1933 Murphy Home Turns Modern
Written by: Lisa Crawford Watson
This 1933 house, crafted by the Carmel Development Company, was old but not historic, remodeled but not contemporary. The design revealed a valid use of space for the era, but the cramped layout curtailed the interaction customary to a current lifestyle. Particularly in a vacation home. Moreover, the finishes were dated, the roof was beyond repair, and moisture issues had compromised the structure. Still, the buyers had a sense of what it could be with the right vacation home remodeling team. So did John Lewis.
Nearly 90 years after Michael J. Murphy designed and built a Dolores Street bungalow to house a 1930s lifestyle, John Lewis worked with the enduring architecture in renovating the cottage to suit a contemporary life. It was the ultimate collaboration between two Carmel design-builders.
“Our goal,” said Lewis, “was to maintain the Carmel character of the house but get rid of the funk and turn it into a more fluid floor-plan, with seamless transitions throughout the space. This was our vision, our challenge, and our outcome.”
Beginning with the entrance to the home. An undulation of steps down from the street, up into the house, and back down into the kitchen was simplified by elevating the patio and entry to the main level of the house. The introduction of a shed dormer enabled the entrance to accommodate a full-sized front door.
The front entrance now welcomes guests with flow and fluidity, maximizing space for entertaining in a bright and airy atmosphere.
The kitchen was expanded and framed windows were introduced which welcomed space and light to the room. It now opens to an upper deck through a patio door and Fold-A-Door windows above the farm sink, which open to a bar top outside.
The lower level, accessed via an open staircase crafted of black shiplap set in a unique chevron pattern, opens to a television lounge, built-in beverage center, and new laundry room. The expanded bathroom and laundry room, previously reached only through an intrusion on the bedroom, are now accessible from the main living space, and the bedroom now opens onto the lower deck.
The exterior also got a modern facelift with metal roof and a new upper deck off the kitchen, to enhance the view to the sea.
“I could see, in its prime, the house had merit,” said the new owners. “But it needed an intervention. We realized, if we could renovate the house with Lewis Builders, the place would become our masterpiece.”
