Desert Mirage
The Butler-Jaffe House

Built in 1971 by Paul Butler in the New Formalist Modern architectural style, the Butler-Jaffe House is distinctive for its 14-foot tall colonnade entrance leading to a pair of oversized yellow doors, The architecture features walls of glass on intersecting planes that reflect the natural desert and mountain surroundings.

With a goal to restore and modernize, we updated, remodeled, and furnished the entire interior and exterior in 2014 and also gave the house a refresh in 2020. With painstaking attention to detail, we optimized the space to take better advantage of the glorious views and to better suit modern lifestyles. Among other modifications, the kitchen was greatly expanded and modernized with an open floor plan, a large double shower with mountain views was added to the principal bedroom suite, the fourth bedroom was converted into twin glass home offices, home automation technology was added throughout, and we brought in original modern artwork and colorful wallpaper for accent against crisp white walls and sprawling white porcelain floors and clean-line modern, elegant furniture.

On the exterior, our focus was to facilitate indoor-outdoor living while immersing the senses in the experience of the home with the sounds of calm, bubbling water, fragrant blossoms, and soothing colors. We designed and built 3 custom fountains and 2 fire pits, while adding an outdoor kitchen, dining area, and outdoor shower/retreat garden. We removed grass and installed desert landscaping throughout, featuring native specimen flowering plants.

We are pleased and proud that this fine home and our work was chosen by Palm Springs Modernism Week for their prestigious Signature Home Tour in 2020.