Rustic Architects, Architecture Firms, & Building Designers in North Hollywood

“We have a mid-century one story home built in 1959. We hired TOLO Architecture to update the home. We worked with architect Peter Tolkin who transformed both the interior and exterior making it a fine example of contemporary design while being conscious of both budget and the integrity of the original design. Our living room, kitchen and dinning room were enlarged visually by exterior mounted "barn doors" which open the spaces to the outside, and by raising the exterior walkway elevation with wood decking to the level of the interior floor elevation. Peter's design added 5 feet to the master bedroom, designed a wall of built-in cabinetry of closets and drawers. The design placed barn doors on two adjacent corners of the room which transformed an ordinary bedroom into an extraordinary space which opens to the outside wood deck and pool beyond. He also resigned the circa 1959 "lava rock" free-form swimming pool. Peter used the pools existing footprint to create a new rectangular pool with spa which has a continuous spillway into the pool. It really is a water sculpture with sound! He secured our hillside with a 50' long horizontal white wall (5' tall) which not only keeps the landscape in place, but gives beautiful definition to the pool area. He designed a 400 sq ft pool house, perfect with shower right from pool. Barn doors at the corners makes the pool house an indoor/outdoor space. And last, but not least as the saying goes, Peter created an outdoor living room which steps down from the wood deck. It is complete with a cushion covered concrete banquette and a large fireplace within a concrete base. The house was featured in Pasadena Magazine (cover and inside) in an issue showcasing indoor/outdoor living. It was a pleasure working with TOLO Architecture!! They are creative, cost conscious, and responsive.”

“Made to Matter has exceptional taste in design while bringing a collaborative spirit to the development process. The team understood our vision and brought it to life even better than we could have imagined! Semone, the CEO, is creative, thorough, and reliable. She will take the time to understand your project needs and work diligently to make it happen. I would highly recommend working with Made to Matter!”