As a timeshare owner, Barbara Bloom fell in love with the desert on her biannual visits to Palm Desert.

Nearing retirement, the Atlanta native had lived in Marin County for nearly 40 years, “and I wanted a change,” she said.

Coincidentally, during one of her visits, a couple overheard a conversation she was having and mentioned that she might want to take a look at Trilogy in La Quinta.

“They'd been there and liked what they saw,” she recalled.

Bloom liked it, too, but it still took nearly two years to choose her home, get it built and move in.

“I needed to do my homework,” she said. But once she'd made her decision, things moved fairly quickly.

Bloom chose a lot and worked with Trilogy's design staff (“I'm very decisive,” she said. “I knew what I wanted.”) and outside contractors (for her garden and interior additions) to build her dream retirement home.

As moving day neared, friends commented “how courageous I was for moving alone to a place where I didn't know anybody,” she recalled.

After nearly a year in her Trilogy home, “I just love it,” Bloom said. “I love my house, and I've made so many new friends here. It's just wonderful.”

The owner

Name: Barbara Bloom

Age: “60 plus”

Occupation: Retired. Former cosmetics sales rep for Elizabeth Arden, Shiseido, Revlon and Lancome.

Origins: Native of Atlanta, lived in Northern California for nearly 40 years.

Why she came to the desert: Climate, lifestyle and cost of housing.

Time spent in her home: One year on Dec. 1.

The home

Location: Trilogy, La Quinta. Monterey plan, Coral Collection.

Layout: Two bedroom, two bath; 1,688 square feet; single-story floor plan.

“After so many years in Marin, where every house has two or three levels, this is heaven,” said Bloom.

Why she chose Trilogy: The 55-and-older active adult community, the social life and the house: “I'm an orphan in the world, and it's just right for one person,” Bloom said of the friendly community.

Trilogy also offered more choices in home size and amenities: “There were 12 different (floor plans) and I got to personalize it just for me.”

Bloom said she chose the Monterey plan “because I wanted a northern exposure in the great room. And the view. I look at the mountains all day long.”

The great room/kitchen is great for entertaining, although she hasn't done much, yet.

“I broke my hip after I moved in, so I'm just getting back to being mobile,” Bloom said. “I expect I'll do more entertaining” in the near future.

Personal touches: Custom cabinets in the master bedroom that form a window seat, and a walk-in closet, including space for shoes and a place for purses. Also:

Limestone master bath counters and shower: “I've wanted a limestone bath for quite a while,” she said.

Easy-to-care-for porcelain tile floors throughout and a custom built-in media center.

Plenty of wall space to show off her artwork and collection of photos from Europe.

“I took one day just to hang all my pictures and photographs,” Bloom said. “It was very easy because this house just lends itself” to the art.

Favorite place: The garden, designed by Teserra, is the focal point in the great room and kitchen/dining areas and the master bedroom.

“I wake up in the morning and see my beautiful flowers,” Bloom said.

The garden features a dry river rock bed and a mix of desert and drought-resistant plants.

“That was very important to me,” she added.