A little bit gloomy? Steve Jones likes it that way

Steve Jones, a longtime designer for Quiksilver, brings his love of surf culture to his studio apartment in Laguna Beach. His bedroom offers broad views of the Pacific. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

Sept. 16, 2014 2:57 AM PT

His West Hollywood nest is a dark roost, moody and cool. His Laguna condo is a bright getaway, sunny and punched up with color.

Framed paintings and photographs of California beach life decorate the walls of Jones’ 400-square-foot Laguna home, one of five units in the building he bought in 1999. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

Tiles and greenery decorate the entry of Jones’ Laguna garage. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

Walls of artwork continue the beach theme in the Laguna apartment’s stairwell. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

A color palette of white and moss green with a splash of red blooms brightens the compact kitchen. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

Sea-related carvings show up in a lamp base and cast-iron bookends. Jones has found many of his beach-style collectibles at flea markets. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

On weekends, Jones moves from Laguna Beach to West Hollywood, where he lives in a a 1,200-square-foot house behind two units he rents out. As he remodeled the house, he says, he was careful to maintain a “gloomy” aesthetic. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

In the West Hollywood living room, oak floors have been stained a glossy black, and the original dark wood beams were saved. The blanket on the sofa is Hermès. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

Nautical decor turns up in the fireplace of the West Hollywood house. (Stefano Paltera / For The Times)

Jones pulls aside the drapes to reveal a stained-glass inset in the front window of his West Hollywood house. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

A surfboard and prints carry the beach theme to the West Hollywood house. “People’s homes are like dioramas for the living,” Jones says. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

A beach painting contrasts with Jones’ vintage “fox in a box.” Spots of color from flea market finds and whimsical light fixtures complement the dark wood of the beams, ceiling and doors. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

Colorful whimsy brightens the rough-hewn wood of the stairs leading to the catwalk, overlooking the West Hollywood living room. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

Window light bathes one of the two bedrooms in the West Hollywood house. (Ricardo DeAratanha / LAT)

Religious paintings add a spiritual element in a space above a living room window. (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)

Jones says of his West Hollywood place, “Most city people escape to the beach or the mountains on the weekend. I flee to the city.” (Stefano Paltera / for The Times)