The Hammock family’s holiday homecoming.
’Twas the week before Christmas, and all through the house: pure chaos.
Interior designer Molly Cooke was laying rugs, placing furniture and hanging art while subcontractors buzzed around her. Painters were finishing up. Electricians came and went. Countertops were being installed. Those final days were busy and long, but this team was fully committed. Working alongside Kent Stanford and James Staggs of Stanford Remodeling, Cooke wanted homeowners Jessie and Jason Hammock to spend Christmas in their newly renovated home.
“The holidays can be hectic,” said Jason Hammock. “Molly, Kent and James took time out of their holiday schedule to make sure we were taken care of, which meant a lot to us.”
His Nichols Hills home was taken down to the studs during a 14-month overhaul. Now fully settled in, he and wife, Jessie, couldn’t be more thrilled.
“This is my happy place,” Jessie Hammock said. “I just feel at home, in all senses of the word.”
To celebrate the conclusion of the project, Cooke enlisted Calvert’s Plant Interiors to install garland around the doorways and mantel — a special touch for special clients.
Cooke attributes the project’s success to the positive communication and connection between her and the clients. The Hammocks established a solid vision for the home: a sleek California-modern design warmed by tonal neutrals. Then, they trusted Cooke to execute it.
“They had one million percent trust in me — they would always ask, ‘What do you think is best?’” Cooke said, adding that the relationship evolved to a point where she could buy items without their approval. “There were so many things, like accessories, the coffee table and art, that I did not even run by them. That [level of trust] is very, very rare.”
The single-level home wraps around the backyard with views from every room, so exterior design was as important as interior. Jason Hammock sketched out his idea, and Stanford Remodeling turned that sketch into reality. Meanwhile, Stan Jennings with Professional Lawn Care incorporated beautiful landscaping.
“The inspiration for the patio came from the triangular designs of the Sheats–Goldstein Residence in Los Angeles,” Jason Hammock said. “[The patio] is really cool, and it’s where we entertain guests when the weather is nice.”
Jessie Hammock says the easy flow of the home lends itself to entertaining, something the couple thoroughly enjoys. Other crowd-pleasers can be spotted in the design, too, like the bar-style glass rinser Jason Hammock insisted they add to the kitchen. (He makes a mean cocktail.)
While the kitchen is the couple’s favorite space, the living room also warrants attention with its intriguing archway and wood-paneled ceiling.
“I think those two features give that room a ‘wow’ factor,” Cooke said. “It’s the only arch in the home, but it makes that room so inviting and so curious. If you are hanging out in their common areas — their dining room or formal living room — and you see that arch, it makes you want to go back in there.”
Another highlight of the home is the artwork. The Hammocks have garnered a substantial collection over the years, with several finds from Emily Reynolds of Anonyma Fine Art. Pieces with significant meaning finish out the rooms.
“Art makes you feel something,” Jessie Hammock said. “You see a piece, and it evokes different emotions or reminds you of a memory. We love to travel, and art is the very best souvenir to remind us of our favorite times.”
New “favorite times” are now in the works inside the home, as the Hammocks welcomed a new baby late June.
“We actually told Molly, Kent and James that Jess was pregnant when we were doing our final walk-through the week before Christmas,” Jason Hammock said — one more detail that made their holiday homecoming one to remember.
