LA House Tour: Anne & Jacob’s Curiosity Shop Meets MidCentury Modern
Name: Anne Faith Nicholls & Jacob Arden McClure
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Size: 1,200 Square Feet Loft
Years lived in: 4 Months
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Built in 1905 in the Richardsonian Romanesque and Beaux Arts style, the Pacific Electric Building located at 6th and Main Street was LA’s first skyscraper, constructed for use as a terminal and office building for the downtown streetcar operations of The Pacific Electric Railway Company. In it’s modern state, the Pacific Electric Building has been revitalized into loft units with a great deal of the building’s grand turn-of-the-century details intact or renovated. We were invited by artist couple, Anne Faith Nicholls and Jacob Arden McClure, who call the Pacific Electric Building home, inside a wondrous loft space decorated with an eclectic nod to both past and present…
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AT Survey:
My/Our style: Curiosity Shop Meets Mid Century Modern
Inspiration: Art, Taxidermy, Turn of the Century Antiques, Books, Mid Century Modern Design and Style, and most importantly, a space that feels creative and productive.
Favorite Element: We have a few things: The centerpiece of our home is a 100 year old farm table from Wine Country that we traded a collector a painting for. It reminds us our our time that we spent in Wine Country when we were living in the Bay Area, and the friends that have dined and laughed around it. We also LOVE our huge windows that look out over the corner of 6th and Los Angeles. I (Anne) also have Taxidermy- a Female Brown Bear, which is from a Natural History Museumin Oregon that closed in the 1950’s. It’s a really good example of mid century taxidermy and a noble specimen of the species. I love the different reactions I get from visitors when they see it.
Biggest Challenge: Editing! We had, and still have way too much stuff, but it’s hard to let go sometimes. We got rid of A LOT of fabulous pieces during our move.
What Friends Say: Friends who know us well say that our home really reflects our artistic tendencies and personalities. They also love the views, and the building itself has a very impressive history. We love to hang out with friends on the terrace and pool on the roof. If it’s a hot night in LA you can usually find a bunch of beautiful people hanging out or BBQing by the pool.
Biggest Embarrassment: We have two dogs, which can be a bit much at times.
Proudest DIY: We love that our home is made up mostly of furniture we found at flea markets. It’s our way of recycling. Also, as artists, we love to showcase our quirky collections and props. We have a massive Art and Design Book Collection, a Rare Early American and European Box Collection, and of course, as artists, an art collection. We have built this collection of up and coming artists for quite sometime now. And we also have out favorite examples of our own paintings here as well, to show clients.
Biggest Indulgence: Expensive Designer Chairs, Jacob has 21 chairs of his own, A Tempurpedic Mattress, Good Home Cooking, and the Pool.
Best advice: Approach a floor plan with an open mind, and do what you can to make it your own, and fit your needs. Oh, and LESS IS MORE! It’s good advice that we should follow more closely.
Dream source: This minute, Our FAVORITE store in LA is, HANDS DOWN is Santa Monica’s Obsolete. It’s full of furniture, antiques and oddities that evoke a mood and ambiance unlike anything we have ever come across. I am dying to meet the owner and see what his or her personal home looks like. We would love for our space to one day look like that. Even their home potpourri is divine, but it’s $40! Can you believe that, $40, just for potpourri!
Jacob also loves Design Within Reach and Armani Casa for Furniture, and I am drooling over Goyard French Luggage, that I would like to use as a table. But of course, nothing beats the rush and satisfaction you get from a great flea market find!
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Resources:
Furniture: Most of our furniture comes from Flea Markets in Florida and Northern California. We have a few select Herman Miller and Eames Pieces from Design Within Reach, or which are authentic from private dealers.
Flooring: Original Concrete Flooring and Honeycomb Tiling
Rugs and Carpets: I love not having any rugs or carpeting of any kind. Despite the LA heat, out place always stays cool because of this.
Tiles and Stone: Tiling and marble is 100 years old and original to the Building.
Window Treatments: UV Curtains which are rarely closed.
Artwork: Mostly Oil and Acrylic Paintings by Anne Faith Nicholls & Jacob Arden McClure (artwork available for purchase).
(Thanks, Anne & Jacob!)
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