The little house that grew twice: how to meet the needs of an expanding family

Sunset, June, 2003 by Jil Peters

Standing at the counter of her sunny kitchen in Pacific Palisades, California, Leslie Woolley is on the phone organizing a school event while directing traffic--Hannah, 11; Jack, 9; and Robbie, 7--and somehow managing to make this nosy Sunset writer feel entirely welcome. The open, airy home, which was renovated in two phases as the family expanded and the children grew older, is the perfect platform for this bustling family of five--six if you count Freddie, the recently rescued Lhasa apso and terrier mix. "I caved," Woolley admits.

The 2,700-square-foot home is "a kid-friendly house," she says. "Hardwood floors run everywhere--there is no carpeting the kids can ruin. The layout is terrific. From the kitchen I can look out and see the kids playing in the front yard and the backyard." On weekends, breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served on the patio. There are no screens on the windows or doors. "We don't have a lot of bugs here," Woolley explains.

When Woolley and husband Michael Rogers bought the one-story, Cape Cod-inspired cottage in 1994--a job transfer brought them here from New York-it had two bedrooms and one and a half bathrooms. They knew that they would need to adjust the house to meet the needs of their family of four (Robbie was yet to come), but they didn't want an addition to eat into the big backyard, a feature they loved.

The first renovation

The first remodel began in the fall of '95. "The house is on a nice corner lot with a deep garden," says architect Michael Sant, "but the detached garage sat right in the middle of it all." Both the kitchen and the family room looked directly onto the garage--6 feet away--where the rear patio is today. The garage was torn down and a new one was attached to the house; a master suite was added above the garage. The addition gave the house an L-shaped plan, and no backyard space was lost.

The family lived in the house while the first renovation was taking place. "I was pregnant and feeling awful," Woolley says. She can distinctly recall a construction worker announcing, "I don't think I've ever seen anyone lie down and take a nap in the middle of a construction site." The family had a makeshift bathroom with exposed 2-by-4s and a temporary tub surrounded by black plastic sheeting. "I remember looking up from the shower one day and realizing that the construction workers could see right down on me," Woolley says. "It was hideous, but it's like childbirth--you live through it and then you forget how bad it was. It's all worth it in the end."

Little of the original home was altered in the first renovation. For six years, the family lived happily in their new space.

The second renovation

"We began the second renovation because the fridge broke," Woolley explains. It was the home's original refrigerator and was unusually small. "We could not find any fridge that would fit in the space--and we weren't looking for a grand, oversize one. We started discussing bumping out the kitchen wall." As often happens in remodeling, one seemingly small decision led to much larger ones: the couple began to rethink the entire kitchen and the neighboring family room. Before long, they also were considering an additional bedroom.

The project may have taken on a life of its own, but it never grew out of control. "We were conscientious not to build too big a house for the lot," Woolley says. The family added space, but the greatest gains in efficiency came from Sant's reconfiguration of the existing spaces. He removed the maze of doors that had connected the living/dining space, the tiny family room, and the kitchen. The fireplace was grouped with built-in cabinetry to create a freestanding unit that the spaces flow around; it provides enough separation to create distinct rooms, but it also allows for visual connections.

"Everyone thinks we made the kitchen much bigger," Woolley says, "but we only added 2 feet to its length." Small windows--crowded by cabinets--were replaced by three large windows. All of the upper cabinets were moved to the opposite wall in place of a doorway. "It was surprising how such minor changes made the kitchen feel more spacious," Sant says.

The first addition incorporated qualities of the original house but was more modern. The second time around, the couple carried details from the addition throughout the home. For example, the original painted double-hung windows were replaced with simple Douglas fir frames, which hold casement and hopper (top-in) windows. "A repose emerged just by simplifying the windows," Sant says.

DESIGN: Sant Architects, Venice, GA (310/396-4828)

LANDSCAPE: Griffith and Cletta, Venice (310/399-4727).

RELATED ARTICLE: The house expanded with the family

Original floor plan A separate garage blocked the home's connection to the backyard.

Phase one An attached garage with a master suite on top replaced the original garage.

Phase two Two bedrooms were added upstairs. Downstairs, connections between living and family room were opened up.