侘寂

Wabisabi

the beauty of imperfection, quietly built by hand

Boulder Creek · Santa Cruz Mountains · California

Since 2015

Built by hand, one grain of redwood at a time.

Wabisabi is a one-of-a-kind Japanese apartment set into the hillside in Boulder Creek, in the Santa Cruz Mountains — built beginning in 2015 by master craftsman Karl Bareis. Hand-plastered walls. Hand-adzed posts. Old-growth redwood milled locally for the ceiling planks.

The property survived the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire and was later featured in the SF Chronicle. What's here now is its quiet second life — the same handwork, the same forest, reopened as a place to slow down.

Tatami room with kotatsu table, shoji doors, and an ensō scroll in the tokonoma alcove

6-mat tatami room, hand-plastered walls, locally milled redwood ceiling

Ofuro

A traditional Japanese soaking tub, hand-built by Karl Bareis from reclaimed Alaskan cedar and Port Orford cedar.

Tatami & Shoji

A 6-mat tatami room and a 3-mat sleeping room, with authentic shoji windows and sliding doors.

Genkan

A traditional entryway with hand-laid river rock flooring — shoes off, as is custom.

Tansu & Tokonoma

An antique Japanese chest and hanging scroll, kept in the tokonoma alcove beside the kotatsu table.

The Space

Every room, a little imperfect, on purpose.

Stone lantern beside a bamboo tsukubai water fountain in the garden

TsukubaiBamboo water fountain and stone lantern, tucked against the fence line

The OfuroReclaimed Alaskan and Port Orford cedar, built by hand

Tatami sleeping room with futon beds, shoji windows, and a step tansu chest

Sleeping Room3-mat tatami, shoji windows

Compact kitchen with wood cabinetry and garden view

KitchenSimple, quiet, garden-facing

Stone lantern in the entry garden among redwood trunks

Entry GardenStone lantern beneath the redwoods

Japanese maple in full red autumn color against a dark bamboo fence

The Garden, in OctoberJapanese maples turn the whole yard red

Stone lantern glowing at night beneath cherry blossoms

After dark

The lantern stays lit. The forest gets loud with quiet — wind, and not much else.

Deck with Japanese maple and stone lantern, redwoods behind

Boulder Creek, CA

Redwoods on every side, the coast not far off.

Wabisabi sits in the Santa Cruz Mountains near Big Basin — California's oldest state park — among second-growth redwood forest that's been quietly recovering since the 2020 fire.

Close enough to Santa Cruz for a beach afternoon, far enough into the trees that the drive in feels like the start of the trip.

Big Basin Redwoods Henry Cowell Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Boulder Creek village Hiking & biking trails

Opening Summer 2026

Come sit with the imperfect for a while.

Wabisabi is being readied for its first guests this summer. Follow along for the opening date, or reach out directly with questions.

Reserve on Airbnb Follow @wabisabi.santacruz

Airbnb listing and Instagram handle go live at launch — links will activate then.