Rooted in reverence for craft and place, this project brings together a shared appreciation for natural materials, design, and spaces shaped by hand. Built in 1959 by Californian artist JB Blunk using local stone and timber, this iconic home is a testament to the intuitive use of what the land offered.

Curator and design historian, Mariah Nielson, JB Blunk's daughter, spent her childhood here, a space that she now shares with her own family, raising her son in the same environment that deeply informed her eye of form and material. 

Softening the unique entrance and book-filled living room, our rugs echo the warming tones found in the home's locally-sourced redwood timber. Greta van der Star visited Mariah at home, photographing our Bamboo Silk and Wool Blend Rug in Brick and our Braided Jute Entrance Rug in Natural.

Can you tell us about your personal journey with the JB Blunk house? Are there any moments from your own childhood that now seep into your son's daily life by living here?

I was born in the house in 1978 and so the place has truly imprinted itself into my psyche. The forms and smells all bring back memories and at times the nostalgia can almost be too much. The front door is one of my favorite details of the house. It’s made from two massive slabs of redwood, and you slide it open by pulling on a smooth, perfectly patinaed, Bishop Pine handle. It rumbles open and close. Opening the door is a dramatic gesture whether I’m inviting friends in for dinner or taking out the trash. 

My son’s room is the little loft in the house. This was also my room and my brother’s room before that. Lampshades that my brothers made are still there and so is the desk that I drew all over (“New Kids Suck”, “I love Ben Eastman”, etc). Impressively, the glow-in-the-dark star stickers I applied to the ceiling in 1988 are still in place!

Living with so many different timbers must be a soothing experience! Can you tell us about some of the other materials or textures that you have brought into your home?

The interior of the home has changed quite a bit since I started managing my father’s estate in 2007. I emptied out the house in 2007 and cleaned every nook and cranny. Nature was taking over. I put back just a few essentials for the artists in residence and so over the years visiting artists and friends and have made things for the home: chairs, stools, cushions, a bed, an artwork. I’d say I’ve brought a layer of new art, design and craft that relates to, and in some cases incorporates materials from, our land and home. 

In relation to the rug, how does it feel to live on and around the colour 'brick'? and how does this colour interact with the different timbers in your home? 

The Nodi rug lives in a bedroom that is all redwood – the floors, walls, beams, and most of the furniture. The ‘brick’ rug blends in so beautifully with the rich umbers and reds in the room. It’s also so delightful to have an expansive soft surface in the home! 

Have you noticed any shift in the space, as in how it is utilised, since you laid the rug down? 

My son loves to play on the rug, and I now have a place to lounge so it’s brought a lot more life to this corner of the home. Before, that area was basically a gallery for several of my father’s pieces (a chair and side tables); the addition of the rug created a little room of it. Visitors are also engaging more with the library because it’s a great place to sit and read a book.  

Why is it important to you to seek out and be around handcrafted objects?  

The handcrafted objects in our home each tell a story about a place and a person. I can look around our home and tell you the story of each object in the room: who made it, where it came from, and how it ended up in our house. This adds so many layers to the space, visually and energetically. In a way, I feel that I am continuing my father’s legacy by living my own life and assembling my own objects here, as opposed to trying to preserve his life as a static, past moment. 

How would you describe the feeling and energy of your home? 

Familiar, nurturing, humble, layered 

For me, the home will always be familiar and nurturing, not just because I was born and raised there but because each part of the home was thoughtfully handmade and assembled. There’s a humility, too, because of the small scale and because almost all the materials were salvaged. In every space I see layers of my father, his first wife Nancy (whom he built the house with), my mother, brothers, myself, and all the artists who have spent time and lived in the home.   

Credits

Photography by Greta van der Star

JB Blunk Estate, Instagram & Website