A Jeff Doubét Spanish-style split level home design with construction photos showing how the project was built. Tips + tricks for Santa Barbara Spanish styling, for those seeking quality information on how to fix up their own home and landscape.  Santa Barbara Spanish homes have a special look, and many seek to replicate it in their own home remodels.  Scroll to learn how.

Special plaster details throughout the exterior facade and for the landscape walls were designed and built into this Santa Barbara Spanish home.

Transforming Split-level Spanish home in Santa Barbara, CA

This modest split-level fixer upper home is located in the Santa Barbara neighborhood of upper State Street. The simple structure lacked character.

BEFORE Photo: The fixer home had an asphalt roof, and an odd mix of stucco and wood siding.

Here is the conceptual design rendering I presented to the homeowner a couple weeks after our Initial Consultation. Creative thoughts + ideas to transform their home and property.

AFTER Photo: I always pray for creative inspiration and the wonderful independent teams assembled to build these renovations.

After completion, this home sold for (literally) $2 million dollars more than the owners had originally purchased it for.

Santa Barbara Spanish home Ideas: Before and After

Scroll to learn how this Before and After transformation took place. See how a basic entry level home with an asphalt roof was modified into a beautiful Santa Barbara Spanish home.

Here the creative process begins. Scaffolding has been installed and new windows are going in.

BEFORE photo: The entrance was non-descript with it’s wood siding, painted front door and tall etched glass side window.

I proposed a splayed and arched decorative plaster surround to showcase a new Speakeasy door.

AFTER Photo: The front entry after the rustic Spanish-style pergola and front door were installed, and exterior stucco completed.

THE EASY BUTTON TO VIEW ALL PROJECTS ON SITE

Building a High Quality Spanish Shed Attached to A House

Part of the re-design of this home was to build a high quality Spanish shed addition to the house. A way to help balance the two story portion of the original split-level home.

Decorative wood knee braces were also being added to the roof eaves in the photo above.

Spanish-style products on Amazon, and my project overviews where they were installed.

Closely spaced thick wood rafter tails and clay vents were details designed and built into the small Spanish shed.

With form and function in mind, the charming addition will also have a decorative iron gate for security + privacy.

AFTER Photo: This is how the Spanish shed addition turned out. Scroll to see more photos of how it was built, and be sure to check out other Jeff Doubét Spanish Shed Designs.

Learn more about installing clay vents in Spanish-style homes at direct link above.

The Process of Transforming Santa Barbara Homes Into Spanish Style Properties

Here are several photos showing how custom, cement coated architectural foam components were incorporated into this Santa Barbara renovation.

Here, the fabricator delivers the oversized component sections. This local custom shop has been making parts for architects and designers for over two decades.

He has been busy building cement coated foam components for prestigious projects throughout Santa Barbara. Hotel and restaurant facades and the SB Museum of Art downtown State St. are just a few examples.

Architectural foam can be specified in different densities depending your application. The denser the foam, the stronger. Costs rise as density increases, so finding a balance is important.

Typically, high traffic areas prone to abuse will require higher density foam and a thicker cement coating.

Above: The cement coated sections of architectural foam are glued and bolted to the recently plastered exterior of the house.

The seams are dressed with fiberglass mesh tape and plaster cement adhesive. All cement coated components get covered in standard stucco as the plastering team apply a final coat of plaster over all of the exterior surfaces of the home.

A quality Santa Barbara Spanish-style home design will often have layers of architectural details throughout.

Wrought iron planter baskets, and a pendant light suspended by a heavy iron bracket are layered design elements in this particular design.

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Spanish Home Under Construction in Santa Barbara, CA

One of the most recognizable design elements of a Santa Barbara Spanish home is the roof. Here the red tile roofing process is underway.

The structural engineer determined the existing roof framing was strong enough to carry the extra weight of S-Tile clay roofing. Learn more about the difference between S-Tile Roofing and the highly desired 2 Piece Mission Tile Roofing at these in-depth articles about each technique.

Three special techniques were used while installing this S-Tile roof. 1) Installation of 2 piece Mission tile on the first course (near gutters). 2) Occasional “boosters” placed throughout roof to create random shadow details. 3) S-Tiles were staggered more than is typical.

These three techniques created an illusion of a higher-end 2 piece Mission Tile roof. SEE and Learn More.

Here, a rough coat of Santa Barbara Mission stucco texture is applied to a wall column. Once the plaster has set up to a certain consistency, the plasterer will sponge down the sharp edges to achieve the highly desired Santa Barbara Spanish plaster finish.

See this talented Artisan featured in various Modern Masters Series posts, including Spanish Fireplaces and Spanish Address Tiles.

A close up image of the newly completed custom Santa Barbara Spanish-style chimney design. Often nicknamed “dog house chimney” because of the arched openings, and protective roof.

Building Spanish-style Arbors and Pergolas in Santa Barbara, Ca

Rustic wood arbors and pergolas are another way you can add architectural interest to your Santa Barbara Spanish-style exterior renovation.

Above: This wood arbor was built using oversized, re-sawn redwood posts now being set on their foundations. When building your own pergola or Spanish-style shade structure, consider using oversized 8″ x 8″ or 10″ x 10″ posts for a quality appearance.

Right after the construction of the arbor details were completed, a crew of landscapers arrived to install mature olive trees.

Click link above to learn more about designing and building a Spanish-style pergolas, and other landscaping ideas.

Installing Large Olive Trees in Santa Barbara, CA

Here are a couple of photos of two large mature olive trees being craned in for an instantly mature landscape.

These particular olive trees were trucked in from Northern California. SEE and learn more about installing large olive trees.

This is how the Spanish arbor turned out once it was stained a dark brown. Other design features in this Santa Barbara drought tolerant landscape include sandstone boulders to retain the gentle slope.

Stone steps were hand-hewned from local Santa Barbara sandstone boulders and arranged as a meandering path up to the front door.

Here is the entry door with finished Spanish-style pergola in front. You can also see the 6″ Half Round gutters installed as another classic Santa Barbara Spanish home design element. You can purchase this pair of lanterns directly from Amazon.

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A local Santa Barbara area blacksmith welded up these iron window baskets with classic scroll brackets.

Well friend, this wraps another site visit episode in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA. I hope you enjoyed learning how to infuse more Santa Barbara Style into your own Spanish home design project. Scroll to explore more helpful links and resources for designing and building your own Spanish-style home and landscape.