3 Interior Designers Transform The Same Abandoned Victorian Living Room

[Narrator] These three interior designers

have been given a photograph

of an abandoned Victorian living room.

They have free reign to design it in any way they please.

I'm Noz and my design is bold.

It's colorful, and sometimes it's a little fearless.

My name's Kat and my design style is unexpected,

luxurious, and inquisitive.

I'm Hema and my style is global, rich and livable.

[Narrator] No clients, no restrictions, just blank space.

My first impressions of the space

are that it probably was once a very beautiful

and grand room.

I do really love the original features of the space.

It's clearly an old Victorian living room,

but it's been messed with over time.

There's a lot that I don't have to stick with

and a lot of things that I will honor because it's great,

but it's not all original.

Looking at this room,

there is one word that comes to mind and it is demo.

I would just get rid of everything.

[light music]

My vision for this space

is basically preserving a lot of the elements

that I love about it.

Restoring some of that grandeur to the space

that I think has been lost over time

to just wear and non-original, non-heritage things,

but then make it whimsical

and colorful for that really cool contrast

that I love in older homes.

I love the idea of a game room.

I love game nights.

I wanna design a game room that feels sexy,

like game night in Casablanca.

It's gonna have that very lush, sultry feel to it.

My vision for the space is to try

and maintain a lot of its original charm and character,

but have a lot of fun with the colors

and the furniture that we use and bring it into the century.

[piano music]

Looking at these floors,

they look like an old parquet wood.

Ordinarily I wouldn't rip something like this out,

but I don't think there's any salvaging them.

I think we should start fresh.

It's too far gone, so I'm gonna replace it.

So I wanna do something more fun like a checkerboard.

Half of the checkers are gonna be wood, white oak,

and then the other half of the checkers

I'm gonna do in walnut wood.

I wanna make sure that I'm adding in floors

that are very complimentary to the existing features.

I'm gonna opt in to do a new parquet flooring

that feels brighter and fresher.

I think it would be really fun

to play off of the geometric shapes

that are seen throughout the rest of the space.

I'm gonna introduce a wall-to-wall carpet

and I think it's gonna add that like plush, sexy feeling

that we're going for in this space.

I do feel strongly

that from an acoustical and warmth standpoint,

we should have a rug.

This rug from Sofar,

I think it's really cool 'cause you can see in the detail

that they actually sheared between each color,

more of like a ridge,

so you can really texturally feel

all these colors transitioning.

In addition to the parquet floor,

I've been dying to use this rug by Edward Fields.

It's called Daisy.

It's really whimsical.

Also, there's an interesting history of Victorian houses

and American hippies.

So I think it brings

a really fun summer of love thing to the space.

[light upbeat music]

I really love the original wall paneling

and I just think it needs a bit of a facelift.

So I'm gonna paint it a really beautiful shade of blue.

And inside the trim,

I'm gonna go one shade lighter than the walls

to really emphasize that detail and create some contrast.

I love the original fireplace and I wanna try and keep that,

but paint it in the same light blue as the walls.

The only details, honestly, that I would preserve here

are these beautiful bay windows.

We're gonna rip out all this old wood paneling.

It kind of feels oppressive in the space.

So on the back wall where we've got windows,

we're gonna do this beautiful gold wallpaper by Calico.

You can see there's like a little bird motif,

it's very reflective.

That's gonna be the back room.

Not only am I gonna visually sort of divide the space

with different wall treatments throughout,

I'm actually gonna physically divide it.

So I've included these vintage floor to ceiling window panes

and I'm gonna add different colors

of stained glass throughout

to really capture this beautiful light

flowing through these big windows.

I love wood paneling,

but it just doesn't behave with anything.

It's almost as if someone like retrofitted

other architectural panels from another house

and like put them on the wall.

So we're just gonna redo the paneling

and then we'll move that all the way through

this entire room.

And as far as finish goes,

I have this idea of doing like ceruse,

which is basically they put white wax

inside the wood grain and then you stain the wood.

That way like the grain really lights up

even though you've stained it a color that's darker

than the wood.

