Working outside the box is part of the gig for a pedigreed interior designer like Lane McNab, who has created stylish, comfortable homes for a Who’s Who of notable figures in the Bay Area and beyond.
But when a business executive and founder of a charitable organization in Africa asked McNab to completely furnish his cozy 1930s Spanish cottage in Berkeley in six weeks, she wondered what she had gotten herself into. “It was stressful,” she confesses. “I wasn’t sure we could do it.”
In addition, the client’s assistant oversaw the project. In fact, Lane and her team didn’t meet the homeowner during the design process. “I’m such a people reader that it was a bit more challenging to have his reaction filtered through another person,” McNab explains.
To have any hope of meeting the aggressive schedule, she had to change up her usual approach, skipping steps, pulling staff off other projects, calling in favors and selecting items that would not only ship quickly but also reflect the minimalist Italian-Modern-meets-Mediterranean design her client envisioned.
Communicating through his assistant, the client did his part to meet the deadline, quickly approving McNab’s proposed design, which included minimal contemporary furnishings rendered in a dreamy palette of neutrals, punctuated by soft, nature-inspired hues. Warm finishes such as aged brass, and rich textiles like mohair, velvet and linen, further enrich the interior.
Naturally, compromises had to be made. While the client originally envisioned a larger sofa for the living room, he acquiesced to a more diminutive one that would meet the deadline. Its curvaceous lines reflect the home’s arches while beautifully juxtaposing the linear furnishings.
The circular cutouts in the dining table’s iron base likewise play off the lines in the room’s dynamic modern brass chandelier, which arrived two weeks later than they had hoped. “We all agreed it was worth the wait,” McNab admits.
And a rounded, upholstered wingback headboard evokes a sense of comfort in the client’s bedroom, which McNab designed to be worry-free in every sense. For example, she layered drapery over woven blackout shades. “When you travel internationally as much as he does, your internal clock can get jumbled,” McNab explains. “Sometimes you need to be able to block out the sun.”
Surprising even herself, McNab and her team completed the bulk of the project by the aggressive deadline – a record for the firm. Later, she finally met her client in person, giving her the opportunity to see for herself how he felt about the result. “He was very happy,” she explains, noting she feels the same way about the expedited project. “This is a home I would love to live in.”
Photography by John Merkl.
Architecture by Alex Bergtraun.
Like what you see? Get it first with a subscription to aspire design and home magazine.