“The way the light moves in the desert is not something you just see,you feel it,”says Malibu-based designer Sarah Solis, whose serene and earthy restoration of one of the first homes built in the low-lands of the Sawtooth mountain range,just outside of Joshua Tree in Pioneertown California is refreshingly pared-back and supremely stylish.

This home transcends a feeling of calmness,with a gold-tinged serenity that is visible throughout.Each detail and corner becomes an anecdote of something larger.Transformative in the way she has injected new life into this historic home, the 1935 house built from adobe – traditional clay bricks – brims with easy charm and barefoot luxe that is both other-worldly and familiar.

Whilst the house is built from adobe bricks made from the mountains nearby,Solis, steadfast in her mission to ensure that the rest of the space felt cohesive with the original 1935 structure, focused on a materials that felt at home on the outskirts of California.Adobe, salvaged stone, lime plaster finishes, wood and that delicate, barely-there rounded edge that lends both softness and luxury are evident throughout the home.“I loved playing on the inherent minimalism of the adobe material, while pairing with understated yet luxurious antiques and lush unassuming textiles,”explains the designer.

From sustainable finishes to lighting and furniture, the décor has been collected or sourced from flea markets, showrooms and from specialized crafts people from all around the world.   Here, the past and the present come together with utmost ease.   For example, the principal bathroom sink is an 18th century Evier from a vineyard in the village of Claremont l’Herault in the South of France, its patrimony accentuated by brass mirror and brass light fixtures with repurposed antique glass insulators, all handcrafted in a small workshop in England.   

The designer also commissioned key pieces such as the living room sofa and the beds, built-in, in true adobe style from local makers.The house opens up to its magnificent surroundings from every side – large windows, skylights and sleek glass panels, all framed in wood or black metal, blur the lines between the inside and the outdoors.