Warren and his wife bought a lot to build on that had an old tiny A-frame on it. They lived in that A-frame for a few years and then gave it away to be dismantled and rebuilt elsewhere. After that, they set out to build our own home and that is where the story begins.
The house was designed by Warren's father (his name is Dennis Castillo Flandez) and it was the very last project he did before he retired. He worked for Stantec for decades, but never did residential. He has worked on some of the most iconic buildings but has always remained behind the scenes.
Warren and Katherine did not hire a general constructor to build this house. Instead they take that role on themselves.
Warren’s cousin did the interior design: Dexter Dolores of Dexter Dolores Interiors.

"This house is a combination of inspiration from books I grew up with sitting on my Dad’s drafting room table,” says Warren. "It’s a melting pot of Japanese modern with influences of mid-century style and elements of west coast contemporary.”

From the moment you walk in you enter a modern take on a Genkan sunken entryway, which is a traditional Japanese vestibule. As you walk through the house, the rooms reveal themselves one by one with differing levels and ceiling heights which increase as you walk through the house. The whole home surrounds a central courtyard which allows for pockets of outdoor space as opposed to one large open backyard.
The owners and interior designer wanted to create a home that would provide a perfect neutral backdrop for all the collection of design furniture and artworks. The clean palette of white, black and natural wood tones allow the pieces to shine through and creates a gallery-like atmosphere.
The objective was also to use natural wood in various ways throughout the home - from the charred beauty of the shou sugi ban exterior siding (each plank custom fired for this home), the light-washed cedar soffits and accents, textural wood on the open stair treads, and to the more special items like the hand crafted courtyard bench by the client's father. There was also a lot of focus on how the natural beauty of the exterior relates to the interior. With a central courtyard and large windows and doors opening up to the zen environment my clients have created and a deliberate framing - and reflecting - of the lush exterior greenery as artwork in the dining room.
The house is furnished with pieces by Eero Saarinen, Charles and Ray Eames, Marcel Wanders, Bertjan Pot, Roll & Hill, Cappellini, Guilherme Torres, Gerrit Rietveld, Philippe Starck, Foscarini, Alessi, and Flos, among others.