When Julie and Rick Borgens purchased this bluffside home in California’s Orange County, the magnificent ocean view and expansive outside area overshadowed the dull 1970s stucco exterior. But with the help of Todd Custom Homes, Tuvalu Home and R.J. Imports, they were able to redesign the area into a home worthy of its dreamy site. Native landscaping and a luxurious backyard pool helped finish its transformation into a Southern California paradise.
in a Glance
Who lives here: Julie and Rick Borgens and two brothers, ages 19 and 21
Location: Capistrano Beach, Orange County, California
Size: 4,000 square feet; four bedrooms; four baths
That is interesting: The outside dining table was custom-built with additional height so guests can see the ocean while they eat — whales and dolphins often swim by.
Dana Nichols
A teak furniture collection and outside fireplace create a warm setting beside your home’s backyard pool. Julie put glass within an empty drum to generate a dining table which may be full of sand and seashells in summer and pine cones during the vacations. “As the seasons change and it gets chilly outside, we travel from the ocean side of the home to the fireplace around the pool side,” she states.
Driftwood heart and wreath: Tuvalu Home; drum table: R.J. Imports; teak chairs: Patio Outlet
Dana Nichols
The grottolike swimming pool and spa are tucked to the house’s backyard. Orange cape honeysuckle and blue salvia colour the landscape around the pool.
Landscape layout: Jan Houghton, Houghton Design Group
Dana Nichols
Instead of a classic front door, guests enter the property through the backyard gate which leads beyond the pool place.
Dana Nichols
Julie loves to include her favourite accent shade, bright blue, in careful doses so that it doesn’t detract from the home’s decor. She filled buckets with plants and seashells and piled them onto a blue chair to create a charming vignette in this outdoor place.
Wooden chair and bucket: R.J. Imports
Dana Nichols
Creative plant arrangements take the place of conventional art in this home. This six-wreath succulent arrangement in the entryway bridges the exterior with the interior. Lanterns turned terrariums serve the identical purpose in different areas of the home. “Art appeared too expected,” Alter says. “So a lot of people would only waste this space”
Succulent arrangement: The Ivy Guild, Inc
Dana Nichols
The home includes three indoor and outdoor living spaces in total. Doors from this open onto a deck perched high above an unobstructed view of the Pacific Ocean. The custom made fireplace surround is made of Canyon Creek stone from the northern Rockies.
Palecek chairs and sofa: Tuvalu Home; stone fireplace surround: Sepulveda Building Materials; TV framework: LCR Furniture and Design, Inc
Dana Nichols
Julie wanted several intimate seating areas within her home rather than one big one. Each is varied enough for entertaining, yet intimate enough for casual living — like this downstairs area. “It’s kind of interesting,” says Julie, “but we do use every area”
Seagrass chairs and menu: R.J. Imports
Dana Nichols
External, a custom-built grill using a huge backsplash offers privacy from the neighbors. Julie’s favorite beachy blue appears in the porcelain vase.
Rick enjoys winemaking, so the couple’s next job is a wine cellar on the lower level, available through a secret door.
Grill: LCR Furniture and Design, Inc..
Dana Nichols
In the kitchen, custom cabinetry hides the refrigerator and microwave. Julie originally envisioned a glistening white kitchen but cabinetmaker Michelle Anderson of LCR Furniture and Design, Inc. advocated this antique-style variation as a suitable match with the mix of walnut and other imported woods through your home. An oversize navy island offers plenty of entertaining and prep area.
Turquoise vases: Tuvalu Home
Dana Nichols
Upstairs in the stairwell landing, an open press room serves as the house’s third living room. The window seat, having a sea view, is one of Julie’s favorite places in the home. The brown leather couch came from Costco, the firm at which Rick has worked for 30 decades.
Glass lamps and drum: Tuvalu Home; master bedroom bed (through the doorway): R.J. Imports; framed artwork: Tuvalu Home; couch: Costco
Dana Nichols
The bedrooms are simple and modest in size compared to the home’s entertainment locations. “Apart from sleeping, we do not hang out in our bedroom a complete lot. No sitting chairs or anything,” says Julie. A mirror, rather than a dresser, makes the space look and feel bigger. This massive piece reflects the ocean view all around the master bedroom.
Paint: Silver Sage, Restoration Hardware; bedding: Pottery Barn; mirror: R.J. Imports
Dana Nichols
The guest room overlooks the pool side of the home, and another massive mirror reflects light.
Mirror: R.J. Imports; lamps, pillows and seashell blanket: Pottery Barn; striped coverlet and blue throw: T.J. Maxx; bed: Urbanism Furniture, Costa Mesa, CA; paint: Silver Sage, Restoration Hardware
Dana Nichols
Glass railings onto the deck framework the ocean view, but the couple found that a regular 36-inch-high dining table wasn’t tall enough to allow diners to see over it. “You’re constantly looking through the railing in the ocean. We had this dining table made at pub height so that we could see over the railing,” says Julie.
Custom bar-height dining table: LCR Furniture and Deisgn, Inc.. ; chairs: Patio Outlet
Dana Nichols
Backyard plants were selected for low water usage, ground-hugging colour and textural interest. Either side of the pathway are landscaped with native plants and succulents such as sedums and aeoniums, dwarf agaves, salvia, California fuchsia, ceanothus and sea lavender. The stone pathway leads to some other firepit down the hill.
Log planter: Plant Depot; landscape layout: Jan Houghton, Houghton Design Group
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