A 100-Year-Old Spanish Bungalow Has Beautiful Bones and Awesome Arches
1200
1200
Name: Laura Genevieve, my husband Strader, our son Coyote, a German Shepherd named Rogue, and two chihuahua mixes, Gypsy and Lola
Location: Long Beach, California
Type of home: 1920s Spanish Bungalow
Size: 1200 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year, owned

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Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: We bought our home a year ago, and it was dark, depressing, and a little scary, but had incredible bones, arches, built-in arched bookcases and all that Spanish charm we craved. We knew it just needed some love and to be restored and updated so it would last another 100 years. It was built in 1920, so it literally turns 100 next year!
We’ve remodeled the bathroom, but haven’t done the kitchen yet. We painted everything light and bright and restored the original hardwood floors. I’m a jewelry designer and now interior designer and work from home, my business is BLANCO BUNGALOW.
My fiancé, Strader, owns Hatchet Hall Restaurant in Los Angeles, and our son Coyote Hawk Moon is 2.5 and stays home with me. This is our first home and we’re pretty much doing every improvement ourselves (painting interior and exterior, kitchen face lift, landscaping, refinishing windows, etc).
Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Light Bright Spanish Bohemian Bungalow
What is your favorite room and why? My favorite room is probably the living room because it’s where we spend most of our time; our son has a cute little play area and it gets really great light. I love the original barrel ceilings, hand-done textured plaster and giant arch window, arch bookcases, arch doorways, and fireplace.
What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? I just bought a Matte Black Mortise Handset lock for our front door. I decided to refinish the front door and stain it black myself, but then couldn’t get the original handle back on. So I just ordered the new handset that I’m about install myself.
Any advice for creating a home you love? Yes! My old thing used to be painting walls in color, but now my favorite is painting everything ultra pure white so I have a blank canvas. My personal photos can stand out and my furniture and light fixtures become statement pieces and can shine. My other thing is to invest in good quality pieces and get the one you ultimately want. If you go with the cheaper or less quality version, you’ll end up hating it, and you end up using it every single day, so why not invest what you truly love.
This submission’s responses were edited for length and clarity.