Name: Mark Brosmer
Location: Eagle Rock - Los Angeles, California
Size: 1200 square feet
Years lived in: 11 years
Mark's home is one of six Spanish style bungalows, built in the 1930's and 1940's, that surround the historic Eagle Rock in Northeast Los Angeles. The house sits on a long private driveway that is shared with his neighbors. Everyone is very friendly and even the dogs stop by to say hello. It feels like one big commune and Mark loves it!
The property grounds are quite impressive. The backyard has a view of "the rock" of Eagle Rock — you can actually walk right down to the rock from Mark's place. There is hardly any barrier between the indoor and outdoor space, especially with the floor to ceiling windows in the front of the house. Did you catch one of my favorite fun exterior decor elements? An outdoor disco ball! Great for summer parties.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
My Style: Retro cabin mod.
Inspiration: California. Open to eccelectic finds, not too specific.
Favorite Element: Extension to the outdoors through the many windows and sliding glass doors.
Biggest Challenge: Moving in, the house was a dump and in need of love and paint.
What Friends Say: The house wraps you up like a cocoon.
Biggest Embarrassment: Cottage cheese ceiling in living room.
Proudest DIY: A tree in the backyard fell and opened up a stunning view of Eagle Rock. I created a patio (pea gravel) area now known as "the perch."
Biggest Indulgence: Oviedo chair from Restoration Hardware
Best Advice: Paint the exterior walls and trim the same dark putty color. This causes the plant life surrounding the house to stand out.
Dream Sources: TINI, St. Vincent de Paul (Circa 1991-96)
Resources of Note:
APPLIANCES
- O'Keefe Merritt stove from St. Vincent de Paul - $69!
FURNITURE
- Some of the furniture was left behind by my ex-roommate and now neighbor, Randy. He has an extensive collection of furniture and accessories, enough to fill 3 houses. Most of the furniture was from yard sales, flea markets, St. Vincent de Paul, and Further (Silver Lake).
ACCESSORIES
- Concrete lamp (bedroom) and wall hanging (above the fireplace) by Artisan Mona Hoffman (mona@roughedges.com)
LIGHTING
- Track lighting and vintage lamps
PAINT
- Dark putty exterior
FLOORING
- "Linoleum City" for kitchen tiles
TILES & STONE
- Spanish tiles in main living room area
WINDOW TREATMENTS
- Windex
ARTWORK
- All artwork by Mark Brosmer
Thanks, Mark!
(Images: Marcia Prentice)
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What a calm and colorful oasis! I'd never leave.
Could you share the source for the black&white duvet cover?
Very cool place!!! Congratulations.
You don't have to apologize for the cottage cheese ceiling, though - if it doesn't have asbestos, it is a tremendous acoustic aid in keeping things quiet. Also, it's retro. Maybe you can tell I have one too and have taken some knocks for it!
best house tour in a LONG time. i love the feel of the house and the artwork is fantasic! love it!
I LOVE this hour tour. What a gem. I don't know which is better, the inside or the outside. It just has a great laid back look to it.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for NOT taking a sledge hammer to your kitchen and that GEORGEOUS bathroom. Bravo.
Love how your dining space opens up to your yard. With each click I just fell deeper and deeper in love with your home and this is a first. I've like alot of home tours, but your home I can truly live in without changing a damn thing.
Do ya have a spare bedroom? I love dogs and big dogs!! LOL! Truly LOVELY.
It is eclectic and at the same time comfy...I'd never leave either.
This house tour is so marvelous, I just went through it again.
Gorgeous pottery collection, and that aqua and white bathroom makes me swoon!
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE.
I especially love the paintings. I spent a summer at Oxy years ago, and I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't even know there was a rock called Eagle Rock! But it's a lovely, laid-back neighborhood.
"Windex" hehe
OMG love the disco ball in the outdoor space.
I went to Oxy, and this house, in that area, would be like a dream come true! I love your color schemes - the orange rooms, and the fantastic job you did on the bath. And I LOVE your artwork. I bet I could sit and stare into those landscapes for hours. Congratulations and thanks for sharing!
Outside is just as gorgeous as the inside. Best house tour on AT in a long time, thanks for sharing!
Just wonderful! Best tour in a long long time. Love your artwork!
I adore the painting above the bed. Is that one of yours? Fantastic place.
Very Eagle Rock/California. I love this one. And I love the dog.
So that's the top of Eagle Rock. I heard there is a store there now that sells all things eagle and rock related.
Great house. A lot of individualism and creativity which is a refreshing change. Love how it all works well together, good eye.
Um. Now I really need an outdoor discoball. Fantastic.
Wonderful home, warm and lovely! Best tour!
Another "real" house...Pay atterntion, AT! I LOVE the apple painting, laughed out loud when I first saw it...The huge windows! The outdoor patio! Man, I can hear the bees buzzing and feel the sun warming my skin...Your house is very nice,sir!
❤❤❤ ;)
I think this is the duvet cover:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60151213/
I thought I'd seen it somewhere...
Welcoming and magical! Love how it feels connected to the outside. Diggin' on the putty exterior...roof and plants look awesome. I will ponder for my next paint job!
@Suzeh: YESSSSS!!! Many thanks.
Love it! Looks like a home for a human and a Boxer and not a home for a camera crew.
Great house and I love the lived in look of it. The pops of bright color with all that warm wood is really eye-catching.
