This Small California Cottage is Brimming with Big Style
With pared-down furnishings and functional collections, a Santa Barbara couple made the most of every square inch of their quaint (1,300 sq. ft.!) casita.
Too small. Those were the words that Kelley and Greg Motschenbacher, who already have a beautiful ranch in Ojai, uttered after touring their Santa Barbara soon-to-be dream home five years ago. While there were plenty of pros to the property—a lush and private lot, gorgeous Pacific Ocean and downtown views, quintessential 1920s Spanish Colonial architecture—the couple could not get past the fact that the two-bedroom, one-bathroom bungalow was just a tad too little. On top of the minimal square footage, the house also needed practical electrical and heating updates. “We thanked the agent and walked out the door,” says Kelley. “Of course, once we got back in the car, we couldn’t stop talking about it.”
After halfheartedly looking at four other, larger properties, the Motschenbachers returned to the blue-and-white casita on that pretty (if not overgrown) piece of land. Kelley, a designer and Greg, a project manager, realized that the home’s boundless potential outweighed the negatives of a tiny footprint. “It just needed some love,” says Kelley. While Kelley had to think long and hard every time she brought a piece into a small room, she says she wouldn’t trade small-scale living for all the square footage in the world. She’s been there, done that.
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