"You have to take advantage of the outdoors when you live in Southern California," Barber says. "I really like to encourage people to go outside." To create a substantial backyard space, Barber pulled the house closer to the street. This allows for a closed front for privacy and room in the back for a pool, patio and spacious yard. Like most Southern California hillsides, this particular neighborhood is part of a fire zone, so wood houses are not allowed. Barber used manmade shingles for fire protection on the exterior, but worked with the layering and spacing of each piece to make it look as natural as possible. The chimneys are made of a lightweight manmade stone product to take additional weight off of the roof.