Kelly Wearstler

By Charlotte McCaughan-Hawes - 14 November 2023.

Kelly Wearstler needs no introduction; the American interior designer has worked on projects across the world, decorated the houses of a fair few notable names and some of our favourite hotels, most notably the effortlessly stylish Hotel Proper chain in America. It's this laid-back, California-cool look that she's known for, deftly making spaces incredibly comfortable and welcoming whilst also the envy of everyone around. If you've ever wondered what her own houses look like, it would appear from this Malibu beach house that her family relocated to in the summer of 2020 that they are very much a distillation of the style she's made her name for.

What draws someone like Kelly Wearstler to a house? In the case of this 1950s modernist-style property, “while I was immediately drawn to the beautiful coastal location,” Kelly explains, “I was enamoured by the rich historical architecture. The home hadn’t been occupied in years, so I felt inspired to infuse a sense of vitality back into the space, drawing inspiration from the original details of the property to restore its life and character.”

The Ingalls

The history and architect of the house are unclear, but it's built in the style of Rudolph Schindler, an Austrian-American architect who worked alongside Frank Lloyd Wright for a time and whose modernist works pepper Los Angeles. “The house itself is steeped in so much history, so it was important to respect the architectural shell of the property and build out from the pre-existing features rather than stripping them back,” Kelly continues; “I saw it as a diamond in the rough. The bare bones of the property held so much potential.” While you might expect an interior designer to want to truly stamp their mark all over a house, it was the opposite for Kelly at Broad Beach, instead, she recalls, “it was a matter of refining and elevating the pre-existing features and infusing it with my personal design sensibility to make it feel like an extension of my family. Many of the original interior elements remain intact.”

One of the original elements is the kitchen, which is a midcentury wooden wonder, the type of kitchen that many try to recreate now with reclaimed laboratory cupboards or iroko worktops from schools, but can never quite capture the magic that this one has. For Kelly, however, its best feature was how it served the family: “Among the various spaces, the kitchen stands as a personal favourite. Its seamless transition into the living room allows me to cook while remaining connected to my family in the adjoining room.”

The house is fairly monochromatic in its wooden interiors, but where there is colour, Kelly explains that she “carefully selected a colour scheme and diverse materials that echoed the home’s architectural shell and harmonised with the natural setting. Drawing inspiration from the verdant hues of the Japanese-style garden, I integrated tones of green into the furniture and decor, fostering a beautiful interplay between the lush palm shades of the exterior and overall interior palette.”

For Kelly, each project she works on comes with the chance to explore her core design principles in a new way and here, “the beachside location led me to delve deeper into rustic, earthy materials such as wood, rattan and woven fabrics. I used wood panelling throughout the space to add a subtle and effortless texture, creating visual interest with the sleek geometric lines of the wood while introducing an element of contrast with rustic soft furnishings. I also used this project as an opportunity to explore the soulful, laid-back style of the 50s and 70s, particularly from California and the surrounding area - fully leaning into the organic shapes and mid-century design which are so central to that era of design”.

The project for Kelly was all about preserving the soul of the beach house, but in turn she added to it by creating a space that was all about coming together as a family. “My family served as the main inspiration for shaping the design concept,” says Kelly, continuing “I wanted to create a space that fostered spending quality time together”.