Inside a 1970s-Inspired Home That's Both Decadent and Restrained

Alden Miller of Alden Miller Interiors renovated a family house, originally built in 1979, into a highly functional, contemporary residence nostalgic for earth tones and eclectic shapes. Growing up in the 1970s, the client spent her childhood in California and Hawaii, and she wanted the design to reflect the retro style, casual glamour, and coastal sensibility of those contexts. Alden Miller updated the structure’s arches to imitate a 70s-inspired shape more consistent with the overall aesthetic. She and her team matched soft and sharp lines and patterns in everything from steel window panels to hexagonal tile to wallpaper, and more, crafting an interior environment that finds joy in the colors and materials of bohemian-era America, and grounds itself in the restraint of modern minimalism. Read on for images and details of the redesign.

Off the foyer, the dining room sets the tone for the overall home with a sumptuous, well-curated mix of earthy colors and contrasting natural materials. An overhead light fixture by Michael Anastassiades for Roll & Hill contrasts with the room’s sharper lines, while the dining table and chairs are vintage. Originally designed by Ward Bennett around 1970, the chairs were reupholstered in rich Brentano mohair and refinished, along with the table, by Campero’s Inc. The delicate curve of the chairs’ top rails inspired the redesign of the home’s interior arches. Studying these vintage pieces and a set of metal mugs from the same era, the design team imitated the arches of these objects in the ceiling structures of the house and custom door panels. The teak open custom shelving was crafted by Henry Built to show off the high ceilings; the terracotta floors are original to the house.
Located near the kitchen, the powder room features a hypnotic, hand-printed wallpaper by Timorous Beasties that’s playful and electric. Ball light pendants by Michael Anastassiades enhance the Mod ambience. The curve of the mirror mimics the arch shape throughout the house. In many rooms of the house, the design team used Invisible Lightswitches from Forbes & Lomax so as not to interrupt the flow of the wallpaper or paint.
As the client is a professional chef, she wanted a culinary space appropriate for cooking elaborate meals, and she wanted to have enough room in the kitchen for guests and family members to mingle without constraints. Miller relied on the seminal book A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander to study the relationships between visual contrasts and functions of objects. Good design does not happen in a vacuum, Alexander posits; each pattern is a solution to a design problem. The sum of these solutions is a system of interlocking patterns, from the terracotta tiles in the dining room to the kitchen backsplash from Heath Ceramics. Here a knife holder crafted by Jacob May adds a hint of elegance.
The renovated area includes a pantry, freezer room, and a restaurant-grade dishwashing room — the latter is located on the other side of industrial swinging doors — as well as plentiful natural light and outdoor access. The cream-colored countertops are by Lapitec.
This informal dining table was made custom by Jacob May, and the custom, built-in bench was upholstered in a rich striped fabric from from Knoll.
Minimalist faucets from Vola throughout the house keep the aesthetic clean, even in its details. The restaurant-grade wine fridge is from Traulsen.
The first-floor home office includes a laundry area, and it can be transformed into a guest room if necessary. The Swedish flatweave rug is vintage from FJ Hakimian, and the window shade fabric is from Osborne & Little.
In the living area, the customized sofas from George Smith can be easily rearranged to accomodate guests or family movie night, when a ceiling-mounted projection screen can be pulled down for big-screen viewings. The area rug, an Alexander McQueen design from the Rug Company, extends the 1970s influence. The coffee table was custom-made by Campero’s Inc.
Miller redesigned the upstairs area for better flow between the bedroom, dressing room, and master bath. Graphic floral-print wallpaper from Trustworth Studios brings the room into the territory of maximalism, where the design rarely ventures, while sleek neutral tones offset the pattern’s vivacity. The bedding was custom made using fabrics from C&C Milano, Malatesta, and Kneedler Fauchère. A custom area separates the bedroom from the dressing area.
Beside the bed, the nightstands are vintage. The headboard was also custom made by Henry Built and upholstered by Lucarini Custom Upholstery with Fortuny flannel fabric from Sloan Miyasato.
Henry Built teak cabinets border the room on three sides. The Art Deco-inspired carpet by Tim Gosling from the Rug Company adds a creative touch to the design, and a Troscan chair and Harris Rubin Folio table (both from De Sousa Hughes) pair well together, emphasizing the sophisticated bohemianism of the space. The light fixture is from Phoenix Day. On the wall, the nude sketches were drawn by the clients’ grandparents.
Porcelain printed tile by Spanish architect and designer Patricia Urquiola takes the minimalist style from Scandinavian-chic to California-modern. The blue floor tile is by Fireclay Tile.
A hexagonal patterned wallpaper from Cole & Son is an unexpected accent in the son’s bedroom, and was selected by the son. The textured, goldenrod rug from Angela Adams plays off the ceiling pattern.
The circular display shelf was custom-made by Nest Building in Pacifica.
The son shares the guest bedroom with any visitors, and it imitates the cheerful patterns of his room with a hexagonal tile from Heath Ceramics.