Dream Houses Can Come True

With a baby on the way, the Edgecumbes found their perfect nest in Playa Vista

By Stephanie Case

In 2014, Brent and Megan Edgecumbe were straddling two monumental firsts: buying their first home and expecting their first baby.

Three-months pregnant and on the real estate hunt, the two scoured Playa Vista, signing waiting lists and eyeing new developments, all as Megan’s due date inched closer.

But on their tour of Capri Court — a Phase One cul-de-sac, circled by a range of Mediterranean-style, single-family homes — one tiny room sealed the deal.

On the top floor was a nursery, complete with powder blue walls and white wainscoting.

“It was just so precious, that room,” Megan says. “We stepped in, and we thought, ‘This is our little boy’s room. It’s meant to be.’”

Ever since 2009, when she landed a job in town as an academic adviser at Loyola Marymount University, Megan dreamed of buying a home and starting her family in Playa Vista.

“I remember seeing this happy land of people walking around with baby strollers and big smiles on their faces,” she says. “I remember thinking, ‘What is this place? I want to live here.’”

That thought lingered on Megan’s mind for five years; one day, it came to a head. When she and her husband found toxic, black mold in their walls of their Santa Monica apartment, they traded their beachfront pad for the Playa Vista dream.

The Edgecumbes rented a spot at the Ventana until they found their townhouse with the blue nursery. Then, with their son’s due date months away, the couple embarked on a last-minute challenge: to revamp the new space in time for his arrival.

They tapped Made & Co. — a Venice-based interior design company headed by their friend, Marissa Cramer — for the job.

Cramer kept the integrity of the structure and its architecture intact, but gave it a contemporary facelift.

On the first floor her team ripped out a set of bulky, dark built-in cabinets, replacing them with sleek industrial shelving units made of mango wood and steel, giving the guest bedroom a touch of modernity.

Upstairs, she installed a geometric light fixture, which now shines over a rustic wood dining table. The adjacent kitchen is a vision of white: white subway tile, a custom white quartz island and original cabinetry lacquered in bright white paint.

A farmhouse sink overlooks a large family room layered with neutral-toned furniture — from twin ivory chairs to a massive, gray-patterned rug.

Despite the muted palette, pieces of the Edgecumbes’ personality pop through.

Beachy accents — bathrooms wallpapered in seagrass, starfish perched upon bookcases, nautical knots framed on the wall — bring back some of the aura of their old oceanside lifestyle.

“We loved living in Santa Monica with the beach in front of us, and we wanted to bring that feel here,” Megan says.

The one room Cramer didn’t renovate was the nursery. Megan kept that design to herself, spending long nights combing the internet for the perfect crib set — and even the perfect wooden sailboat, in keeping with her seaside theme.

“I think most pregnant woman can understand that nesting instinct,” Megan says. “It’s such a special time when you’re eagerly awaiting your first child. You have no idea what’s in store for you.”

In April of last year, Callum was born, and the Egdecumbes’ world changed.

Even after dusk, with their now 18-month-old son sound asleep upstairs, their house beams with his energy. Dozens of children’s books spill across the coffee table. Wooden trains snake along the floor.

Megan points out a vase filled with beachy, wooden sticks, which appear slightly mangled. “He loves to grab and break them,” she laughs. “That’s a toddler for you.”

With a rambunctious son, the Egdecumbes’ pristine, ivory-colored decor can be seen as a daring choice — a recipe for stains and handprints.

“I think, had we do it again, we wouldn’t go with so many creams,” she says. “We’re new parents, and we’re learning.”

But the Edgecumbes believe a little wear and tear is a small price to pay for a loving home.

“I feel like it’s a house well lived in if you have to replace your sofa after ten years, because it’s been loved on by so many kids and so many storytimes. Hopefully,” she smiles, “we’ll have more than one kid beating up on the furniture.”