How this fashion designer transformed a ‘tragic disaster’ into a picturesque home

(CNN) — When fashion designer Aurora James toured her soon-to-be new home, a friend in tow called it a “tragic disaster.” That would probably make most people a little nervous, but the founder and face of shoes and accessories line Brother Vellies was unmoved in her decision to snap up the woodsy cottage-style home in the mountainous LA neighborhood of Laurel Canyon.

“I think I always see potential in things,” she told Architectural Digest for the magazine’s September cover story. “I just saw that there were some easy tweaks that could make it better, and I felt at home.”

The earthy, picturesque home, painted in hues of moss green, off-white and blush by Farrow & Ball, may offer a retreat from Jame’s home base in Brooklyn — when she has time. James is a visible figure in the fashion world. In addition to growing her line, worn by Beyoncé, Ayo Edebiri and Rosario Dawson, she’s also dedicated herself to holding the industry accountable through her nonprofit, the Fifteen Percent Pledge. The organization, which she founded in 2020, asks retailers and other companies to stock 15% of goods from Black-owned brands (Nordstrom, Sephora and Rent the Runway are among the companies listed on the organization’s site who have made the pledge).

James is socially and politically active in other significant ways, too, from teaming up with Michelle Obama’s nonprofit When We All Vote to produce “vote” crew socks in 2020, to dressing US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the much-talked-about “Tax the Rich” gown at the 2021 Met Gala.

Working on her three-bedroom home over the past four years has been an opportunity to exercise her personal creativity — especially since her self-described “catnip” is “being on the internet at 11 p.m., searching for a weird light,” she told AD.

In a 2022 interview with The Cut, James categorized her 60- to 80-hour work weeks as a “mad dash” but lately, striving for balance seems to be more her style. James recently replaced her home pilates and fitness studio with a serene sanctuary for sprawling out, with hanging lanterns by the sculptor Isamu Noguchi and a float couch by Sarah Ellison (whose design studio also produced James’ sphere-legged bed and coffee table).

“It has been really nice to have a period of time where I could just make something that was, for sure, my own,” she told AD. “These days more than ever, I think creating a house with the intention of satisfying your own emotional, mental, physical well-being is really important.”

Other moments of zen include her greenery-framed stone and terracotta outdoor kitchen with a wood-burning oven, and a primary bathroom that features a blue welded conservatory-like shower. Less zen: the process of getting a 1,000-pound stone sink into her indoor kitchen.

But the overall effect is a home with ample visual interest, from her art collection featuring important contemporary Black artists like Tyler Mitchell, Mickalene Thomas and Tschabalala Self, to the unexpected details that enliven the space, like the wood and chartreuse stairs that lead to the second floor.

“I don’t think that houses are ever done,” she said. “That’s part of the reason why it took me four years to do this, because I kept waiting for it to be ‘done.’”

She calls her home a “snapshot” of her life now – but it’s not necessarily set in stone. “Sometimes you have to just do what’s right for you right now. It doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to stay that way forever.”

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