How to Nail Modern Bohemian Style

Four years ago, Kelly Furano fell hard for a site she spotted on a quiet street in Venice Beach, California—a new home by then up-and-coming design-build company Kim Gordon Designs. “I weighed in on the details, but mostly Kim ran with her vision,” says Furano. Her and her husband’s faith in Gordon paid off in a 3,100-square-foot house that melds drama with practicality.

For example? “I never understood the idea of giving up your yard for a garage!” says Furano’s husband, Keith Eshelman. Instead, the couple built an elevated carport, which once served as HQ for Eshelman’s company, the Parks Project. With space freed up on the ground, the family was able to create an outdoor room for lounging and playing. Vintage Moroccan rug, from $650; merchantmodern.com.

Since the couple moved in with kids Everly, now 5, and Leo, 2, Furano has slowly let the decor unfold. “No, I never had a Pinterest board!” she insists. Instead, she filled the rooms with pieces as they spoke to her. Velvet and suede sofas are juxtaposed with Moroccan rugs; midcentury classics mingle with quirky antiques. Venice’s creative bent finds expression in every room, from the abstract paintings by the couple’s friends to the locally made ceramics. It’s a confident mix, the kind you might expect from a fashion-world veteran. “I don’t want my home to look like a catalog,” says Furano. “I like rooms to feel comfortable and a little luxurious, but above all like us.”

Family meals take place at a vintage lacquer- and-oak table surrounded by mismatched seating. “We swap chairs depending on our moods,” says Furano. “And sometimes we just lie on the bench and eat pancakes.” The painting is by longtime friend Lisa Solberg.

Inspired by metalwork in Europe and Mexico, the casement windows are screenless (“you get maybe one mosquito a year here,” says designer Kim Gordon), and operated by hand levers. The casually elegant decor includes a velvet sofa paired with teak tables and vintage rope chairs, which bridge the connection to the outdoors. Custom velvet sectional; leeindustries.com. Atlas coffee table, $1,300; dwr.com. Teak Root side tables with succulent inlay, $389 each; malibudesigncenter.com. Ceramic wall hanging by Heather Levine (similar available from $125); shop-generalstore.com. Beni Ourain rug, from $550; merchantmodern.com.

French white oak cupboards, black granite countertops, concrete tiles, and a stained-glass window make for an eclectic yet streamlined departure from the standard-issue modern kitchen. Gordon also made the unusual decision to put the room a step up from the rest of the open common area. “When you’re cooking in the kitchen, you feel like the commander of a ship,” says Furano.

The couple hauled the 9-foot-high pyramid-shaped shelving unit up 25 stairs to anchor the spacious landing. The wall unit provides ample space for Furano’s collection of ceramics, which includes both vintage and new pieces by Ben Medansky, Heath Ceramics, and Heather Levine. Custom Andrew Berg shelf; smallworkssf.com. Ceramics, from $40; merchantmodern.com.

Leo and Everly have gradually taken over the empty space under the stairs. “It’s a great spot—out 
of the way, but not cordoned off,” says Furano. “It dances the line between independent play and time with us.” A woodland-themed mural provides an imaginative backdrop. Mural (similar available), from $168; anthropologie.com. A-Frame Shack, $200; south-corner.myshopify.com.

After a decade spent sharing a 50-square-foot bathroom, the couple revels in their new resortlike space. “To have two sinks, let alone a couch, in the bathroom is such a luxury,” says Furano. Potted palm trees against the windows provide privacy and make the room feel like a greenhouse. Vintage Moroccan rug, from $650; merchantmodern.com.

A prototype of a mural created for the Parks Project makes a nod to the family’s love of nature and adds 
a graphic punch. Cardboard cutout mural (similar
 to shown), $150; parksproject.us.

Whimsy rules in Everly’s room. Above a vintage bed, Furano created a garland from tassels
 left over from a birthday party and hung a clothesline to give
 her daughter a place to display her latest masterpieces. Beni Ourain rug, from $550; merchantmodern.com.