Name: Mallory Morrison and Liz Bretz
Location: Santa Monica, California
Size: 1,100 square feet
Years lived in: 1¼ — rented
Mallory and Liz love and live for photography. Likewise, they live in a house full of all things photographic. Their work adorns the walls, their coat closet serves as an equipment room, and props from former shoots embellish their space from end to end.
Though the ways in which they photograph are vastly different, Mallory and Liz's aesthetics are similar and make for great decorating compatibility. Many of their accents / props are vintage and add great character to various areas of their home. They are not afraid to paint their furnishings or restructure items to better fit their style. It is this resourcefulness that makes their space so inviting.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
Our Style: Liz : Eclectic. Mallory : Our style is mixing comfortable and inviting furniture with our collection of various props from photo shoots. I like having pieces that are truly vintage hand-me-downs from my parents that hold lots of memories and finding second hand jems. We also believe that creativity can grow from making things work on a budget.
Inspiration: Liz : Most of my possessions have been purchased for use as props in photo shoots. Over time, I've accumulated an assortment of random objects that collectively serve as my style. Mallory has done the same. Our apartment is essentially a livable prop house. Mallory : Both of us are big Anthropologie lovers. We just do it on a dime. We want to surround ourselves with pieces that inspire us for shoots.
Favorite Element: Liz : Mannequin and Remington Portable typewriter (same model Hemingway was chronicled to use). Mallory : My Crosley record player is one of my favorites. It works great, there is a radio built in. I got it from Recordspinner.com.
Biggest Challenge: Mallory : My biggest challenge was my room- with the red walls. It is small and I have a lot of big bulky furniture. As it is now, I have every inch spoken for. I always love to re-arrange furniture after a year or so to keep things fresh and different, but as far as I can see, I'm limited with my choices.
What Friends Say: Liz : "It feels like an eclectic Anthropologie." "Post-modern." Mallory : They say it fits us so well. Someone said ' I didn't realize I was going to walk into an art gallery." Friends say that they always find something new that they love in the house every time they come over. People love our patio, as do we.
Biggest Embarrassment: Mallory : I would only say that our lights spiraling up our staircase need to be replaced, but that's about it.
Proudest DIY: Liz : I love to paint furniture. I'm really excited about the dining table on our patio. Painted, sanded and weathered. Additional proud fix-it moments include the typical, running toilets and sticking door handles. Mallory : A lot of my furniture has some "Mallory additions" mostly with staining and painting unfinished furniture. I love the corkboard on the wall in my office that I made. I collected corks from the wine I drank, so it took a while to finish and it is like a collection of good memories. Also, Liz and I took a trip to Downtown LA and picked out the fabric for the living room curtains and shower curtain and I sewed them. Just a little thing, but it's nice to have something handpicked.
Biggest Indulgence: Liz : My bed. Unfortunately, I have designed it so that I spend more time in bed than I should. I sleep in bed, I read in bed, I work in bed. The layers of the bedding are as follows: feather-top mattress, Cool Luxury Fiberbed, bedding, down duvet. Mallory : I would say my biggest indulgence is my office chair. I spend most of my day there and it has been a lifesaver. It's a Herman Miller.
Best Advice: Liz : Paint color makes a huge difference. Lighting is also key. Most of our lighting is very moody/romantic (which makes it difficult to be productive after the sun sets). I buy cheap lamp bases at thrift stores then create new lamp shades out of decorative fabric. To hide unwanted electrical cords, we also wrap the cords in fabric. Mallory : Don't underestimate Craigslist for furniture. If you have patience and a little luck with timing, you can find some wonderful pieces.
Dream Sources: Liz :Thrift stores, Craigslist, Long Beach Flea Market, Antique stores in Carpinteria, "On Sale" at Anthropologie, Etsy. Mallory : Anthropologie, Melrose flee market, Craigslist.
