Tour a Converted Garage With Style Inspired by Mexico
An ADU serves as a guest cottage, children’s play space, laundry room and more
This former two-car garage in Studio City, California, serves a lot of functions for the grandmother who owns it thanks to help from her talented daughter, interior designer Abby Guild, and Mario and Marisela Arechiga of design-build firm New Generation Home Builders. The uses for the accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, include guest cottage, grandchildren’s rec room, laundry room, storage room and temporary digs for the homeowner when she eventually renovates her home. Inspired by a recent trip to Tulum, Mexico, the building is light and bright with layers of natural materials.
After: “It’s a challenge to convert a space that was intended for a car into a living space,” Marisela says. They had to reinforce the walls and pour a new, appropriately leveled concrete slab to make it suitable for people. They conditioned the new space with a mini-split heating and air-conditioning unit.
Guild, her mother and her sister had taken a trip to Tulum just before the project began. “It inspired us to do something really fun out here,” Guild says. “We used Mexico as a jumping-off point for the design, which is worldly and full of natural, organic materials.”
Having to pour a new slab was fortuitous. “My mother originally wanted saltillo tile out here, but we realized it would be less expensive and easier to use the concrete to get a natural terra-cotta look,” Guild says. This was achieved by adding pigment to the concrete. “They really nailed that aged, faded-by-the-sun, mottled terra-cotta look,” she says.
Another goal was to make the space light and bright. French doors let in lots of light, and the wood finish adds warmth and character to the space.
Guild, her mother and her sister had taken a trip to Tulum just before the project began. “It inspired us to do something really fun out here,” Guild says. “We used Mexico as a jumping-off point for the design, which is worldly and full of natural, organic materials.”
Having to pour a new slab was fortuitous. “My mother originally wanted saltillo tile out here, but we realized it would be less expensive and easier to use the concrete to get a natural terra-cotta look,” Guild says. This was achieved by adding pigment to the concrete. “They really nailed that aged, faded-by-the-sun, mottled terra-cotta look,” she says.
Another goal was to make the space light and bright. French doors let in lots of light, and the wood finish adds warmth and character to the space.
Taking the ceiling all the way up to the roofline was another big factor in making the space bright. Casement windows and skylights let in the sunlight. Tongue-and-groove paneling on the ceiling adds texture. “The ceiling is stunningly beautiful,” Guild says. “This space is more contemporary than the main house. But the ceiling nods to its cottage style.”
On the left, a long row of built-ins provides storage. To the right, the Arechigas helped the homeowner cross a huge item off her wish list: getting her washer and dryer out of her kitchen.
“The ADU is so open and airy — we didn’t want to fill it up with furniture such as side chairs on either side of the sofa,” Guild says. This leaves room to convert the sofa into a bed with ease, and for the grandchildren to spread out their toys, games and craft projects on the jute area rug. The throw pillows and baskets on the wall add bright color, natural materials and a worldly vibe.
Browse sleeper sofas in the Houzz Shop
On the left, a long row of built-ins provides storage. To the right, the Arechigas helped the homeowner cross a huge item off her wish list: getting her washer and dryer out of her kitchen.
“The ADU is so open and airy — we didn’t want to fill it up with furniture such as side chairs on either side of the sofa,” Guild says. This leaves room to convert the sofa into a bed with ease, and for the grandchildren to spread out their toys, games and craft projects on the jute area rug. The throw pillows and baskets on the wall add bright color, natural materials and a worldly vibe.
Browse sleeper sofas in the Houzz Shop
The storage cabinets have caned doors, which layer in another natural texture. “We chose reeded caning with a tight weave to conceal the plastic bins and other things behind them,” Guild says. The black paper containers in the center are full of the grandchildren’s toys and craft supplies. It’s easy for them to pull them out and put everything away when done.
Mexican artisans crafted the copper verdigris sconces. They add a dash of color to the white walls.
Tip: Casement windows are a good choice over built-ins or a countertop because it’s easy to reach over and crank them open.
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Mexican artisans crafted the copper verdigris sconces. They add a dash of color to the white walls.
Tip: Casement windows are a good choice over built-ins or a countertop because it’s easy to reach over and crank them open.
Hire a cabinet pro
This added shed provides storage for the larger and messier pieces of landscaping equipment that were displaced during the renovation.
