Defining Character

A West Coast tract home is given a traditional colonial feel with handmade pieces, custom upgrades and fresh flower arrangements.

- Devlin Smith

When Janice and Bill Morrow were house hunting, location was the top concern, so the couple jumped at the opportunity to purchase a home in a great neighborhood across the street from a park and close to where Janice grew up. Once the Newport Beach, California, home was theirs, the couple set out to transform it into the traditional colonial home of their dreams, spending nine months rebuilding the space with the help of Bill’s father to suit not just their tastes but also the needs of the couple and their four children.

“I love the homes in the South; I love homes that have a traditional feel to them,” Janice says. “I wanted one of those homes where when you drive up to it, it just feels happy and like it has history to it, even though we live in an area that’s fairly new, with not a lot of older homes like you would find on the East Coast or South. So I wanted that feeling of this home has been here for a really long time.”

More than 20 years, and numerous projects, later, the two-story house more than meets those goals. Open and spacious, the home exudes timeless warmth and charm to the family and friends who gather for meals at the large, custom-made dining table or cluster in the back patio’s multiple entertaining spaces. All of this is due to the hard work and skill of Janice, Bill and their fathers, whose work can be found throughout the home, often in Janice’s favorite black-and white palette.

Inspired by her mother, Janice expresses her own talent and creativity everywhere in her home, from the herbs she grows in her garden to the flower arrangements she creates on her flower porch (built by Bill) and places throughout the home, from the fresh pastries she bakes in her kitchen to the chairs she has custom-upholstered with a fun mix of fabrics. And Bill has created tables and bar tops indoors and out, wherever meals are enjoyed.