Really appealing space, stunning setting, great artwork. Really love the idea of painting a landscape through a filter of water droplets. Hats off.
Such warmth! The colors, the scale, the relaxed approach. THIS is a great home. This is artistry. I can't get over that apple painting. The lush curves and light, the umbilical stem--it's as if I never really saw an apple before.
omg! the rock! wow!!!! seriously awesome. LOVE the chandelier over the tub, eclectic pillow-age, and just about everything else. YAY for NELA and YAY for your stupendous space.
Excellent home tour!
What a joy to be able to live in this home.
Wow. Definitely one of my all time favorite AT tours. Great job!
wow, you are a very fortunate guy to have landed such a nice place like this. when you first moved in, seeing that the house needed a lot of attention and paint what did you see for the house? and what inspirations or ideas did you have for the house? and did these ideas and inspirations come true?
I love this house :) We should swap!
Though I find the bathroom and kitchen plain - that is only compared to so much of the space that you live in. Perfect synergy between wall color and painting color. You are obviously a painter - what percentage of the paintings in the house are yours? I know this is much, but I have a pinterest board I call modern decor. It is mostly black and white. Mark, with your permission, I'd like to share my favorite parts of your house to prove I don't hate primary and secondary colors.
fabulous. one of the best house tours ever, and i love all of the artwork.
This is by far, my favourite house tour this year. It reminds me so much of my Father-In-Law who was also an artist. He would spend his money on art supplies and gardening, but built his home of whatever was salvaged and made. The home of artists are always the best, the warmest and unintentional in style. Thank you for sharing this.
Love it! All of it it! Would be slightly nervous about cooking with that pan rack directly above my head though ;o)
Agree with all the earlier posts of praise. Looks delightful, relaxing, effortless and homey.
What do you call those kinds of thin covered "mattresses" that pile up together on a daybed? (Maxwell showed those in his NYC apartment too.) I'd never really seen that look before in the states and am curious where/how to find such things. Thanks.
I am so in love with this house! Perfection!
one of my favorite houses on AT! love the pics over the bathtub that match the turquoise tile, the mirror ball outside, and that big rock in back...awesome!
**swoon**. Beautiful house too.
I love the way Mark picked out things that made him happy. The only way to furnish a living space! I found this website and fell in love with way the people furnish and fill their personal living spaces! I know that I would truly like all these people for personal friends because it exhibits their way of thinking / philosophy about life in general! Kudos to all of you on this website. Lucky from Oregon p.s. I live in a 600 ft. A frame cabin by the river 29 years...
YES!!!
Love your art and your home! Kudos! Artist's homes are always so inspiring, they feel real and creative.
My Dream House. Love It.
Wow...thanks for sharing this inspiring home. Personally, I like the conterpoint of the plain kitchen and bath with the rich color and texture of the rest of the space. These are utility spaces and their beauty is in their clean functionality.
The open access to the inviting outdoors add the perfect finishing touch to this 'best yet' house tour.
I drive past "The Rock" all the time and had no idea anyone actually lived behind it!
What a glorious home.
Texture, color, history and so much fresh artwork. I love the scale of the whole place. I've been seeing quite a few tours lately in which the furniture looks uncomfortable, or the space feels too hard or time stamped to 2012. Not this place. This home has its own time.
Mark, your paintings are wonderful and not surprisingly have the same warmth as your home. I appreciate the celebration of texture and what seems to me, to be a lack of irony. I LOVE IT.
And, thanks AT for shooting the space rather than vignettes!
Agree with all the positive comments, especially beautiful bathroom.
Gorgeous. As a NYer, this is *not* what comes to mind when I think "califormia living". Now I'll have to reevaluate. This is enviable.
The house, the art, the outdoor space. Love!
LOVE THIS. And agree with byronaugusta--this is what AT used to be, and still should be, about. It is creative, charming, personal and warm. And it was a delight to see this after the overdone Pasadena bungalow I just saw on another AT house tour.
The green cabinet is the best piece of furniture I've ever seen.
Any idea where it came from?
I agree about the green cabinet -- fabulous! What would that be called, if I wanted to seek out something similar?
Such an exotic use of color. Each room certainly has its own character. Love the bedroom and bathroom. Great job!
Love this, one of my favorites. Agree with Sally305 about the other bungalow tour, just what I was thinking.
The whole thing feels so natural, casual, and authentic. It's beautiful, yet not overdone. And the setting is amazing!
Wow. Truly awesome and inspiring space. The artwork is fantastic as well!
This is such an inspiration for me. Thank you!
We are on the other side of LA in Topanga, but our house has the same sort of paneling, size, feel etc...I recently decided we need to embrace the funky cabin vibe, and not paint over everything and/ or remove vintage details. There are not that many examples of this attitude right now, as folks seem to be on the whitening everything trend.
I was THRILLED when I saw this post and saw how your house looks truly loved for what it is. Thanks again!
I found myself smiling as I finished up this tour. It's fantastic. Inspiring art, Mark. And what a brilliant home--art-filled, nature-filled, light-embracing, boho, touches of whimsy---gosh, I love it all.
LOVE this house. Probably my favorite tour on Apartment Therapy. Exactly how I want to live. Very peaceful, livable, practical. Not right out of a magazine. This space has character and charm. Wonderfully done.