San Diego Home Gets Modern Renovation

A 1970s home in San Diego had fallen victim to an ill-conceived renovation in the 1990s. The couple who owned the house enlisted the help of interior designer Kelly Hinchman and her firm, Studio H Design Group, to reimagine the property. They wanted to open up the kitchen and living room and include a back kitchen/pantry, an ‘adults only’ salon with bar cabinetry, a large laundry, and a functional and beautiful entry—or California ‘mudroom.

Studio H designed and detailed the home’s interior and collaborated on the exterior design alongside architect Christian Rice. Kelly Hinchman explains that her firm is exceptionally valuable during construction and remains involved from the earliest planning stages through the final furniture installation and reveal.

The Design Process

The home now celebrates mid-century design through a modern Southern California lens. Kelly Hinchman shares that her client, Lauren, grew up in San Diego, and that this is embedded in the home’s design. The designer and client had a shared love of stone, which is at the forefront of the interior aesthetic.

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Kelly Hinchman says that they started slab shopping early in the design process, as it was the catalyst for many of the design decisions. Lauren has an exceptional eye and is not afraid of taking risks, which made the sourcing process especially collaborative and inspiring. They covered a portion of the home’s façade with Eco Outdoor’s Crackenback Walling stone, which continues into the interior entry and reappears on the fireplace.

The stone was used to create a dramatic entry that grounds you into the home, which is an otherwise open floorplan. Kelly Hinchman explains that they achieved this by creating an obtuse geometric floor pattern with 5 different mosaic stones. The tile installers were incredible and hardly complained about the extra work, she adds.

The Salon and Kitchen

In the salon, steel-and-glass doors open off the entry vestibule. Deep ochre walls, an aged brass fireplace, a low-channeled sofa by Soho Home, and an amber glass table make this a place to unwind, listen to music, and soak in the atmosphere. The fireplace was crafted by Eris Metal Works.

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The kitchen is outfitted in a gorgeous blue/green natural stone quartzite called Cristallo Lux. Kelly Hinchman explains that they really wanted this stone to set the tone for the home, as you see it upon walking in. The surfaces in the kitchen are either rift cut white oak, marble, or antique brass.

Kelly Hinchman says that the biggest challenge is that designers, by nature, are a bit relentless. They often choose the more difficult path, she notes, because they know the end result will be stronger. There’s a level of discomfort they’re willing to sit in to get it right.

Sometimes the construction team is not as ‘onboard’ with the importance of the vision, Kelly Hinchman notes. With that in mind, the project took about four months longer than initially intended. But the clients were thrilled, and Kelly Hinchman says that the home is a reflection of this cool family and really feels like them.