Sérendipité Spring Entertaining Must-Haves

 1.  OUTDOOR MARKET UMBRELLA IN RESORT STRIPE COBALT BY FRONTGATE  2. HEALDSBURG NAPKINS (SET OF FOUR) BY SERENA & LILY  3. OCEANA PLATTERS BY ANTHROPOLOGIE  4.  CITRUS BOWLS (SET OF FOUR) BY WILLIAMS SONOMA  5.  CITRUS RUG (GD-GRANT I-O) BY JAIPUR RUG  6. VINTAGE STRING LIGHTS BY BALLARD DESIGNS  7. RIVIERA BAR BY SERENA & LILY  8.  OPEN KITCHEN CARAFE & TUMBLERS BY WILLIAMS SONOMA

Nothing pronounces, “spring is here” like warmer weather, progressively longer days, and my Mourning Doves!

All of these things mean the outdoor entertaining season is among us. To add to the spring ambiance in our design office, this past week we have been busy gathering ideas for several lovely clients that want to jazz up their patio for the season. What brings friends and family together more than hosting a gathering?  Why not celebrate your day or weekend dining outdoors with the ones you love?

For me, Spring is a reminder that it is the simple things that make for a joyful life.  There are two Mourning Doves who choose my patio to build their nest every year who remind me of this notion every day. For some it may seem silly, but these two small birds enliven me and remind me to slow down and take time to appreciate nature and enjoy every day to its fullest. Since they returned to my backyard a few weeks ago, I have found myself eating lunch outside every day on my best dishes. I have found myself taking a short lunch break to bask in the sun, and listen to the birds sing.

You all know how much I love to cook and entertain and I believe that every dining experience should be delicious and special. I am excited to get my backyard entertainment ready so I can enjoy the season with my family and friends.

To inspire you we thought we would share a few of Sérendipité’s must-haves to make your outdoor gatherings this spring and summer extra special. Also see below the delicious spicy pineapple coconut cocktail recipe that will impress your guests.

Happy Designing and Happy Spring!

xo,

Sérendipité

Roof Top Living

Just imagine dining alfresco at the end of a hard day’s work on a rooftop with an ocean view. We are smitten with this gorgeous rooftop patio and front yard patio we recently designed in Newport Beach! We have been engaged in designing many outdoor spaces this year and it is so much fun. I find myself getting lost in spaces like this. It truly is a blessing to be working with clients that have gorgeous homes and trust us to design spectacular spaces for them to retreat.

The patio furnishings are a blend of Henry Hall Designs from San Francisco and Royal Botania. The Eco Smart fire places are from Brown Jordan and the custom made outdoor area rugs are from our friends at Stark.

Enjoy the view!

xo,

Sérendipité

to view photos of the interior of this beautiful home visit our Houzz page

Photography by Melissa Brandman

California Dreaming

Who said design was all about the indoors?!  Especially when you live in beautiful, sunny, southern California. 

This is a sneak peek at one of our latest and very inspiring backyard renovations.  This stunning makeover (from start to finish) was more than a year in the making. Luckily the space was finished just in time for the onset of Spring!

This backyard renovation is complete with an outdoor, covered living area, a barbeque and undercounted refrigerator, a beautiful full size concrete-top dining table, custom concrete benches and lounging platforms with comfortable padded cushions, a gorgeous pool with a lighted water feature, and one of my favorite parts of all, a fire pit to roast s’mores.  This backyard overhaul was accompanied by a room addition behind the garage for the client’s teenage daughters to hang out and entertain friends.  This lounging “teen room” has its own bathroom and kitchenette, but the most special part of this room (in my opinion) are the La Cantina doors that open up with views of the pool, making the entire room feel like part of the outdoors.

We hope todays blog will get you in the mindset of Spring and encourage you to spend a little more time outdoors this weekend!

Happy Designing!

xo,

Sérendipité

2000 Kings Road

At Sérendipité we have had the awesome opportunity to be a part of a very exciting new development with Shoreline Developers.  We have teamed up with the owner, Jim Cefalia, to design an extraordinary new home in the very beautiful and prestigious neighborhood of Newport Heights in Newport Beach, California.

Jim included us in every decision of construction and design and was hands on in the process with us.  We carefully selected each textile and thought through every design element and detail as a team.  This home was a year in the making and we are tickled about the final presentation and feel so blessed to have been a part of this very exciting design journey.

Happy Designing!

xo,

Sérendipité

Extended Living

It seems more and more these days we have requests from our clients to help design outdoor living spaces.  Extending the functional square footage of a home to overflow to the outdoors is becoming an inspiring trend. 

Everyone loves pool parties and family BBQ’s but beyond that, think year-round al fresco dining, relaxing on a lounge chair next to a soothing water feature, warming up and toasting s’mores by a cozy fire pit, and watching Sunday football with a group of friends on a big screen under a shaded patio.

Some of our favorite outdoor furnishings come from the dreamy Henry Hall Designs and the more affordable Sunset West.

The lovely outdoor FLOW Collection from Henry Hall Designs.  Made of 100% recycled aluminum & teak. 

We are so lucky to live in a climate with continuous, year-round beautiful weather and we think, why not take full advantage?

Happy Designing!

xo,

Sérendipité

image credits:  Houzz & Henry Hall Designs