattan Beach Pier and Malibu. "The lines are blurred between inside and outside," Clarke says of the house. To take advantage of this walk street address, where blue sea and sky are everywhere, and the beach is a two-block stroll down a wide and slop- ing walkway embellished by colorful landscaping, each outdoor space has been designed to capture different takes on the oceanside atmosphere. "There are stunning ocean views from Palos Verdes to Malibu, which is really unique" Caskey points out. T "

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