We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs.
Claire and Sam O’Connor, the sisters and cofounders behind L.A.-based real-estate firm O’Connor Estates, were in the process of selling a client’s home in the Outpost Estates neighborhood when they noticed this 1950s Spanish-style house also pop up on the market. At first, they feared it as competition—it was priced much lower than their listing. But then the O’Connors got curious. “Maybe we should go and have a look at it,” they said to each other.
Situated at the end of a long, private driveway, the house offers a 360-degree experience: there’s no clear front vs. backyard, but rather multiple entrances and each of the four bedrooms faces the pool. Its bones were solid so the O’Connors scooped it up knowing that if they brought in their go-to designers, Jesse Rudolph and Joelle Kutner from Ome Dezin, they could easily fix the home’s dated bathrooms and cramped kitchen.
Rudolph and Kutner were excited about the opportunity, but this time they didn’t want to act alone. The pair asked design content creator Marco Zamora, who has been slowly renovating a Spanish-style space of his own, to help transform this house into something special. Vaulted ceilings, roof tiles, plaster walls, French doors—the place was speaking Zamora’s language. Ahead, the design pros take us behind the scenes of their first-ever collaboration.
The Attention-Grabbing Interior Doors
Front doors usually get a lot of focus but it’s the ones inside that get used (and seen!) most often. The trio made the decision to replace every single interior door with custom ones inspired by traditional 1920s Spanish designs. “Because they’re everywhere, they have a pretty big impact on how it feels to walk through the home,” says Rudolph. The change was an expensive one, and it felt risky not knowing if it’d actually pay off. But once they opened up the house to friends for feedback, all they got were “oohs” and “aahs.” “Everyone was like, ‘I didn’t know I could love a door like that,’” adds Kutner.
The Artful Island
Step one of opening up the kitchen was relocating the air conditioning unit so that they could break into the dropped ceiling. Step two was knocking out a wall to plop in a stainless steel island from Copenhagen-based kitchen brand Reform. “Because it’s a Spanish home, I think it’s exciting to bring in metals; something that’s unexpected,” shares Zamora.
While several potential buyers were concerned about the upkeep of the material, fingerprints on the island might seem like a nuisance to one person and living art to another. “Our whole thing is that a home isn’t for everybody, it’s for somebody,” says Claire. “If you get it exactly right, that person will come in and immediately know that this is their house.”
The Chaises That Won’t Blow Away
Outside, the group’s main challenge was figuring out how to add seating around the existing pool (as-is, it didn’t leave a ton of walking space). Rather than line up freestanding loungers, the designers added two custom daybeds parallel to the pool. “It was something that had an enormous functional impact but also ended up being a really beautiful thing to see from the house,” says Rudolph.
The Floors That Shine (Without Actually Shimmering)
Glossy saltillo floor tiles are a staple in Mediterranean-inspired homes, but in this case, they were giving early 2000s vibes, not the European charm Ome Dezin was after. You couldn’t tell that the home had a history, and that bugged the designers. “Switching to an outdoor terracotta was a huge change,” shares Kutner. The matte tiles from Eco Outdoor lent a warmth to the house, and it didn’t go unnoticed by Zamora’s followers when he started sharing photos of the renovation online. “They absolutely loved the flooring, especially in the bathroom,” he shares.
The Living Room Details, Reimagined
Swathed in plaster, the fireplace in the living room took on a smoother shape while, in the corner, the designers added a dry bar with future hosts in mind. All of the lighting in the home is new, including the Ingo Maurer Floatation pendant. The doors leading to the yard are all original, but to make them look a little less ’90s and a touch more Old World, they added trim detailing around the frames and painted them Benjamin Moore’s October Mist.
The Shower-Tub That Draws You In
In one of the guest bathrooms, the trio experimented with Zia Tile’s new line of marble, putting their own custom spin on the pattern. As you make your way around the corner, your eyes move up to the elongated gooseneck showerhead from California Faucets that’s peeking out behind the alcove. “Being that this is a Spanish-inspired home, we wanted to bring in elements that have a little bit more drama,” says Rudolph.
The Carefully Calculated Canopy
Zamora put his background in civil engineering to use throughout the project but especially when installing the giant canopy over the bed (now a permanent fixture). “There was a lot of math involved,” he says. Not only did he have to rent a 10-foot ladder to get up there with the four metal poles (the ceilings are 14 feet at their highest point), but the 18-foot-long chains all had to be cut to different lengths. “We spend so much time in our bedrooms, so for me, I love bringing in something that is elegant but also romantic,” he says.
The Bedroom Tub
Deciding to put a tub clad in red marble in the primary bedroom wasn’t just for shock factor. Even after streamlining the bathroom by getting rid of the soffits and “weird ’80s angles,” they realized there was still not enough room for a spacious shower and soaking tub. “We couldn’t fit it, so we were like, why not put it in the bedroom?” recalls Kutner. They’d seen it done plenty of times, especially in hotels in London, but it was a risk knowing not all potential buyers would get it. “It was definitely a talking point for us. I personally love it. It’s such a sculptural moment in the room, and it’s so unique,” says Zamora.
The person who did eventually purchase the house audibly gasped when she saw it. “It was one of the best showings I’ve ever had, walking through a house with someone who is like, ‘This is absolutely my house,’ and not trying to play it cool,” says Claire. The new homeowner toured the house on a Friday and put her offer in on Saturday.