Photograph by Steve Henke
Billy Beson and James Dayton
Interior designer Billy Beson (left) and architect James Dayton (right) talk shop in the lighter and brighter of the loft’s two studies.
Without hesitation, interior designer Billy Beson and architect James Dayton point to the same feature when they talk about what they love most about this Minneapolis loft: the views. “Stand in that corner study and Minneapolis is right there in one view,” Dayton says. “It’s just incredible.”
He and Beson are right. St. Anthony Falls and the Stone Arch Bridge over the Mississippi River extend to the north, the skyline rises to the south, and former mill buildings—which include the Mill City Museum—bookend the east and west. “The view is so dramatic that I think the owners wanted that to be reflected on the inside,” Beson says.
Living Room
The contemporary lines of the living room’s slate fireplace juxtapose with a mix of modern and traditional furnishings for a space that feels warm and intimate—but can still comfortably seat 12, with chairs pulled in from adjacent spaces. “In [the owners’] previous house, they had huge rooms—and that’s great if you always have 20 people,” Beson says. “But if you have two or three people, it can feel kind of empty in the room. We wanted this to feel more intimate.”
The order was taller than most people would think. “For me as an architect, this is one of the most special kinds of urban living environments you could ever imagine,” Dayton says. “I thought, how do you improve on what’s already such a special place?” The big windows and high ceilings that drew the owners to the 3,500-square-foot space, he notes, are remnants of the loft’s original purpose as part of the utility building—housing the furnaces and waterworks—that served the former Washburn Crosby Company (now General Mills) building next door.
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Office
Beson describes the wife’s study as “lighter, brighter, and more feminine” than the loft’s other spaces. Because the study is used primarily during the day, he chose white for the walls so that they recede and let the view of the iconic Gold Medal Flour sign take the stage. The lavender hue in the large-scale plaid sofa and lavender velvet-covered chairs was inspired by a negligee.
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Office
Tones of gold and charcoal—including a ceiling treated with silver leaf by painter Darril Otto—give the husband’s study a rich look that feels especially dramatic at night, when “all the furnishings kind of melt away and all you see is the view,” Beson says. Holly Hunt lounge chairs swivel easily to take in the views outside and on the room’s TV.
No design team in town was better suited to the job. For Dayton, it was his “third lap through the space” as the architect who originally finished the loft nearly two decades ago, followed a few years later by its first renovation, then this one. For Beson, this was the most recent of multiple projects for the homeowners for whom he’s worked for more than 25 years.
Their biggest charge was introducing the new owners’ personal style and accommodating their needs—which, as empty nesters, were far different than those of the young family who lived there before. The former nursery, for example, transformed into the wife’s study. A rooftop lawn that hosted larger-scale entertaining was reconfigured with structures to better suit smaller gatherings. But the biggest change took shape in the kitchen. “It had been more commercial in style, whereas this is much more residential—a little more intimate, a little more delicate,” Dayton says. “It used to have more of an equipment focus, but now it’s like a true residential kitchen with a small wine refrigerator and a coffee center—what you’d see in a classic house.”
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Rooftop
Although walls and a roof structure painted charcoal gray envelop part of the rooftop terrace, landscape architect Tom Oslund designed movable, wall-mounted stainless steel containers for summer plantings. The rug and seat cushions are designed for outside use, so they won’t fade, mold, or mildew.
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Dining Room
A luxurious walnut-and-onyx buffet divides the dining room from a small sitting area. The pièce de résistance, however, is an antique Persian rug, whose “sister rug,” as Beson describes it, is in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. “When I sold it to the clients 20 years ago, it was very expensive and I was trying to justify it,” he says. “I told them, ‘You’ll have this rug forever.’”
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Kitchen
Because the owners were downsizing from a house in Edina, storage was at a premium. So, Beson and Dayton boosted the kitchen’s storage with shelves for cookbooks and an extra set of upper cabinets for seasonal and special-occasion items. A custom ladder made of steel—that’s surprisingly light—provides access to those high places and doubles as an art piece. The owners found the crystal pendants above the island, which hang from a fabric-covered panel. That panel conceals plumbing and ductwork—elements exposed before the renovation.
That classic sensibility became the continuum. “The style is little more traditional and a little dressier, even though most people are going the opposite way,” Beson says.
Those style changes, however, weren’t substantial in a structural sense, with the floor plan remaining in place, and surface finishes getting the majority of the attention. Vertical-grain Douglas fir ceilings and floors, for example, previously had a clear stain that produced an orange effect. Treated with an walnut stain, the wood now better matches the new owners’ furnishings and overall palette. And royal blue bookcases in the husband’s study were given a fresh coat of charcoal gray paint for a more dramatic effect—perfect for his books, which include Kennedy biographies.
Nonetheless, the change feels dramatic. “If someone came to a cocktail party in the space before and after the renovation, they may not realize the space was the same,” Beson says.
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Console
Curved walnut veneer drawers and 24-karat-gold-plated legs and hardware in the entry’s Donghia credenza instantly convey an air of elegance—that this isn’t your typical loft-style space. “You could never try knocking this off and making it inexpensively just by the construction of it,” Beson says. But it’s the lattice-patterned floor that attracts the most attention. “It’s a very deliberate nod to a stately turn-of-the-century manor, where you’d have almost a winter garden look,” Dayton says. Carrara marble framed in two colors of walnut—one natural, one stained ebony—creates a trompe l’oiel look. “I originally had black ebony going all around the square,” Beson says. “And Jim [Dayton] said, ‘What if you go dark on only two sides and make it look like a shadow line?’ It was a nuance that made all the difference in the world.”
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Powder Room
Beson describes the powder room as a little jewel box—like you’d find in a fancy restaurant—complete with glimmering crystal parrot sconces and a carrara marble and walnut floor.
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Study
In the wife’s study, gold-finish hardware adds elegance to a bleached-wood dresser that was custom made with long drawers to hold wrapping paper.
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Study
Gray paint allows bookcases in the husband’s study to become an almost academic backdrop for a collection of biographies, including dozens about the Kennedys.
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Kitchen
The kitchen’s gray lacquer cabinets and polished nickel pulls bring a more sophisticated look to what had been a commercial-style space.
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Office
Silver-leaf, glass-topped tables lined with lavender velvet, designed by Beson, create the perfect display for a collection of Limoges boxes in the wife’s study. “Little things can be hard to work with, not only for interior design, but because they get rearranged every time someone dusts,” Beson says. “This is a beautiful solution.”
Dayton agrees, but notes that all work was sensitive to the special nature of the loft. “Each of these owners has been a kind of steward of the space,” he says. “They have different styles and tastes and uses for the spaces, but they’ve all had a respectful hand given the building’s industrial legacy. Nobody wanted to blow things up and start over again.”
Still, the end result, as they say, blew the owners away. Beson and Dayton are quick to credit the other. “It was largely Billy’s project,” Dayton says. To which Beson says, “He’s being modest. He did some pretty incredible things—changes that made it perfect for the clients.”
Editor's note: James Dayton unexpectedly passed away after publication. Our editor in chief reflects on his legacy, and we remember his impact on local architecture.
