Danny Pinnell is one of our talented Regional Interior Designers at Lennar who designs and styles model homes across our West Coast communities. We asked him to about the recent Next Gen® model home he styled for our Residence 3 floorplan of the Lilac Ridge Collection at Lagoon Valley, a master-planned community in Vacaville, CA.
Did the location of this model home influence your design choices?
“Absolutely, this model was designed to accommodate families with children with a variety of interests in the Vacaville area. I was able to showcase interest in sports through the baseball bedroom, art (both visual and performance) through the painting and music bedrooms and video games through the loft.”
How would you describe the style of this model home, as well as the color schemes?
“The style of this model is modern Americana with a deep saturated blue, textured ivory and brick brown color scheme, accented with darker brown leathers, brass metals and medium wood tones.”
The Kitchen
Entertain in style with this expansive kitchen featuring a large center island, shaker-style cabinets, stainless steel appliances and quartz countertops.
“I love the blue backsplash. I went more neutral through the décor and furniture to let the backsplash shine. The upper cabinet lighting also keeps the kitchen light and bright even with the bolder pop of color.”
Dining Area
Located right off the kitchen, the dining room is large enough to have friends and family over for dinner or brunch. Large windows and a door to the backyard provide ample natural light and a great environment for entertaining.
“This dining area gets so much natural light and a great view of the backyard through its many windows. With the first floor’s open floorplan, I wanted to create a visually cohesive space, so I brought in the blue from the Great Room and kitchen through the art and the lamp, and mixed combined tones found elsewhere throughout the home. I love all the textures in the dining area, with the cane dining chairs, the wood detail on the sideboard and the fluted pots.”
Family Room
Relax and kick up your feet in this comfortable and spacious family room, right next to the kitchen and dining areas. You’ll have plenty of space for a large sectional and your TV, making this the ideal place to lounge after a long day.
“I wanted to go bold with the wall detail, taking advantage of all the natural light provided from the windows and through the dining room. The oversized sectional and coffee table provides ample seating and surface space for everyone in the home, both in the main home and through the Next Gen ®Suite.”
The Owner’s Suite
Retreat into a private oasis with this roomy owner’s suite located on the corner of the second floor. You’ll enjoy a large en-suite bathroom with spa-inspired amenities and a sizeable walk-in closet
“This was quite a large owner’s suite with a lot of natural light, so I selected a beautiful dark leather king bed, anchored by a large navy rug. To emphasize the size of the room, we added some accent chairs and chose a lighter wallpaper with lots of movement. The owner’s suite also had a large wall niche across from the bed that I wanted to take full advantage of with an oversized dresser and wall mirror.”
Next Gen® Suite
This Next Gen® suite truly offers everything for independent living, with it’s own entrance, living area, bedroom, full bathroom and kitchenette.
“I love the size of this Next Gen® Suite—it feels like its own full-sized home! With seating for 5 comfortably at the dining table or in the living area, this Next Gen Suite is large enough to entertain. In contrast to the Great Room in the main home, the overall suite is more muted, with pops of blue brought in through the accent chairs and pillows in the seating area.
For the bedroom, we added a fun ledge wall detail and took advantage of the depth of the room by adding a gorgeous auburn bench at the end of the bed.”
The Home Office
Located next to the foyer, this home office is the perfect space to work from home, utilize as a homework room for the kids or convert to a multi-use room depending on your needs.
“Right off the entry, we wanted this home office to be stylish as well as useful and inviting. I love the deep sofa with the oversized art overhead.”
Three Secondary Bedrooms
Three secondary bedrooms can be found on the second floor across the loft from the owner’s suite. Wonderful for larger families or anyone wanting ample space for guests and friends.
“We chose to showcase a variety of interests through the secondary bedrooms: sports, music, and art. Each secondary bedroom has its own personality but remains cohesive with the rest of the home. I got to experiment with some really fun wall details, like the two-toned vertical shiplap in the artist’s room and the beautiful, textured wallpaper in the music bedroom. As a bit of a music nerd myself, I did ensure that the guitar was in tune before being mounted on the wall.”
The California Room
Located off the main living areas, this California Room is a wonderful place to hang outside with friends and family. Enjoy the covered patio and use it as an outdoor dining area, or put a few comfortable chairs to create a little sitting area.
“This home has a very beautiful and large backyard. An additional conversational seating and dining area allows for a seamless transition to indoor and outdoor living and entertaining.”
What was the best part of working on this model home and seeing the space come to life?
“The high square footage of this home made it very fun and challenging to design and execute. There were many elements to balance while providing variety and remaining cohesive throughout the main home and the Next Gen Suite.
Seeing the model from the design phase through my computer screen all the way to the finished, tangible, physical model is always so satisfying—but even more so on this scale.”
This Next Gen® model home, Residence 3, is part of the Lilac Ridge Collection at Lagoon Valley master-planned community in Vacaville, CA.
Click here to schedule a tour or contact us with any questions. To view more interior design work done by Lennar’s team, follow their Instagram @lennarwestinteriordesign.
More about Designer Danny Pinnell
Danny grew up in Orange County, CA, but currently lives in Gilbert, AZ. He’s been with Lennar since March 2021 and brings his extensive interior design knowledge and expertise to model homes across the Western region.
How did you get your start in interior design?
“Before starting with Lennar, I worked in custom kitchen and bathroom cabinetry.”
Why do you love interior design?
“I’ve always been interested in how altering my physical space also alters my mindset and outlook. As a child, I would be rearranging the furniture in my room to get a fresh, new feeling. Now, I understand a lot more of the psychology behind how certain design aspects affect the user of the space. It’s a fun puzzle to balance design preferences with the space’s actual needs.”
Where do you look for inspiration?
“Everywhere. Restaurants, hotels, other people’s homes—whether in-person or through photography—there’s always something to glean from and inspire a new design.”
Current favorite design trend?
“I love the moodiness of a color-drenched space—all walls and ceiling a solid, deep hue. I think it’s such a fun way to define a space and would love to color drench my home office one day.”
Fun fact about yourself?
“I once competed on an episode of Wipeout.”