The homeowner already had the skirt that conceals the washer-dryer, in the form of longer curtains. “We had these left over from another project and decided the fabric and tassels worked really well with the Mexican-inspired look,” Guild says. She had them tailored to fit.
A waterfall countertop provides a spot for folding clothes and for plants to thrive by the window.
A waterfall countertop provides a spot for folding clothes and for plants to thrive by the window.
The vintage painted tins are from Mexico.
As for bringing laundry out from the house, the homeowner doesn’t consider it a schlep. The weather is mild and she enjoys spending time in the new space. “It’s only about 20 steps to carry laundry out here, and she loves to hang out in this space. It’s so bright and airy,” Guild says.
The little kitchenette area was a later addition by New Generation. “They knew my mother would need this when she stayed out here during the main house renovation,” Guild says.
Shop for a planter
The little kitchenette area was a later addition by New Generation. “They knew my mother would need this when she stayed out here during the main house renovation,” Guild says.
Shop for a planter
The kitchenette’s sink also comes in handy for working on laundry stains and handwashing.
The colorful mat is woven from reclaimed lobster ropes, and the bright ceramic planter works well with its colors.
The colorful mat is woven from reclaimed lobster ropes, and the bright ceramic planter works well with its colors.
Guild sourced these vintage Mexican saloon doors from an architectural salvage dealer in Texas. They add patina and a sense of age to the space. Mario extended the doors, which were too short for the height of a standard door opening. “Mario added extra wood to the bottom. He painted and distressed them to match so that you’d never know,” Guild says. “He always went the extra mile with TLC and attention to detail. This made the process so much more fun.”
“At first we were going to install the doors on a sliding barn door track, but Mario had the idea to embrace the fact that we had two of them. It was a great idea,” Guild says.
She sourced the vintage door hardware from a seller in Eastern Europe. “This door is 100 years old and this hardware looks like it’s always been a part of them,” she says.
She sourced the vintage door hardware from a seller in Eastern Europe. “This door is 100 years old and this hardware looks like it’s always been a part of them,” she says.
In the small bathroom, it was all about saving space to make everything feel airy. Guild sourced a wall-mounted sink and toilet to save floor space. She had the medicine cabinet custom made out of reclaimed wood, bringing more patina into the room. And she tapped a metalworker to create the towel rack. Two wooden pegs on the wall hold robes, towels or even extra rolls of toilet paper. “All of these things, plus the higher ceiling, make this little room feel plenty roomy,” Guild says.
Tongue-and-groove wainscoting adds texture to the walls. The light fixture, made of woven reeds, is a nod to Tulum.
Tongue-and-groove wainscoting adds texture to the walls. The light fixture, made of woven reeds, is a nod to Tulum.
“All of the tile in the bathroom is handmade,” Guild says. The hand-painted tile in the niche and the matching mustard tiles near the shower floor are from Portugal. The white field tiles were made in California.
“We weren’t trying to replicate the look of Tulum, but it inspired us to use natural, organic materials and bright, happy colors,” Guild says. “We also wanted to tie into the main house’s cottage-y style. Though now that my mother has fallen in love with the ADU, she wants the main house to look more like this when she renovates it.”
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“We weren’t trying to replicate the look of Tulum, but it inspired us to use natural, organic materials and bright, happy colors,” Guild says. “We also wanted to tie into the main house’s cottage-y style. Though now that my mother has fallen in love with the ADU, she wants the main house to look more like this when she renovates it.”
More on Houzz
Read more stories about ADUs
Hire a local design pro
Shop for your home
Cottage at a Glance
Who lives here: A woman who loves spending time with her grandchildren
Location: Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles
Size: 325 square feet (30 square meters)
Designer: Abby Guild
Contractor: Mario and Marisela Arechiga of New Generation Home Improvements
Before: This photo shows the garage during the demolition phase. “The main house is a little cottage from the 1940s with lots of really cool antiques, and she wanted to do something different and fun with the ADU,” Guild says. The original plan was to use it as a grandchildren’s recreation room, laundry room and storage. “New Generation Home Builders recommended making it a true ADU because they knew it would be in my mother’s best interest,” Guild says.
Not only did an ADU increase the value of her property, but it’s also served as a home school pod for grandchildren on a weekly basis, a guest cottage for family and a place where the homeowner will stay when she renovates the main house.
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