Rini Kundu Interiors

Describe the featured project.

This project took shape when the homeowners acquired the adjacent corner lot, allowing the property to expand beyond the footprint of the original house and evolve into a more complete indoor–outdoor living environment. At the garden level, a pool house anchors the outdoor entertaining area, where shaded lounge seating and a dining space open directly to the pool and surrounding terrace. The design encourages an easy flow between indoor and outdoor living, reflecting the relaxed coastal lifestyle that defines the South Bay.

Below the pool, the project reveals one of its most distinctive features. A bar and lounge space doubles as a garage for a prized sports car, transforming the vehicle into a sculptural centerpiece within the room. An underwater viewing window connects the bar to the pool above, allowing the illuminated water to cast shifting patterns of light and movement into the space. The result is a layered entertaining environment that transitions seamlessly from sunlit outdoor living to a more intimate lounge atmosphere below.

How do you strike the balance between timeless design and current trends?

In the South Bay especially, timeless design often begins with responding to the environment, natural light, coastal colors and relaxed materials. Those elements rarely go out of style. When the core of a design is grounded in its surroundings and architecture, a home tends to age gracefully, while more contemporary touches can be layered in thoughtfully to reflect how people live today.

What is the first thing you want to understand about a client before you begin a project?

The first thing I try to understand is how someone lives in their home. Not the idealized version but the real day-to-day rhythms, where people gather, where things tend to pile up, how they cook, relax or entertain. When a design responds to those habits, the space feels effortless and truly works for the people living in it.

How has your professional approach evolved over the last few years?

My approach has become more focused on clarity and intention. Early on it’s easy to get excited about every idea, but experience teaches you that the strongest spaces often come from a few well-considered decisions rather than many competing ones. By focusing on fundamentals such as layout, proportion and materials, the design process becomes more refined and the results more enduring. 

Photographed by Lauren Taylor