Photos by Spacecrafting
The foyer hints at the playful yet sophisticated style inside this historic home overlooking Lake Harriet. An eye-catching round sofa, covered in a Moroccan-inspired damask, juxtaposes with art of Barbie and Ken in The Kiss by David Parise, hung above a weathered, wall-mounted console table.
The interiors of this 1923 Spanish-Mediterranean–style home could have gone another way. Like the way traditional, formal, and/or neutral furniture can often be the de facto décor in historic homes. But this couple didn’t want to play it safe. “They knew what they wanted,” says interior designer Amber Etzel, who was part of the design team, which also included designer Leigh Hull and remodeling contractor Tim Purcell Jr., who oversaw the renovations. An unexpected yet elevated mix of design styles, patterned fabrics and rugs, and a colorful art collection drove the look that puts a modern spin on the house’s European-inspired architecture. “The homeowners were super trusting and open to doing fun things,” Hull says. “They didn’t want it to feel matchy.” They also didn’t come empty-handed—the designers worked with the owners’ pop art collection and transformed pieces the owners wanted to keep into modern heirlooms that they love even more today.
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Marble herringbone floors, original to the house, unite the foyer with the gallery passageway to the library room. Portraits of Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn by artist Michael Moebius hang above a custom bench from Lee Industries covered in “Firenze” fabric by Pindler. The antique brass “hugging tables” are from Interlude Home.
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Creamy plaster walls, repainted in Benjamin Moore’s Classic Gray by Tim Purcell and his renovation team, are the neutral backdrop for the art and furniture. The designers infused traditional silhouettes like the camelback sofas in the library, which they punched up with gold damask, to mix with modern pieces elsewhere, like the Paul Smith striped daybed.
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(Pictured: Paul Smith striped daybed) "Creating a cohesive color story throughout the house balances the collected, eclectic look and helps design flow without each space being overwhelming or expected." - Amber Etzel
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White curved sofa and floral chairs
A Vladimir Kagan-inspired sofa anchors the living room furniture.
“Not everything has to be colorful,” Leigh Hull advises when designing an eclectic and colorful home. “Choose two or three colors and incorporate them into your space in smaller ways, such as with accessories or pillows to start.” She also recommends varying where color comes in—in the powder room, it came from art and the wallpaper, but in the dining room, it came from the chair fabric and rug. “For the overall design, we started with the fabric choices and built everything else around that,”she says. “We also waited until the rooms were completely furnished before determining art selection and placement. It allowed us to get a feel for what was right—color- and size-wise—for each space.”
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The design team took inspiration from the home’s original architecture, including the wood beams throughout. In the master, the dramatic vaulted ceiling is balanced by a four-poster bed paired with the owners’ Chinese cabinets that the designers refinished, and another piece the owners had, the love seat at the end of the bed, which they recovered in overdyed jacquard velvet by Designers Guild. “Giving life to existing pieces with new fabric and finishes adds character to the design,” Etzel says.
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Drama continues in the downstairs powder room, where silk Phillip Jeffries wallpaper covers the walls and Kelly Wearstler for Visual Comfort sconces flank the mirror.
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The team reimagined a small bedroom and an office into a nursery and playroom, separated by new French doors, for the couple’s new baby. The built-in crib nook, cabinets, and millwork that Purcell built make the space look as if it was part of the original architecture.
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Purcell also made the new banquette in the breakfast nook to match the details of the existing kitchen cabinetry. “The biggest challenge was that everything in the home was custom,” Purcell says. “We ensured that every detail was meticulously authentic to the original home.”
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In the dining room, visual impact comes from crisscrossed ceiling beams and the exposed wood backs of the elegant dining chairs. The geometry of the chairs’ oval backs softens the room with an elegant embroidered and crewel fabric by S. Harris. A rug from Tapis Decor grounds the grouping that’s topped off with a faceted crystal chandelier, almost like a cocktail ring that’s been paired with a structured evening gown.
Interior designers: Amber Etzel and Leigh Hull, MartinPatrick 3 Studio, 212 3rd Ave. N., Ste. 106, Mpls., 612-317-0045, martinpatrick3.com // Builder/contractor: Tim Purcell Jr., Purcell Remodeling & Renovation, 2115 Co. Rd. D E., St. Paul, 651-748-1304, purcellquality.com
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