Residential Revival
When Evan Krenzien and his partner purchased their home in 2017, they knew it had the right bones but needed some work. The historic property was still similar to how it was in the 1920s when it was first built. “All original rooms, original plaster. Like the entry hall, stair railing, and tiles on the stairs are all original back to the 1920s. But the house had been altered and augmented,” he says of the additions of a pool and porch in the ’50s or ’60s and further extensive renovations in 1987. “So, you had this kind of classic 1920 house from the very front with relatively original Spanish colonial rooms.” He adds that because the house had been renovated and added onto in so many different phases, “the floors from one room would be an inch and a half higher than the other.” The duo decided to keep the original footprint but make some changes, resulting in a four-bedroom and four-and-a-half bath, two-story home.
The main house is just under 4,400 square feet. An ADU on the far side of the pool—a converted garage rebuilt into a one bed, one bath—adds another 560 square feet. The exterior of the home uses a Benjamin Moore white and the exterior trim is Tanner’s Brown by Farrow & Ball. In the living room and throughout his home, the designer wanted to stay true to the historic Spanish revival aesthetic, but more “simple and clean.” For the furniture, he chose to keep it California contemporary, focusing on patterns and textures. “The sofa, chairs, and bench in the background are all Lawson-Fenning,” he says of the setting he tied together with a coffee table from Big Daddy’s Antiques. The rug is from Lawrence of La Brea and the antler on top of the fireplace is one of his special finds from the Rose Bowl Flea Market. “I’ve had it for years—I would frequent the flea markets quite a bit for unique and affordable finds,” the L.A. native says of significant pieces he’s collected over time. “It’s our style to buy pieces we love and integrate them into one another rather than being specific to a home.”
“I’ve always enjoyed the hunt of scouring for both unique beautiful pieces and things that I know are a good value—undiscovered treasures to mix in and layer with new pieces,” Krenzien says of his flea-market finds. “I would go every couple of months to the Rose Bowl Flea Market and sift through things that maybe aren’t so beautifully merchandised, but it’s like finding a needle in a haystack—getting something that not everybody else has.” On the other side of the living room is an original crescent-shaped window—“It’s one of the unique features of the house,” Krenzien says—which opens up to the front courtyard patio.
The primary bathroom off the master suite has an antique marble floor from Exquisite Surfaces with a vanity from Waterworks that was custom stained. The sconces are from Restoration Hardware, and Krenzien’s favorite, the small light on the ceiling, is from Moroccan importer Badia.
In the dining room, the hutch in the back is by Fabian LA, and the base of the table is vintage 1970s Milo Baughman from a store in Palm Springs via 1stDibs. The top was custom made for it.
The home features three bedrooms upstairs—a primary suite and two guest rooms. The upper level of the home’s layout was left almost entirely intact, but with thoughtful bathroom reconfigurations to give each of the upper-level bedrooms an en suite bathroom. “No guest wants to share a bathroom with another guest, or a kid,” says the homeowner. This move let each suite stand on its own without actually having to add square footage to the home. The shower tiles are from Mission Tile West, and the floor tiles are salvaged Spanish antique tiles from Exquisite Surfaces. All the bathrooms are similar, but the color scheme alternates. “We wanted the house to have variation and textures and very subtle colors but all working together, so it feels unified,” he says.
The railings and the stair tiles, including detailed tiles, are all original; new floor tiles were stained to match the original tiles.
Setting the tone in the primary bedroom are two rugs Krenzien’s partner purchased in Marrakesh and had shipped home. The bed is from Room and Board, with bed pillows by St. Frank Textiles. The suite’s sitting area features a Timothy Bolton couch, vintage coffee table purchased in Boston, and the dresser and chair, also vintage, were sourced from Big Daddy’s Antiques. “I’ve always sort of gravitated to this style,” Krenzien says of the Spanish revival aesthetic throughout. “It just feels very characteristic of Southern California.”
