Shanty Wijaya, an LA designer and founder of ALLPRACE Homes, started out as a molecular biologist.
But then she decided to fly from Jakarta, Indonesia to Los Angeles to start a new career in interior design.
After the 2008 housing market crisis, many homes were abandoned. Shanty and her team came in and began to restore these homes.
Her mission was to see that everyone could enjoy a custom renovated home regardless of socioeconomic status.
An Open Living Space & Kitchen:
They found this home in the historic Jefferson Park neighborhood of LA and saw the potential. They completely renovated it, also adding an additional bedroom and bathroom. As well as a custom she-shed in the backyard.
Below was the house before they began.
It lacked personality and needed love. Just a gray concrete house and empty yard that had almost nothing going for it.
Enter Shanty and her team.
The Porch Was Painted Blue & Given Some Love:
This is the front of the home once they got to work. They painted the outside a deep blue and added cozy elements to the front porch.
Now it is inviting.
The entry is all about neutrals and textures. A sort of Scandinavian look mixed with bohemian style.
The house designed is an open plan. The living room, kitchen and dining space shares the same square footage.
One could move the furniture and change the order of the spaces up. That’s what I like about an open plan design. The possibilities are endless.
The deep blue color chosen for the lower cabinets ground the area. Also allowing the space to appear distinguished and separate.
The yellow and white patterned wallpaper on the wall of the dining space helps to separate these spaces.
They decided not to add upper cabinets. Instead they built one shelf along two walls for storage.
An Additional Living Space:
Another living space with a fireplace was designed as a getaway for reading and conversation with built-in bookshelves.
I can imagine sitting there listening to music or the chirping of birds outside while perusing a book.
The bedrooms are spare. More utilitarian than decorative. Not a lot of furniture was used. There’s lots of open space.
I like the shelf above the door that leads out to the back.
Black & White Elegance:
This bathroom is a mixture of black and white, which always makes an elegant statement in any home.
I’ve always read that you should add a bit of black to any room.
The color black is dramatic, stylish, and provides a grounding effect. Black enhances the colors and shapes around it.
This bathroom’s tub is surrounded by brick. Which gives the room a bit of texture and architectural interest.
Another bedroom with shutters on the lower part of the window. The eye is drawn to the wallpaper on the wall behind the bed.
Opening The Bedrooms To The Back Yard:
The bedrooms open up to new decks in the backyard, where a plain and empty terrain was turned into a stylish outdoor living space.
An Empty Unloved Square Of Back Yard:
The back of the home was just one large expanse of dirt when they began renovating this piece of real estate. It was empty and had nothing going for it.
They added decks, grass and landscaping. Cement squares were strategically placed to provide walkways and an element of design.
The she-shed sits in one corner of the yard.
The Addition Of A Deck, Landscaping & She-Shed:
The crew made the most of the square footage of this home and yard. They have created a welcoming home for someone else to love.
This is the back of the house now. It is stylish and opens up to various outdoor seating areas.
The she-shed isn’t a large structure. But it provides a small sitting area and a place for a desk, which might come in handy for home schooling. Or a quiet getaway for a teenager to study in.
With an eye toward landscaping, greenery was added around the she-shed to give it more personality and soften corners.
A small window box with flowers gives the shed a cozy look.
The dark painted ceiling is interesting.
The chair invites you to come on in and sit awhile. Maybe put an album on the turn table and listen to music.
This home was once just a cement structure and a flat empty yard. But Shanty and her crew came in and gave it some love.
With their skills, it became a home boasting lovely and well thought out rooms. As well as a new yard serving as another living space.
What do you think about the bedrooms opening up to the backyard?
{Photographs from The Everygirl)
oh, my Brenda, this is a fabulous find and I LOVE everything about it. My only dislike is the sinks in the bathroom… those raised sinks I just can’t figure out how to keep them clean around the base. They did a great job from taking that house from blah to WOW!!! I’m going to be checking her social media to see what else she’s done. If you find any other gems like this please share. This is the exact feeling I’m going for in my home.
I am not sure what I think of the new bathroom sinks that sit above versus flush with the counter. I wonder if I would have a puddle next to it to wipe up. Guess I don’t know anyone who has these styles either, so I could learn how they are. But this home is simply stunning so I appreciate you sharing it with us.
Kathy… I didn’t read your post before I wrote mine but I agree with you about the sinks. I just for the life of me don’t understand them. I’m guessing people who have these sinks don’t do their own cleaning! Ha!
You are probably right Emie about a cleaning person doing that job! Ha! It doesn’t look like a sink I could clean quickly. Ironically we are remodeling a bathroom and looking at vanities and sinks so I am curious as to the styles out there now.
Lots to admire here…the bedrooms opening to the yard/patio reminds me of how often rooms of a home in Hawaii do that…when you have mostly temperate weather, you can open up your house that way…nice!
This is a beautiful renovation. Most of what I see on decorating shows these days is modern/mid century/Scandinavian. It is clean, crisp, attractive and simple. For myself, however I lean towards traditional/craftsman/farmhouse. It calls out to me to wrap it’s arms around me and comfort me. I truly enjoy your decorating ideas and the boho is something I share with my daughter often. I especially love all your house plants. Great post. Sandra
Thank you for sharing this beautiful restored home with us, and for pointing out interesting details we might otherwise have missed. I especially love the strategic placing of the cement squares! What a simple and effective way to add interest and structure to a large grassy area!
What a beautiful relove of this house. OMG it is so fun and gorgeous. I am sure everyone in that neighborhood loved that Shanty and her team came in to fix this poor home into something so lovely. What a great and diverse range of talents Shanty has. A biologist to a restorer of homes. Awesome.
I love the bedrooms opening up to the backyard! I used to have shutters in my home windows and I’m thinking about getting some for my windows again!
Oh my. It is my kind of home. I love the open, lots of wood, colors and open spaces. Slowly but surely I will be working towards that/my style.