Rustic meets modern in the Ryan home,
where industrial letters and a twig
chandelier greet guests in the foyer,
opposite. On the patio, this photo, pierced-tin
lanterns supply the ambience. Blue benches
and yellow chairs take the indoor palette out.
Introducing...
personality.
Accessories speak
to the style of the
young family who
lives here.
Well,
by paige porter fischer | photos edmund barr | styling michael walters
SEAT SWAP
Try a pair of
upholstered
benches in place
of chairs for a
versatile dining
table seating.
bet t er hom e s a n d g a r dens | j u ly 2 01 4 | bhg .com
25
A
nn and Jeffrey Ryan’s
house in Newport Beach, California, had all
the right bones: an open floor plan, easy flow
between indoors and out, great millwork, and
wide-plank wood floors. What was missing? In
a word, personality—those layers that turn a
house into a reflection of who lives there.
“I’ve always lived in very traditional houses
full of toile,” Ann says. “For this one, I wanted
to step outside my comfort zone and do
something different, but I didn’t know how.”
Designer Raili Clasen did. After
interviewing the Ryans and their three sons,
she got to work adding accessories—some
sleek and modern, some vintage, all with a
point of view.
IN PLAIN
SIGHT
Binders and
boxes that
match the
room are
pretty and
practical.
“The best way to add personality to a house
is to do at least one unexpected thing in every
space,” Clasen says. “I love to see a room with
all shades of one color and then, ‘Bam!’ an
accent piece or art that is a big surprise.”
In the otherwise formal white entry, the
surprise is the black and red metal letters that
spell out a greeting. In the family room, it’s
the huge yellow rug that grounds the space.
And in the master bedroom, hothouse floral
pillows and a collage of artwork set off the
crisp all-white bed.
There’s plenty of personality in the kids’
spaces, too. Clasen gave each of the three Ryan
boys (James, Anthony, and Nolan) a one-of-akind bedroom with his birth year stenciled on
the door. For their shared hangout/homework
room, Clasen went with spunky striped walls
and a surfboard hung as art.
“I recently ran into their somewhat quiet
middle son at the baseball field and asked him
how he liked his room,” Clasen says. “He set
his equipment down and answered, ‘It is the
coolest room in the entire universe.’ ”
STORE MORE
A two-tier table
keeps books
and magazines
handy but
tucked away.
Backless benches—covered in indoor-outdoor
fabric for ease—and low-back dining chairs, left,
keep the view through the French doors free and
clear. Soft greens and blues and leggy furniture
lend a light and airy feel to the open family room,
right. Bright yellow accessories and art—a
lacquered tray, silhouettes, a small side table—
energize the white and gray palette in Jeffrey’s
Mad Men-inspired home office, above.
bet t er hom e s a n d g a r dens | j u ly 2 01 4 | bhg .com
27
BOXED IN
Hang art
within a
rectangle for
a structured,
modern look.
Layering a rug on top
of wall-to-wall
carpeting creates a
cozy, colorful setting
for the bed, left.
Orange trim on the bed
skirt and a turquoise
painted bench add
even more color. The
white artwork is a
piece of handwoven
paper that caught
Ann’s eye.
Designer Raili Clasen
had fun filling the
built-in niche near the
tub with an
assortment of hanging
lanterns, below.
“The funny thing about color
is that it actually relaxes
a space. Every new hit of
color made each room feel
more like home.”
—Ann Ryan, homeowner
28
bet t er hom e s a n d g a r dens | j u ly 2 01 4 | bhg .com
For buying information see page XXX.
“I love stripes, and we
went nuts with them in
the boys’ spaces. Stripes
never go out of style.
They always look fresh.”
—Raili Clasen, designer
LIGHTBULB
MOMENT
Spray-paint an
old-fashioned
industrial
lantern for
a splash of
whimsy.
CUT A RUG
In a spot where
chairs are
scooted in and
out often, a bare
floor is best.
(Make sure they
won’t scratch.)
30
bet t er hom e s a n d g a r dens | j u ly 2 01 4 | bhg .com
AROUND
THE ROOM
Horizontal
stripes keep
the eye moving,
making a space
look bigger.
A cherry red surfboard
and vintage turquoise
chair zing up all the
grays and natural
textures in the boys’
hangout room, right.
Inspired by the vintage
lockers in Anthony’s
room, Clasen
accessorized the boys’
bathroom, below, with
a red rug and towels.
TO THE LETTER
Vintage sign
letters are an
easy way to
personalize a
kid’s room.
Finding the right stuff
Raili Clasen, known for sniffing out the perfect accessory that
gives a space its wow factor, shares her favorite sources:
1
2
3
4
“For super unique, one-of-a-kind vintage items you won’t
see in anybody else’s home, go to threepotatofour.com.”
“I visit onekingslane.com every day for accessory
furniture like side tables. (However, I don’t buy big,
expensive pieces there because they can’t be returned.)”
“Every house I decorate gets a few game-changers from
etsy.com. I’ve found everything from a collection of
vintage first-aid kits to old Army cots for sale.”
“For instant gratification at bargain prices, you can’t
beat Home Goods. I’ve bought entire accessory
collections to fill bare shelves—collections that look
thoughtfully curated.” n
What goes with this?
Find out how to work with what you have and
pull your look together at BHG.com/WhatGoes.
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bet t er hom e s a n d g a r dens | j u ly 2 01 4 | bhg .com
For buying information see page 162.