An LA Cliffhanger: Go High or Stay Low? - Remodelista
Photography by Mimi Giboin, unless otherwise noted. The Scenario: In 2008, creative couple McShane and Cleo Murnane–he’s an architect, she’s a designer–boldly took advantage of the real estate market crash by buying a plot of steep, undeveloped hillside land in LA’s Silverlake. They also had their second child, Lake, all the while brooding: Should they save money and build at street level, or blow their budget by building at the top of the site with its sweeping views of the Hollywood Hills and San Gabriel Mountains? Cleo and McShane Murnane take in the Hollywood Hills and San Gabriel Mountains from the patio off their living room. The space is paneled with mangaris, a dense, strong, fire-resistant wood that is approved for the Los Angeles hills, an area vulnerable to fires. In order to minimize excavation and the building of foundations, McShane cantilevered the primary living spaces–open living/dining room, kitchen and master bedroom and bathroom–over a 760-square-foot lower floor where the children’s two bedrooms, bathroom and laundry room are located. Concrete caissons and grade beams were used for the deep structural footings and the cantilever works thanks to four steel beams. “The color and materials palette is simple but bold. We like a pared-down aesthetic,” says McShane. The all-white dining area is punctuated with black, blue, and wood tones. Eventually the fireplace will be built into the area where the couple’s daughter Emerson is sitting and painting. Another cost-saving measure: In place of custom kitchen cabinets, the couple used Ikea designs that they faced with custom MDF fronts. The floor-to-ceiling, customized Ikea cabinets maximize storage space. The kitchen feels luxurious thanks to its detailing: oak-and-metal Gordon Stools from Minam, stone countertops, and brass fixtures and cabinet hardware. Cleo makes use of the East Linear Pull-Down Kitchen Faucet in an antique brass finish from Newport Brass. In the master bedroom, the couple, both originally from the midwest, pay homage to their new home with a copy of California, a novella by Amra Brooks. McShane and Cleo designed built-in storage around the bedroom window so they wouldn’t have to have dressers. “This is our easterly view, which gives us plenty of morning light,” says McShane. Cleo and Lake in captured in the master bedroom. In the master bath, sun from a skylight streams across Thassos stone wall tiles. Dandelion Encaustic Cement Tiles by Claesson Kovisto Rune were inspired by Arabic geometric patterning. The stairwell with its modern, open wood treads borrows daylight from the public spaces above. The children’s bedrooms are downstairs in the 760-square-foot footprint of the house built into the hillside. When the couple first moved to LA, they found a workbench on the street, which they restored and have been using ever since. As another cost-cutting measure, McShane and Cleo put off buying closet doors. Lake’s Industrial Loft Twin-Over-Twin Bunk Bed is from Restoration Hardware. Both children have secret access to their bedrooms. The children’s rooms are painted in two tones: The paint on the lower half has a durable, high-performance surface. Lake enters the living area from his room. Photograph by Gary Friedman for the LA Times. By building at the top, the Murnane’s design maximizes the views available from the steep hillside. Photograph by Gary Friedman for the LA Times.