Nothing against the Golden State, but there aren’t many things that make me want to pack up my things and move to California. (I’m an East Coaster, through and through.) But I have to admit that costume designer Gordana Golubovic’s luxe, secluded LA backyard has me questioning my pool-less life.
When Golubovic, who designs costumes for film, purchased her house in LA’s Los Feliz neighborhood, it was in ruins: “Abandoned for seven years, it was boarded up by the city, ravaged by squatters, invaded by vines and branches. On the day we came it was gloomy and rainy. There were drawings on the wall, stained carpets, the electric and water were disconnected, and with all that it was love at first sight. I could not wait to get started.” Here’s a look at the exteriors and gardens, which she transformed with the help of landscape designer Becky Bourdeau from local garden shop Potted—gravel courtyard, swimming pool, and sunken fire pit included. Consider me convinced.
Photography by Lauren Moore.
Curb Appeal
Above: Boarded up no more. A curving brick staircase leads to the front door.
Golubovic transformed the exterior of the Spanish-style house, painting the facade in Benjamin Moore’s Simply White and planting a front garden. The team worked around several large Euphorbia candelabrum that surround the house: “I think these are the most amazing trees,” Golubovic says. “They are so statuesque.”
Front Garden
Above: The front entryway, up a brick stairway, is hidden from the street.
For the front garden, Golubovic chose fragrant plants to welcome visitors: lavender, rosemary, black sage, verbena, yarrow, blue flame agave, velvet elephant ear, artemisia, foxtail agave, and golden barrel cactus. (“I have a plant problem, as you see,” she admits. “I’m always throwing in more.”) She also planted rose geranium, which she adds to salads and cocktails.