Resources of Note:
PAINT & COLORS
• 'Gypsy magic' is the purple bedroom color
• 'Brick Red' is the red bedroom color, Behr semi-gloss
LIVING ROOM
• Large Yellow Chinese Bucket: Anawalt Garden Store
• Schwinn Road Bike: Velo Cult, San Diego
• Coffee Table: Craigslist
• Wall clock : Bed Bath and Beyond
• The postage stamp dispenser (used as a stand for the red lamp) : from a flea market in Santa Barbara
DINING ROOM
• The dining table was made by Mallory's father in the 80's. The table top is a door.
KITCHEN
• Mounted beer bottle opener: Firefly on Abbot Kinney
• Apron: on sale at Athropologie
• Drawings on the fridge are by Avery, Liz's nice who's portrait is the big print in the living room.
LIZ'S PURPLE BEDROOM
• Remington Portable typewriter: eBay
• Mannequin: Closing Sale at a local retail store
• Filing Cabinets: Craigslist
• Hot Lamp on wooden tripod: Antique store in Carpinteria, California
• Moss, pinecones, and beach wood: Found while hiking in California
MALLORY'S RED BEDROOM
• Desk : hand-me-down library table from the 70's.
• Dresser : unfinished furniture store in San Francisco. I stained it with 'Antique Cherry' stain.
BATHROOM
• Galvinized Tins/ mini buckets: Cost Plus World Market
• Painting of nude woman : Chelsea Wills
• Red clock : Urban Outfitters
PATIO
• Gray Pots (Multiple sizes): IKEA
• Candle Wall Sconces: on sale at Casa Allegra
• String lights : OSH
• BBQ grill : Weber 386002 Baby Q Portable Grill from Amazon
Thanks, Mallory and Liz!
Images: Beth Bates
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I'm diggin' the gray paint with those photos.
what wonderful photos! cool place. great art.
I really love this house, it is so well done and everything appears effortless. Bravo!
The names of the gray paints, please.
Stylish and original. Beautiful gray walls.
Love it!
What a beautiful place! LOVE the paint colors and the great art. And, what a patio.
Yes, I guess I'm one of those people. But let's give Hemingway his due by spelling his name correctly. This is my polite self.
My regular self screams, "wherefortheloveofgodisasimplecopyeditor?"
Lovely and stylish space, though -- and thanks for sharing it.
Love all the props :)
To you, they are props. To me, they are really cool objects crying out for a place to be stashed and/or otherwise organized.
I do love your things, though! Smiled when I saw the mannequin in the bedroom. I used to have one just like that in my room, but even after a full month of it being in there I had gotten to where I would only scream once a night when I woke up and had forgotten it was there. I am a pretty jumpy person though, so I probably should have known better.
so lovely! i'm loving the grey walls and whimsical prints on the walls!
Please tell us the color/paint line of the bedroom dusty purple color. LOVE IT!!
My regular self screams, "wherefortheloveofgodisasimplecopyeditor?"
"Liz : My bed. Unfortunately, I have designed it so, that I spend more time in bed than I should. I sleep in bed, I read in bed, I work in bed."
Lose the comma after so.
I LOVE this house. It is such an WLA home - thanks for sharing!!
is that a height adjustable hanging lamp next to the bed? GENIUS.
The coffee table is killer. Love what you did with the patio - the candle wall is neat and you did a great job on the table!
Interesting, but a few things are bugging me about the purple room. What is the bed *on*? It doesn't look like a normal bedframe, whatever it is. Also- the light that is hanging from the ceiling at knee-height doesn't work-- and hang some curtains if you're going to install a curtain rod. :( Sorry to be so negative, it just looks very unfinished to me.
The photographs are interesting and there are some interesting pieces here and there, but to me the apartment looks like a mish-mash of uncoordinated items. I like the grey walls though...
I respect the fact that a lot of thought has gone into their home. And to each, her own. But I find it kind of somber...
It certainly is full of character but for some reason the pictures leave me feeling uneasy. The collections are interesting but nothing quite pulls them together. And I was put off by the string lights.
Paint color clarification please? I see that one paint color is listed (gypsy magic) -- which one is that? Can you tell us your gray and purple paint color names please?