I wanna do a cerused denim blue stain all over the panels.

I like the idea of adding some more fabric to the room

to help absorb sound.

So we're just gonna do

very simple, very tall floor-to-ceiling drapes

with a ceiling mounted brass rod.

The windows are really beautiful,

but currently the drapes are hiding them.

They're blocking out a lot of natural light.

The best thing to do is just remove them completely

and continue the paint detailing.

This is a space that isn't necessarily a bedroom.

I don't think you need privacy here.

So I really love

how it lets all of the natural light flood in as well.

I don't like this fireplace,

although I know it's probably historically preserved

and people out there are clutching their pearls,

but we're gonna visually expand the fireplace

to take up more of the wall

and create this like central gaming area.

And I'm gonna use this beautiful Zellij tile.

It's from Morocco, it's meant to be imperfect.

And then off to the left, we're gonna put a built-in

with this beautiful calke green paint by Farrow and Ball.

And it's gonna be where we house all our board games

and anything else that sort of belongs in a game room.

With regard to the fireplace,

I feel very strongly that it should be bigger,

but I'm gonna go with a very traditional Breccia Capraia

or Calacatta Viola marble.

But I will say I love a mantle

because I personally celebrate Christmas,

which is a holiday requiring stockings for Santa.

So I do wanna retain the shelf, that mantle shelf,

rather than running the marble all the way up the wall.

On the right hand side in the original space

we've got this sort of tiny nondescript wood door.

It's meant to be a hidden door.

I think a room like this deserves a grand entrance,

so I'm gonna expand the door to make it a double door.

And we're gonna carry the wallpaper from the back

all the way around to the right

[upbeat music]

For the ceiling,

I would love to continue the blue to the soffits.

There's currently these drop panels.

I want to remove those.

They feel overbearing, in my opinion.

And I think it would be really cool

if we did a mirrored tiled treatment

inside each of the soffits to help reflect the natural light

that's coming into the space

and also introduce a new more modern material into the room.

The ceiling in our original room

has like a funny sort of tray ceiling.

I'm not really sure what's going on there,

but I don't like it.

So, I'm gonna get rid of it

and I'm gonna build out a coffered ceiling.

But we're gonna create sort of this grid design

that's gonna mirror the fireplace

and mirror the floor.

In between each of these squares.

I'm gonna use my favorite wallpaper,

so we're gonna get a gold glow.

I am gonna flatten the ceiling.

And the reason why

is I wanna do something really major mural wise.

It's actually like a super hyper colorful version

of something that I've done

in collaboration with decorative artist, Caroline Lizarraga,

on a similarly sized Victorian living room

in San Francisco in real life.

But it's kind of like a watercolor looking

sort of like splashes of rainbow.

I love the idea of a finish like that

because there's a lot of negative space,

a lot of quiet white ceiling

and then gorgeous splashes of color like all over the place

that just sort of make the whole room

feel whimsical and improvisational.

And I love that in a hosting space.

[upbeat music]

One of the funny challenges about having a large room

is that sometimes it's a little bit too large.

There are totally times where I have clients

with homes this size and rooms this size

where they're like, How do I even decorate this thing?

With a room of this size

there's a lot of different ways to approach it.

For this space specifically,

I wanna try and create a focal point

in the center with the furniture.

I'm obsessed with this vintage sofa by Claudio Salocchi.

It's from the 1960s.

I'm going to reupholster the sofa

in this really beautiful soft cream leather by Maharam.

Next to the sofa I wanna bring in this beautiful bamboo

and brass side table by Gabriela Crespi.

As I think about furniture,

I need to zone this room, right?

This is a long, long, very large room

and I want there to be beautiful spaces for hosting,

but also spaces for sort of like quiet contemplation

or maybe just two people.

So we'll do an accent chair kind of over here.

Then I love it with a big swoopy sectional.

I love a sectional sofa in a space that doesn't have a TV

'cause what it connotes is everyone is together

having a shared experience talking to each other.

We'll do a coffee table.

This Marcin Rusak table,

it's like resin with actual botanical flowers

suspended forever in the resin.

