HOME TO STAY

A CALIFORNIA COUPLE MAKE WAVES WITH COASTAL STYLE THAT PUSHES THEM TO STAY PUT

- KRISSA ROSSBUND

After living in their Newport Beach, California, home for more than 20 years, Drew and Karen Warmington thought the time was right for a different house. Their home was loaded with happy memories of raising three children there, but it was also heavy in once-charming country interiors that had evolved to tired and dated.

With their new title of "empty nesters," Drew and Karen found excitement in the thought of living in another house.

"We looked and looked but nothing fit," Karen says. "When we talked about what we wanted, we kept going back to the details of the house that we already had. We decided that all it needed was a renovation and a fresh take that would blend our old treasures against a new background." 

Many of the treasures that dotted their existing interiors were gifts from Drew's father. While stationed in Frankfurt, Germany, in the 1960s, he spent weekends combing European antiques markets. His passion trickled down to Drew and Karen, and throughout their own travels, hunting for old pieces proved their favorite on-the-road activity.

So, regardless of the visual path designer Valerie Saunders decided to take, weaving the character-rich antiques throughout their home was mandatory.

"We cataloged everything," Saunders says of the Warmingtons' cherished inventory. "They had quite a collection that included several pieces of artwork that would eventually inform the fabrics and wallpapers. This project wasn't about buying everything new but creating an updated ground that would make their most important pieces shine." 

It's most common for designers to make paint selections last, but Saunders elevated that task to the top of the list, understanding that using the color palette to highlight artwork was especially important. Blue is a natural go-to in Newport Beach.