Destination Home: San Diego

Pristine beaches and perfect weather -- hands down, these are what San Diego is most known for. But they're not the only virtues that enchant visitors and continue to impress longtime locals. The second-largest city in California is home to the rugged rocks of Sunset Cliffs, the always-green openness of Balboa Park and the wildlife of the world-renowned San Diego Zoo. After visiting San Diego, it's the outdoors -- from sand to sky -- that sticks with you. Those images can easily be incorporated in your home. From plants to pillows to color palettes, a number of elements can bring the outside in and evoke the spirit of San Diego.

Shine the Light

If you want to energize and uplift your space, take a hint from a city that never goes brown and rarely feels any rain. Simply put, San Diego wouldn't be San Diego without the sun, and your home can't be bright and cheery without the proper lighting.

"Lighting is so important, and it's one of the first things people cut from their design budget," said San Diego interior designer Chandler Bonney, who works with the award-winning Artisan Design Group. "It can make such a difference in the way a space feels."

Bonney, who specializes in residential and model homes, says layered lighting can achieve different moods -- and mimic the sun setting over the ocean.

"You can have a 'wow' piece like a chandelier and then offer indirect lighting through cove lights in the Sheetrock or a wall washer," she said.

You can also warm up a room by changing your light bulbs.

"A full-spectrum light bulb is the closest thing to sunlight," she said. "It is a little more expensive, but can make a huge difference."

Lynle Ellis of San Diego's Lynle Ellis Designs suggests keeping lights on a dimmer to mimic the setting sun and using lamps to evoke brightness at different times of the day. It may not be an exclusively San Diego thing, but more light means more energy.

"We as humans stop the production of melatonin, which makes us tired, when light hits our retina," she said. "In the morning, the best way to wake up is to step into the sunlight."

This means making the dining area "bright and cheerful," she said.

"Don't eat breakfast in a dark place ... Where you eat needs to wake you up," she said. "This goes along with being active and healthy, and San Diego is a very active place."

The San Diego ... Desert?

Lynle Ellis of San Diego's Lynle Ellis Designs acknowledges that most people will incorporate beachy elements in a San Diego design. However, she says, some people are also fond of the arid beauty found to the east of the beach in the 600,000-acre Anza-Borrego Desert.

"I find that people who like the beach are not desert people and vice versa," she said. "I usually wouldn't mix the two genres. They are both great, but give completely different feels."

Ellis evokes the hot open space of the desert through a color palette made up of soft sage green, which mimics cactus, and sandy colors to represent the landscape. She says it's a soothing, neutral palette you can contrast with accessories in "sunrise" colors such as warm burnt orange or soft pink.

Desert cacti can sometimes bloom with beautiful pink flowers, which stand out against the vast, white sand. Ellis says this organic feature can be recalled in the home through accents of color via vases, pillows and actual flowers.

"Everything about this look [should have] an open feel that is not too cluttered," she said. "Plants would be more succulent, and definitely bring in your gemstones and geodes."

Living Room Sand

San Diego's 70 miles of uninterrupted coastline is defined by its beauty and the sunbathers, surfers and sunset worshipers who unite on the sand. Incorporating beachy elements in the home can make your space feel relaxed and comfortable and give it a sense of bliss evoked by a paradisiacal sunset.

Ellis suggests you go for a coastal modern look. It's a beach look that's not too traditional and not too cliche.

"You can bring it in a subtle, sophisticated way or you can hit someone over the head with it," said Ellis, who has been achieving the coastal modern look for San Diegans for more than 15 years. "When I think beach, I think of the fantastic, yummy, soft, warm sand, the blues of the sky, and the greens of the grass. By bringing in wonderful shades of soft blues, soft greens and sandstone colors, you can bring the beach to you."

Ellis says contrasting these colors with a crisp white trim is the best way to make the hues stand out. The white trim is a tradition from the East Coast beach design, but it works here, too, because glossy white paint doesn't weather like stained wood.

She also suggests using distressed, worn wood in the home. Because the salty air of San Diego can distress finishes over time, worn wood pieces can represent aged materials found at the beach.

"It gives the feeling of the beach shack that's weathered," she said. "You could incorporate driftwood or an antique, beaten up coffee table."

Brian Brown, an interior designer with Mixture designs in San Diego, says a pale blue with a gray tone is great option for a beach look.

"Sky blue -- you may get sick of over time," he said. "You need something you can live with long term."

He suggests using a very comfortable lounge sofa that sits low to the ground.

"If you go for a linen or oatmeal cover, it would be very reminiscent of the beach and laying in the sand," he said.

Brown says abstract artwork is also a great way to say -- not scream -- beach. Instead of hanging starfish or seashells on the wall, find an abstract piece that incorporates sand and ocean tones or blow up a huge surf or sunset scene.

Bring the Outside In

Brown says the No. 1 comment he hears about San Diego is, "How can you beat the weather? It's perfect."

In San Diego, you can be outdoors year-round with the blue sky and white clouds above you. Brown says an interesting way to bring this outdoor scene inside is to contrast a cluster of two or more white, organic lamps against a blue-gray wall.

"It gives a puffy cloud feel," he said. He suggests using retro glass bubble lamps or the white paper lamps carried in many sizes at IKEA.

Ellis says the best way to achieve and outdoor feel is "plants, plants and more plants."

This could mean clusters of succulents that resemble the spiky sea floor or tall, leafy plants reminiscent of palms. Spiky succulents might include the echeveria agavoides (also called the "lipstick" plant) or the classic Aloe vera. Some other options are the echeveria imbricata, which looks like a rose and is an ideal container plant, and the silver, spiky dudleya. The dudleya may say "San Diego" better than any other plant, but it needs a good deal of sunlight if grown indoors.

A mixture of tall and short, round and spiky cacti and succulents can create a "living sculpture" feel, Ellis said. Stones and rocks are another way to capture the essence of the outdoors. Ellis suggests placing a geode on a side table with a lamp or putting agate atop a stack of books.

As a final touch, make whimsical pillows out of traditional outdoor umbrella fabric.

"A big, strong cabana stripe [on the pillows] can especially make you feel like you are outside relaxing at the beach," she said.