A family of four commissioned ANACAPA Architecture to update their 1952 California ranch home nestled in the San Roque neighborhood of Santa Barbara. Working with the owner, who was savvy in both construction and design, the architects leveraged a modest budget to reimagine and renovate the 2,000-square-foot existing house and add 600 square feet of usable living space.

The third-of-an-acre property is sizable for the area, but the original house lacked a connection to the backyard. The original home had an awkward layout that chopped up the interior—to get to the backyard, you had to go through four rooms—so the primary goal of the new work was to open the floor plan and connect the house to the landscape.

DESIGN DETAILS: ARCHITECT ANACAPA Architecture INTERIORS Owner provided CONTRACTOR Leonard Unander Associates STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING Hume Engineers

The new plan creates a free-flowing space through the kitchen, living, and dining areas. A new, large glass sliding wall now leads out to the rear yard, meaning can see through to the backyard as soon as you open the front door. The house embraces the region’s near-perfect climate and indoor/outdoor relationship that defines California living.

In the backyard, a large concrete patio holds a dining table and lounge area with a built-in fire pit and fountain. The rest of the house holds two bathrooms and three bedrooms. In the primary bedroom, the option was for wardrobe-style storage in place of a walk-in closet, which would have required additional walls to be built.

The original steel windows at the front of the house were completely refurbished and reglazed. Inside, white finishes and cool woods lend a Scandinavian appeal to this classy and minimal space.

Budget-friendly finishes were curated to achieve a sophisticated and refined result. The addition includes adding a new two-car garage.

What We Love: This California ranch home underwent a stunning transformation, unveiling a beautiful new layout that is open and airy. It epitomizes quintessential California living by blurring the boundaries between indoors and out. The backyard offers the homeowners an outdoor oasis for relaxing and entertaining with family and friends. String lights and a firepit provide a magical atmosphere for when the sun goes down.

Tell Us: What aspects of this home renovation project do you find most appealing? Let us know in the Comments, we enjoy reading your feedback!

Note: Have a look at a couple of other incredible home tours that we have showcased here on One Kindesign in beautiful Santa Barabara: Off-the-grid guest house beckons on the Santa Barbara coast and Mediterranean hilltop estate offers inviting luxury in Santa Barbara.

Outside, native plantings of succulents, olive trees, and seagrasses surround the patio. A large grassy lawn offers plenty of room to play, and fragrant lavender bushes ring a stock tank pool, which together with the nearby chaise lounges offer a view of the Santa Ynez Mountains.

PHOTOGRAPHER Erin Feinblatt

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