Bohemian guesthouse in the California desert

Three friends from Los Angeles bought an abandoned house in the desert with a hammer and turned it into a cozy retreat from the hustle and bustle.
None of the three owners of this Airbnb-rentable guesthouse are professional architects or designers. Max Ostrov is a TV producer, Eric Bach is an entrepreneur, Alexandra Piotrowski is a landscape design student and owner of the popular Instagram account West and Wild. In it, she collects various examples of architecture and design that reflect the author's love for escapist interiors for a life at a relaxed pace.

Friends decided to come up with a joint project that would help monetize the Instagram account, which at that time had more than 50,000 subscribers. So the idea was born to arrange a space for recreation and events, and a suitable house was discovered at an auction, where it was purchased for mere pennies. The building, located on a vast site in the Yucca Valley, a desert area in western California, was in dire condition, but it had several important advantages: high ceilings, preserved wood paneling, a pool and a mezzanine with a gable roof.

The transformation of the hacienda was supervised by Aleksandra Piotrowski. One of her original ideas was painting the pool with abstract patterns, reminiscent of cacti growing around. Minimalist sun loungers and flat concrete slabs stand out against the gravel-strewn courtyard. The main space inside the house was a spacious living room with a nine-meter-high ceiling: the walls of the room were painted white, and the wooden ceiling was left unchanged. A mustard-colored velvet sofa and a huge chandelier successfully adjust the proportions of the living room.
The mezzanine features an ethnic loft with built-in perimeter benches, patterned rugs and colorful cushions. The benches are designed in such a way that they can serve as additional sleeping places. Despite the penchant for laconic interior design, the authors did not use white walls everywhere. Instead, they opted for textured plaster in warm colors, which lends the rooms a rustic charm. There are many craft details here: stools and tables made of uneven slabs of wood, wicker baskets, artisan ceramics. Vibrant abstract canvases and figurative works by contemporary artists - some from the personal collection of Eric Bach - make the interior feel familiar and charismatic.