Jaclyn & David’s Los Feliz Remix

Bethany Nauert

published Jan 17, 2016

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About this tour

Home Type

House

Location

Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California

Style

Maximalist

Bedrooms

Square feet

1000

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Name: Jaclyn Johnson and David Kaul and their dog, Noah Wiley
Location: Los Feliz — Los Angeles, California
Size: 1,000 square feet
Years lived in: 2.5 years; Rented

It’s been well over a year since I last visited Jaclyn Johnson, founder of Create & Cultivate, at her incredible little home in Los Feliz. Since then, her now-fiancé, David Kaul, has moved in, and they are enjoying their engagement in their home’s beautiful mix of feminine and masculine styles. They invited me over to see how they’ve transformed the house to suit both their aesthetics—it’s awesome to see how they brought their lives together with just a few changes.

(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)

For both Jaclyn and David, the most essential part of designing a home is “comfort and function.” While they love the idea of a super minimal and clean home, they’ve realized it’s just not functional for their lives. “We are busy, have lots of things going on; it’s just natural for us to have a little chaos and color.” They spent time editing down what they both wanted to hold on to and getting rid of what wouldn’t mix well. While Jaclyn loves the marble drawers in the office which belonged to her grandmother, David really loves the artwork collection—especially the Barry McGee art in the office.

Lucky for them, they have complementary aesthetics that lean on each other seamlessly and lead to a welcoming and happy environment. I love their use of the outdoor space, and it’s obvious that entertaining is one of the couple’s favorite ways to spend time in their home. The warm Southern California climate is definitely one of the biggest influences in their house: “Our house has tons of sliding doors which we keep open 99% of the time, creating a lot of outside and inside synergy which we feel is very California.” They notably love cacti, and integrating the California plant into their home feels very “fresh and very LA.”

(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)

Apartment Therapy Survey:

Our Style:
Jackie: Feminine, Mid-century, gold accents, high/low, colorful, cacti
David: Heritage, handmade, folk art, vintage, modern

Inspiration:
Jackie: I love mixing patterns, woods, and metals creating a warm environment; our place is super modern so it was important that we made it feel comfy and cozy.
David: I like mixing vintage and modern; I had a big art collection when we moved in which was fun to add to the space.

Favorite Element: Jackie: The outside yard
David: The Barry McGee art in the office

Biggest Challenge:
Jackie: Making the apartment feel more masculine—the house previously had a very female vibe so I had to find ways to tone down certain areas and add in his items to keep it balanced.
David: Trying to merge all our pieces together! At first we thought our stuff would work so well together but once we start seeing it together we had to rethink the collaboration. We had to sacrifice a few pieces here and there due to the size of the space.

What Friends Say: Our place is a good representation of both our styles; it’s cozy and warm and functional at the same time. We love hosting our friends in the backyard, especially during the summer months.

Biggest Embarrassment:
Jackie: I think it’s funny but our dog, Noah, has more beds than we do!
David: The Mary Kate and Ashley book

Proudest DIY: The hand-dipped paintings! David and I painted them in the backyard as a fun experiment and we ended up loving the results—it puts a fresh spin on vintage paintings.

Biggest Indulgence:
Jackie: Our bed from Design Within Reach
David: The speakers for our record player

Best Advice: Make sure each other have their own “spaces”; since David works from home, it was important to have the office feel like his. It’s all a compromise but luckily our styles complemented each other, which made it easier.

Dream Sources: One Kings Lane, Eames, Hammer and Spear, SchoolHouse Electric, Cisco, Dwell Studio, Shop Candelabra