Life is full of second acts, and nowhere is this truer than in residential architecture, where homes are built, renovated and renovated again. More unusual, though, is the opportunity for an architect to remodel a past project, but such was the case for David Darling. When his original clients planned a residence for this steep slope in Napa Valley, they intended it to be their dream home. “In the end, they realized a smaller version of the vision,” the architect says. That changed years later when the dwelling’s new owners approached Darling, architect Min Choe and interior designers Damon and Julie Savoia to make the most of the property. Its glow-up includes a reimagined main house with a new guest wing and spaces that accommodate both entertaining and wellness.
For the architects and designers, who were joined by general contractor Ryan Eames and team, the promontory property’s view—rustic, rolling hills and vineyards—served as a touchstone influencing the dwelling’s form as well as the color, material and plant palettes. The main house (which contains public spaces, the primary suite, office and wellness rooms) asserts itself with a steeply pitched roof, a light-colored plaster exterior and rooms that are long and narrow, allowing for a strong connection with the landscape on two or more sides. In contrast, says the architect, “We covered the guest wing in dark cedar siding and gave it a low profile, so it almost disappears. The main house gets a full view and feels very commanding, but the guest wing has an intimacy to it.”
Home Details
Architecture:
David Darling and Min Choe, Aidlin Darling Design
Interior Design:
Damon Savoia and Julie Savoia, Shawback Design
Home Builder:
Ryan Eames, Jack Wagoner and Eli Anderson, Eames Construction, Inc.
Landscape Architecture:
Chris Merritt, Bernard Trainor and David LeRoy, Ground Studio
A steel-and-stained-red-cedar pergola designed by David Darling and team shades an alfresco dining area with Gloster chairs and a custom table. Olive trees frame the view of the surrounding native meadow grassland.
The kitchen of this Napa Valley home features concrete countertops by Concreteworks, a Zephyr hood and a Gaggenau cooktop. Designers Damon and Julie Savoia updated the space with Sonnenman light fixtures and Token stools.
The small office packs a punch thanks to a Porter Teleo wallcovering and a rug by Adam Hunter for The Rug Company. Beneath the Roll & Hill light fixture, Carl Hansen & Søn chairs pull up to a Token desk.
In the guest wing living room, a Flexform sofa, armchairs and coffee table rest on a rug by Stark Studios Rugs, all lit by a Brightbound chandelier. Vicky Barranguet’s Talk it through over the sofa is joined by Charles Arnoldi’s Double Diamond on a nearby wall.
Moss Home ottomans, a Gamma sectional and armchairs, and an Egg Collective side table gather around the living room’s Token coffee table. Underfoot is a Perennials rug.
From the primary suite’s custom bed upholstered in Spinneybeck leather, the homeowners can take in views through accordion doors by NanaWall. Mirroring the blue in the pool are an Ashley Stark Home rug and Holly Hunt mohair throw.
A steeply pitched roofline makes the main house stand out in the landscape. Just outside the living area is a generous terrace appointed with Gloster seating.
Darling gave the guest wing a more intimate scale, underscoring a sense of peace and comforting enclosure. Positioned at the end of the deck are Gloster lounge chairs.
A new wing of the main house holds an exercise room. Sliding glass doors by Fleetwood Windows & Doors connect the space directly with the pool, installed by Herb’s Pool Service Inc. It overlooks native plants such as deer grass and coffeeberry.
Darling handled the original interiors, but here the Savoias took charge. “The homeowners wanted to complement the architecture and enhance the vision and sense of place, but they also wanted to have fun,” Damon explains, so the designers (a husband-and-wife team) looked outward. “We drew inspiration from the soil, the oaks, the rocks and the sunsets for materials and colors,” he says. The pair focused on stone and wood as the foundation of the materials palette, because, Damon notes, “We didn’t think our work should be an outlier in the architecture.”
The color scheme features a number of earthy hues, from the rich brown wood of the living room coffee table to the sandy shades of the space’s ottomans and nearby dining table to the sectional upholstered in a fabric reminiscent of a dark-gray night sky. Neutrals are only part of the story though, as the homeowners also desired spaces animated with color and pattern. “The artwork the clients sourced is really vivid and interesting,” says Julie, pointing to works by Vicky Barranguet and Charles Arnoldi in the guest wing’s living room. “We were excited to see it because it gave us permission to do the same thing.” For instance, the Savoias chose a rug featuring oversize blue pebble shapes for the living room, complementing the deep-blue kitchen cabinetry at the other end of the space. Citrus hues also get their due, notably on the outdoor furnishings. Even some of the more neutral pieces possess a graphic quality, such as the inky swirls on the rug and abstract lines on the wallcovering in the office.
Landscape architect Chris Merritt and team took a similar tactic. “We embraced things that were already there and celebrated them,” Merritt says of the primarily native grasses and shrubs that flow around the site. However, they also hit high-impact notes with elements such as long, rock-lined gazing pools.
While this residence may have started its first act with a more quiet and straightforward melody, the curtain is lowering on its second with thrilling swell and crescendo, proving that the sequel can be even better than the original.
A new wing of the main house holds an exercise room. Sliding glass doors by Fleetwood Windows & Doors connect the space directly with the pool, installed by Herb’s Pool Service Inc. It overlooks native plants such as deer grass and coffeeberry.