Amber Lewis’s New Book Calls Carmel Home
Words by Angela Salazar
Photos by Shade Degges, courtesy of Clarkson Potter
When interior designer Amber Lewis was first approached by renowned architectural firm Backen and Backen about collaborating on a beachside build in Carmel, it was a “pinch-me moment,” she says in her new book, Call It Home: The Details That Matter (Clarkson Potter), hitting shelves October 17.
The celebrity designer, known for her laid-back, Californian-cool approach—which has attracted a loyal fanbase of more than 1.8 million on her Instagram account @amberinteriors—eagerly embarked on the years-long endeavor, which would ultimately become one of just eight projects chosen for her second book (Lewis’s first, Made For Living was a national bestseller), earning a top spot in the tome alongside Lewis’s own Los Angeles abode.
Call It Home takes a deep dive into the oft-overlooked details that elevate a room. In it, Lewis shares her secrets for transforming spaces from four walls to forever loves, offering tips for sifting through the noise of the Internet in order to hone in on one’s personal style, and a framework to apply to any project. Studded with nuggets of design wisdom on everything from built-ins to bunk beds to wall finishes, Call It Home is a treasure trove of information and inspiration, with 288 pages of lush photos and resources. The featured homes span the United States, but, local biases aside, “Client: Never Leaving’ ‘Cause the Views Are so Freakin’ Pleasin’” may be the most enviable of all.
“Our surroundings should influence how we design our homes.”
<div class="quote-attribute">Amber Lewis</div>
Named after Lewis’s Instagram hashtag for the project, “Client: Never Leaving’ ‘Cause the Views Are so Freakin’ Pleasin’” is actually two dreamy beachfront homes built from the ground up for a quickly growing, multi-generational family. Situated on the bluffs of Carmel, each home offers jaw-dropping views—there’s the Boardwalk House, overlooking the world famous Pebble Beach Golf Links, and the Beach House, which stuns with its 180-degree water views—and beautifully showcases Lewis’s belief that “our surroundings should influence how we design our homes.” Working closely with the architects to incorporate each design element into Carmel’s breathtaking landscape, Lewis utilized earthy colors and textural materials, carefully avoiding beachy cliches and instead deconstructing the idea with sand-matched neutrals and soft furnishings to balance the homes’ steel, glass and stone constructs. The resulting juxtaposition perfectly captures—and never competes with—the location’s natural surroundings.
From the soaring white oak ceilings to the warm plaster walls, vintage Pierre Jeanneret cane dining chairs to the show-stopping Nero Marquina black marble bathtub that had to be hoisted in with a crane, Lewis describes every design decision in detail. Down to perhaps the most quintessentially Carmel feature: Motorized drapery on the Boardwalk House’s movable steel-and-glass walls to prevent golfers on the eleventh hole of Pebble Beach from seeing in.
Because sometimes everyone needs a little privacy, even when the views are this freakin’ pleasin’.
“Working on this project has been one of the most amazing opportunities I have ever been given,” Lewis effused on Instagram. “Amazing clients, incredible contractors, and I can’t say enough about my love for Luca [Pignata, the architect]. This whole team has been a dream.” Later adding, “I still can't believe we ACTUALLY left #clientneverleavincausetheviewsaretoofreakinpleasin.”
Read more about the project in Amber Lewis’s Call It Home: The Details That Matter (Clarkson Potter). Available October 17 at booksellers nationwide. <img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6457f19f1c1e1601e2c9c3f6/6487a9355b63a6818c705cea_CC-Icon--20.svg"alt="CC"height="20" width="20">
