Photo: Courtesy Sara Ligorria-Tramp
TheQueer Eyestar designed a 7-bedroom, 8-bathroom home that spans over 5 acres in Palm Desert, Calif., which is only 30 minutes from Palm Springs. His new place is certainly a luxurious oasis. Along with the main house on a hill, there are other highlights scattered amid the canyon and lining the hill, including a guest house, a pool house, a courtyard and even a bocce ball court. Since the property is so spread out, he says it’s fit for any occasion from yoga retreats to family reunions.
When Berk was staying in anAirbnbclose to the area himself, the idea sparked for him to become a vacation rental host.
“I was in the pool and drunkenly, I was like, ‘My God, they’re making a fortune off this house,'” he tells PEOPLE, referencing the hosts of the home where he stayed. “I’ve always wanted a home in Palm Springs or Palm Desert…but it didn’t make sense to have a house that was just going to sit there empty most of the year.”
Courtesy Sara Ligorria-Tramp
Aside from wanting a smart excuse to purchase his own vacation home, Berk has stayed in many Airbnbs before, so the new project was a natural fit.
“I love staying at an Airbnb because I love feeling the local culture you don’t always get in a hotel,” he says, adding that this property allows him to “be the host that I’ve always wanted to find.”
“It allows me to really share this design with people and lets people live in my designs,” he explains.
In November, the home design expert of the “Fab Five” started renovations on the house, which is now complete. The style preserves the “Spanish hacienda” vibe of the house’s original architecture, but with a “Mexicana” and “modern” theme Berk infused.
“It had these beautiful wood ceilings throughout the whole property, but they were all kind of mismatched and old-looking in a bad way,” he says. “So we went through and we actually painted them all black. And so it brought this cool, modern hacienda feel to it that makes you feel like you’re in Tulum or in Cabo.”
While Berk decided to completely gut the property, he kept some of its “cool funkiness,” including the original stained glass windows and flooring.
One of his favorite rooms is the custom-designed theater, which is a nice cool, “dark cocoon” to lounge in when the desert gets too hot.
Of course, the desert oasis has plenty of spots to relax outside and soak up the sun, including a uniquely shaped pool, a hot tub, and, at the top of the hill, a fire pit.
“The pool is down at the bottom of the canyon,” he says. “It’s not a circle or a kidney bean shape. It’s this very cool natural shape that follows the shape of the land. And then the hot tub spa is at the very end of the pool.”
What’s even more special about the swimming spot? The view overlooks Coachella Valley and the property as a whole sits right next to a national park.
The massive compound has several unique accents that hold lots of meaning for Berk. One of the reasons he loves the living room is for its handmade lights his team had delivered from a village in Tunisia.
“The proceeds from making them went directly to the village. That room’s one of my favorites just because we brought this really cool moment from across the globe into the home,” he says.
Berk finished the renovations in time for Season 7 ofQueer Eye, which starts filming in June. And aside from the “hot, yummy, muggy summer,” Berk is excited to set up shop in New Orleans where the new season shoots.
He and costarsKaramo Brown,Tan France,Antoni PorowskiandJonathan Van Nesstravel to a new city every season, so he revealed each location brings something new.
Ilana Panich-Linsman/Netflx
“Every city has a different vibe. I have to say, my favorite thus far has been Austin because Austin has this very cool, relaxed vibe,” he says. “Philly was a little harder. East coasters, they’re a little harder to get to open up. Having lived in New York for 14 years, I understood it.”
As for New Orleans, Berk sings the praises of the show’s temporary future home.
“It’s literally unlike any other city in the States with its French influence,” he says. “So I’m very excited to be somewhere in the South again, but somewhere that’s unique, not just for the States, but unique in the world.”
To celebrate Berk’s new venture, the first two, two-night stays at the Airbnb on June 6-7 and June 9-10 will be a special rate of just $22 for up to two guests.
source: people.com
