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Accessible design inspired much of this home's layout, from a pair of
bedroom suites on the lowest floor to adequate wheelchair clearance
in hallways, bathrooms, and shared living spaces. Both a staircase
and an elevator connect all three levels, the top of which houses a
trio of ensuite bedrooms with high, sloping ceilings to luxuriously
house visiting family members. The rear of the house encourages
indoor-outdoor living—the kitchen and family room have French
pocket doors, for example—but it was imperative that we devise a
privacy solution for the primary bedroom's terrace, which faces the
property's front. Our solution was to enclose it with stone-faced
walls capped with limestone to match the home's carved friezes and
other stone architectural details. The primary bathroom is outfitted
with electric glass windows that turn opaque via the flip of a switch.
On the ground floor, the rooms open up toward each other, with
the living room and library offering a cozy retreat thanks to their
fireplace, built-in bookshelves, and wood paneling. In addition to the
two suites, one fully wheelchair-accessible, the basement level also
contains a media room, laundry facilities, and an outdoor stairway to
the rear.
Photographs by Anthony Peres Photography
Designed by RLB Architecture, Pacific Palisades, CA,
page 212
A FRENCH-INSPIRED HOME
Pacific Palisades, CA