2024 Wine Country Residential Interior Design Award: K Interiors

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In the choreography of an interior design project that factors in place, period and people, the Napa Valley getaway Kristen Peña of K Interiors, completed for her San Francisco-based clients reflects a careful balance. Above all, the result prioritizes the way in which individuals spend their time.

Ashe + Leandro’s collection for Merida anchors this Napa living room, where Kristen Peña selected a coffee table by Banda positioned between Formal Group sofas by Philippe Malouin for SCP from the Future Perfect, which are upholstered in Rogers & Goffigon’s alpaca bouclé. Arc lounge chairs by Moving Mountains are covered in Lauren Hwang Silk Road fabric. Photos by John Merkl.

“Did we think about it in terms of Napa? Yes, in the sense of what the Napa experience is for these homeowners,” reflects Peña, who founded the firm K Interiors in 2011. But creating this property was about more than just directly responding to the immediate surroundings. “It is about hosting dinner parties and drinking wine and lounging at the pool. It is a sleek, sophisticated environment. That’s the kind of life they lead,” the San Francisco designer explains about the clients, a married couple who work in tech and finance. The dogs are always in tow, but otherwise these wine country visits are adults-only happenings. Peña’s team could dream big without the need to accommodate younger and/or older generations of visitors.

Thomas Hayes Studio stools upholstered with Skandilock sheepskin linen facilitate convivial and cozy gatherings. Wyatt Studio fabricated the custom open-frame brass shelving. The Bronson Collection buffet is from Croft House. Photos by John Merkl.
LOC dining chairs from Stahl + Band surround the unconventional, multi-angled bespoke dining table by Tomlinson Woodworks. The rug is by Marc Phillips. Natalie Page ceramic pendant light fixtures add a lively, rhythmic element, echoed by the dynamic wall-mounted sculpture from Canadian artist Martha Sturdy’s Brass Landscape series and hand- cast Globular brass candle holders by Nancy Pearce. Photos by John Merkl.

“The house needed a lot of soul and personality,” Peña adds about the contemporary new build. She delivered idiosyncratic character in the form of an urban edge, with a sharp selection of furniture, art and accessories that wouldn’t feel out of place in a Pacific Heights residence overlooking the San Francisco Bay rather than a low-slung structure set atop a hill within Napa County’s pastoral landscape. That said, this natural light-flooded refuge is intended for relaxation and connection—not just to showcase stellar art and design.

Caroline Lizarraga’s wall surface treatments provide the backdrop for artist Joseph’s wise—and blunt—work, sourced from Eden Gallery. Photos by John Merkl.

“Luxe and comfortable was our through line,” Peña says. Sexiness and “a wow factor” were additional goals that were entirely feasible thanks to the open-mindedness of the wife, who’s passionate about art. “We wanted to use all of the different materialities to create that layered feel and interest,” Peña states. In the living room, a woven leather and sisal rug from Ashe Leandro’s collection for Merida sets the foundation and tone of the space, atop which stand a pair of curvy Formal Group sofas by Philippe Malouin sourced from the Future Perfect. Conversation can unfold over the travertine and patina brass coffee table by Banda from the U.K., which anchors the grouping. Nearby, pronounced figure-forming lines in a painting by L.A. artist America Martin complement the dramatic sculptural console by Casey McCafferty from Coup D’Etat, a favorite resource for this project.

The Stevie Wonder image from Morrison Hotel Gallery makes for a truly standout Zoom background in the wife’s office and a cool place to gather IRL. Jan Garncarek’s Metropolis table lamp amplifies the vibes. Rose Tarlow’s Plinth stone coffee table grounds the TRNK modular Maura sofa over a Winnow collection rug from Armadillo. Photos by John Merkl.

Shapely wood, brass and stone components appear throughout the house, such as the LOC dining chairs from Stahl + Band that surround the unconventional, multi-angled custom dining table fabricated by Tomlinson Woodworks. In the wife’s cocoon-like home office, drenched in Farrow & Ball’s Dead Salmon and capped with a pink-hued raw silk ceiling treatment, an oversize black-and-white photo of Stevie Wonder from the Morrison Hotel Gallery makes for another delightful surprise, whether it’s sinking into TRNK’s deep Maura modular sofa IRL or spotting the vignette via Zoom.

K Interiors designed a custom bed made by Hardesty Dwyer & Co. flanked by Thomas Hayes Studio Murphy nightstands and Anyon Atelier table lamps. Swivel chairs from Coup D’Etat are upholstered in a cozy Rosemary Hallgarten Glam Bouclé and paired with a Milo Baughman Drum coffee table that incorporates a toned-down glam moment. Photos by John Merkl.
A quiet yet intense image by John Casado hangs above the vintage stool sourced from Love Adorned in New York. The rug is from Marc Phillips. Photos by John Merkl.

“She gave us free reign to embrace contemporary makers and artists’ creative points of view,” Peña says. Anything expected or ho-hum was a nonstarter. “We won the lottery in that she loved the uniqueness as much as we did.”