Above and Beyond

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An iconic cliffside home now charms with craftsmanship and coastal nods aplenty

The living room holds a Stahl + Band sectional, a 1970s rounded chaise lounge by Milo Baughman and a 1960s rattan and teak lounge chair by P.J. Muntendam. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

On his first trip to Santa Cruz two decades ago, architect Benjamin McGriff—like many passersby over the years—was captivated by the sole residence perched on the ocean side of West Cliff Drive, overlooking Monterey Bay. “Because of its siting, it’s one of those homes that just naturally evokes wonder,” he recalls. “I think it has a tendency to inspire people to imagine lives and stories.”

Amid walls lined in ash wood, a Chroma designed dining table and banquette are mated with circa-1951 dining chairs by Niels Møller, all illuminated by a White Dirt ceiling fixture. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.
McGriff Architects and Chroma designed the kitchen millwork, fabricated by Melim Woodwork and painted in Farrow & Ball’s Light Blue; the custom handmade clay tiles are by Linda Fahey. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.
McGriff Architects and Chroma designed the hand-carved teak vanity in the powder room, where a Gregorius Pineo raffia covers the walls; the artwork is by Margrethe Odgaard. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

McGriff subsequently became much better acquainted with the property. His wife grew up in Santa Cruz and was well aware of the local icon, which dates to 1937. During visits with her family, his morning jogs took him right by its main house and casita. Eight years ago, a client for whom he had designed a home in Silicon Valley reached out with some news: The couple—parents to four boys—had purchased a beach house. “As she started to describe it, slowly it became more and more apparent that it was that house,” McGriff says.

The stair railings, made by Melim Woodwork using ash, recall the shape of a surfboard.
Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.
The primary bedroom is outfitted with a Chroma-designed bed. The headboard is upholstered in a Pierre Frey jacquard the frame is wrapped in a Moore & Giles leather; the pigment print is by Richard T. Walker, and sconces and pendant light by Pinch.
Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.
The primary bathroom, painted in Farrow & Ball’s Dimity, includes bespoke suspended Capsula mirrors and a medicine cabinet with rounded corners designed by Chroma. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

As he embarked on its transformation, he looked to other residential concepts that were shaped by their site and climate, including William Wurster–designed houses in nearby Aptos and Scotts Valley, as well as Joseph Esherick’s Hedgerow Houses at The Sea Ranch community in Sonoma County. The existing Santa Cruz dwelling had been renovated over time but lacked a cohesive vision. It was compartmentalized and, McGriff observes, “didn’t engage with the site in a way that it should.”

A daybed, comprising ash wood and an indoor/outdoor Mark Alexander fabric, provides a prime spot for reading, napping or enjoying the view. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

Strengthening the connection to the views and maintaining privacy were key considerations. Take the second-floor primary bedroom, situated above the living room: McGriff removed the roof from the living room in order to add a terrace to the bedroom. In the living room itself, the fireplace was moved from the ocean-facing side of the space and French doors now line three walls. Although the footprint of the house and casita remained unchanged—2,400 and 600 square feet, respectively—“we took it down to the structural wood components,” he says. Putney Construction was enlisted for the project, which involved temporarily lifting the home to replace the foundation and modernizing the seismic reinforcement. “It’s functionally a new house,” McGriff adds. “We reconfigured it all. The stair basically stayed in its current location, but everything else was modified to some degree.”

Like the main house, the exterior of the casita is painted in Farrow & Ball’s Ammonite.
Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

Leann Conquer and Alexis Tompkins of interior design studio and art consultancy Chroma were brought on board and worked hand in hand with McGriff. While the client is typically drawn to neutral hues, “she wanted to be pushed a little bit,” notes the architect. Hence his recommendation of Chroma, which, true to its name, is adept at conjuring rich and layered rooms. In this case, Conquer explains, “blue is a neutral color because it’s in keeping with the surroundings. So we really leaned into this tonal color palette of blue—these lovely soft and vibrant blues throughout.”

The casita is appointed with a futon from The Futon Shop (painted in Farrow & Ball’s Oval Room Blue), cork side tables from Finnish Design Shop, a table by Max Lamb, lounge chairs from Designerie and a Sophie Dries wall-mounted mirror.
Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

The coastal setting further influenced various architectural and design features, where craftsmanship is at the forefront as well. Near the home’s entrance, McGriff and Chroma collaborated on the stair railings, fabricated by Melim Woodwork, which channel the contours of a surfboard. In the primary bathroom, the vanity’s linear form suggests the pilings of a pier. The circular cutouts in the kitchen hood allude to portholes on a ship. And in the living room, atop a rug inspired by tide pools, Chroma also conceived a coffee table whose églomisé application has “a subtle shimmer to it that resembles the appearance of water,” Conquer says.

The casita walls feature a sunset- inspired mural designed by Chroma and painted by Rafael Arana; the rattan light fixture, from Etsy seller Haadii, evokes a sun hat. Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

Elsewhere, in the dining room, the ash wood–paneled walls’ battens “are asymmetrically carved in a manner that evokes a cresting wave,” McGriff says. According to Conquer, the base of the Chroma-designed dining table nods to a surfboard fin, while the White Dirt linen light fixture overhead brings to mind ocean waves and ship sails, and a Dedar metallic jacquard with a wave-like pattern covers the upholstered back of the bench seating. (A bench positioned outside the casita was made from a cypress tree that had to be removed from the grounds.)

The outdoor furniture includes a modular sectional from Terra Outdoor Living, a fire table from Fire Pit Surplus, lounge chairs by Nanna Ditzel, a polished copper stool by Max Lamb and a custom ceramic stool by Jesse Schlesinger.
Photos by Stephen Kent Johnson, styled by Michael Reynolds.

Last year the clients opened the house for the public to tour. “Thousands of people came through and we heard so many stories,” Conquer recounts. “The house is really meaningful to the community, which is something rare and special. I think we honored the architecture and history of the property while supporting the homeowners’ goals of creating a place for relaxation and rejuvenation.”