The whole house is beautiful!!! I love all the colors and I really, really, really love that patio! It almost looks like something from a movie. Liz, I think the table in the patio is smashing!
@roxy72: I had the same reaction with the curtain rod!
Gypsy magic is the purple paint color.
where do i get a big loretta lux print!?
Beautiful home. Is your photography available online? I'm looking for a landscape similar to the one you have by your front door.
Beautifully eclectic artwork.
i love how you incorporate your everyday (and not so everyday) things into your home. feels like a living installation.
i especially love the gathering space downstairs feels inviting.
Love this place! So many interesting things to look at. The patio is awesome...so comfy and inviting. I also am a big fan of the photography. The one in the office looks like Slim Aarons.
i love the dark grey wall as well. my hub and i are planning to do the back of our bedroom wall in a similar grey unless anyone has a cheap diy way of creating a concrete wall? we were thinking of doing a thin coat on large wood squares (3 or 4 foot?) and then tiling them on the wall. any ideas or advice?
Like it. Like it a lot. Bravo, Henrietta the Terrible! Please may we have a floor plan? This is my regular whinge. It doesn't need to be an architectural rendering; a quick sketch on the back of an envelope can show and say more. It's the one piece of information that transcends the "Isn't my stuff cool?" tone of many House Tours (not this one) and appeals to those of us who are spatially oriented and of a practical mind. If you think that this is a wonky request, then please say why. No response is, perhaps, more irritating than no floor plans. Blessings.
Guess I don't have an original thought in my head.... but again, love the use of gray & grayed off colors in this home & in so many wonderful rooms right now. not just for prison walls anymore.
I want to know what the gray is also.. poop
I really like everything but the floors. I especially fond of the wall colors and have used similar colors here and there throughout my home. I also like the art.
Nice job!
I love your home, but the picture in your office is to die for. Where in heaven did you find it?
I love the idea of a prop house. Love the outdoor space, and like some of the wooden furniture like the desk in the bedroom and the coffee table.
Amazing colors and details. I love every part of this place (especially the color choices). The furniture is gorgeous and fits so well with the vibe. Nice job, ladies. It's perfect.
Oh what a beautiful home... It's hearkening back to the really, good ol' days of AT when all the tours looked beautiful, adaptable, affordable, and do-able. I love this eclectic style. It's interesting because you can see hints of minimalism, traditionalism (real word?), maximalism, and modernism. Classy.
To gqsmooth: It isn't a Loretta Lux, it's Liz's image of her niece. Her work can be viewed at www.lizbretz.com. You can contact her for prints.
To Julie from Velvet & Shag Vintage: The print in the office of the man with the typewriter is mine. It can be seen at www.mallorymorrison.net.
Thanks to everyone for the kind words. I'm still trying to find the grey paint color. Stay posted!
This is my favorite in a long while. The colors and objects create a very engaging and relaxing space. That's a difficult balance to achieve.
And to the grammmmmmmar and spieling poolice: "FFFFT!"
Apparently I'm not done yet.
I'm really taken with the ferris wheel photo. Great work.
Also-- The Schwinn is hot and the girls are cute. hi girls;)
Please please find grey paint color!?!
Aw snaps, the most perfect grey on earth!! If u find it, I can finally fix my bad purple bath!
Amazing place, I love everything. You both are also amazing photographers! Also very in love with your collections of props.
Please to the grammer folk, stop it. Do you have nothing better to do then to pick? It's irritating to have my visual pleasures interupted by pests!
Okay so I couldn't wait any longer for the grey. My curiosity was killing me, so I did some searching on the Behr paint site. Here are some greys that might be close (or possibly it)...
Arabien Veil
Echo
Poppy Seed
Distant Thunder
Dark Ash
Evening Hush
Dark Granite
Good luck all!
Thanks for posting that SweetLuna. I keep checking back every now and again hoping they will post it, but no luck.
I would love to know what the gray color is if possible
Cheers