Studio MUKA’s Boldest Move in This Los Angeles Home? A Garage Door in the Living Room

Winter in New York has a way of making Los Angeles’s indoor-outdoor lifestyle feel less like a fantasy and more like a calling. For Tom Quinn, founder of independent film studio NEON Rated, and his wife, fashion entrepreneur Celeste Wright, it inspired a move across the country. The couple purchased a 1950s hodgepodge house on the city’s Westside for its potential to seamlessly connect interior spaces with the backyard. “We fell in love with the climate in the area and wanted to live in a home that took advantage of the year-round sunshine,” Quinn says.

With the climate as a clear guiding force, Quinn and Wright turned to fellow-former Brooklynites Zabie Mustafa and Neda Kakhsaz of Studio MUKA to reimagine the house, a patchwork of additions and eras, for year-round indoor-outdoor living. That meant stripping away the compartmentalized layout in favor of an airy open-floor plan that flows directly through to the patio. “Adding garage doors on the rear side of the house blends and blurs the boundary between inside and outside, which is such a California aesthetic,” Mustafa explains. “It’s close to the ocean, so there is a light breeze. It’s a perfect scenario.”

“Our bespoke dining table and Studio MUKA chairs feel grounding and timeless,” says Wright. “There’s something incredibly special about gathering around a piece that was designed specifically for us and for this space. It has become where so much of our life happens.”

When it came to material choices, the design team sought to reinforce the laid-back vibe, opting for humble European beech, quartz, Douglas fir plywood, and recycled plastics—all applied in a high-design manner. “This was a study on how far we can push these different materials,” says Kakhsaz. Next, they layered iconic modernist pieces, bespoke Studio MUKA furniture, and contemporary art to reflect Quinn and Wright’s personal styles and histories.

The result reveals itself immediately upon entry. The front door opens into the dining room, where a custom walnut table takes center stage. “It allows you to add more seats in a very seamless way,” shares Kakhsaz, noting that the homeowners host frequently. “When you’re not entertaining during the week, it sits there as a beautiful centerpiece, but then you have the ability to have a lot of people gather.” Studio MUKA’s playful Palan Chairs surround it, while Alvar Aalto pendants emit an atmospheric glow above. The adjacent fireplace is adorned with handmade ceramic plates by Makoto Kagoshima on one side and a Bower Studios mirror on the other.

“The Kooij counter stools are a daily joy,” Quinn shares. “They’re sculptural yet incredibly comfortable, and they bring a quiet playfulness to the kitchen without overpowering it. They feel like functional objects that also happen to be art.”

The light timber kitchen is the true heart of the home. Quinn, Wright, and their preteen son, Dylan, move easily between two seating zones: the sculptural Dirk van der Kooij Chubby Counter stools at the quartz-topped island, or the George Nakashima Straight-Back chairs around the limestone-and-metal breakfast table nearby.

The trio also clocks hours together on the pale-peach Cini Boeri for Arflex Strips sofa, screening films on the television that’s tucked into the custom entertainment console. Individually, they utilize the study, with its built-in desk, linen-covered pinboard wall, and 1940s Danish banana sofa. “We envisioned a living room that felt cozy yet serious about film—we’re a family of cinephiles and movie watching is a real ritual for us,” Quinn says. “At the same time, we wanted quieter moments built into the home: small nooks for reading, retreat, and slowing down.”