We're gonna put side tables all over the place

so people can kind of like custom tailor

how close the table surface is

for their drink or their phone.

It's a game room, almost like a mini casino.

So, in our back area,

I'm calling this the High Roller Room,

we need a big table

with these beautiful Kelly Wearstler chairs.

Everything, again, has that sort of checker motif.

Then, moving forward in front of the partitions,

it's gonna get louder and a little more boisterous,

less serious, so we've got our central area for Taboo

or whatever loud games we wanna play.

We've got these curved sofas

in these beautiful velvet fabrics.

This is a pink velvet fabric from Thibaut

and then this is a green mohair.

And I think together they kind of echo

all of our tones in the carpet and on our wall tile.

And then we've got a central table

for drinks or whatever else we wanna rest in the middle

while we're playing.

Off to the left,

we've got a smaller sort of card table.

And then off to the right we've got our bar

'cause obviously we need drinks.

It's a party room at the end of the day.

The chairs are the Future Perfect in Los Angeles.

They are a green satin with a beautiful gold fringe.

They swivel, they're stunning, and they're comfortable.

I am gonna group them around this marble top table

for like kind of an elegant upscale look.

We're not going casual here.

We're going very, very lux.

As for accent chairs,

I wanna do like a mix of old and new.

So the new is gonna be the super furry little friend

from the Compana bros.

And then for the old,

'cause we're doing both sides of time in this room,

these vintage pieces

from Blackman Cruise in Los Angeles are velvet,

they're sort of worn and they're from Italy.

On the right side of the room,

I really want to add a bookshelf.

I chose this Elize bookshelf by Pierre Paulin.

It's a beautiful honeycomb bentwood design.

I think it goes really well with the geometric shapes

that we have going on throughout the space.

And the idea of a honeycomb

fits into that whimsical summer of love hippy thematic

we have going on.

Instead of this like big demilune table,

I'm just gonna do a credenza

'cause you could always use a little bit of storage

no matter how big your house is.

This one from Collette El Maze is so colorful.

It's wood, it's ratan, it's caning,

but it's also like leather wrapped pipes

that go around the perimeter of it,

and it looks gorgeous from every single angle.

On the left side of the room,

I think this is a great opportunity

to bring in pieces that have more organic curves to them

to offset the squares and the rectangles we have going on.

I would love to add this cabinet by Nicola L.

She's one of my favorite artists of all time.

She was a Moroccan born French artist

who was known for her witty human-like sculptures

that really fused art with function.

Bringing in this piece

not only creates a talking point within the room,

but also introduces a sort of new silhouette

that we don't have going on in the room.

On the right side of the fireplace,

I wanna bring in this amazing piece.

It's by Claude Lalanne,

it's called the Crocodile Banquet,

and I think it's just a piece

that exudes extravagance and elegance.

[light orchestra music]

With regard to lighting in this room,

everything in this room should be ambient.

It's a hosting space.

You don't need to like do your math homework in this room.

I'm actually gonna use the Riviere chandelier

from my new collection.

It's a total peeve of mine in hosting spaces

to be reclining on the sofa,

and as you look up,

you're staring directly into light bulbs.

So that's why I wanted to cover the bulbs

with alabaster stone

so you already have a lens that helps diffuse the light.

And because they shine outward,

it's more about ambient light.

So, remember that coffered ceiling?

The idea is that each grid

has one of these beautiful sort of glass pendants in them,

and they're gonna be at staggered heights

for a very candlelit garden outdoor Midsummer Nights Dream

kind of look.

And then in the game room, the high roller room,

we've got this beautiful dramatic chandelier from Soho Home.

The sconces on the fireplace are from London

and they've got this beautiful fringe on them

that kind of echoes what's happening with our swivel chairs

and the little card table up here on the left.

And then my favorite piece,

which is actually a really simple piece from Anthropology,

is this wall mount sconce of a hand holding a lamp

above the bar.

And I just think it's like really fun and whimsical

and kind of cute.

I really want to do a cool lighting installation.

This Noguchi Akari light sculpture, it's made out of paper.

It brings a bit of delicateness to the space

while still complimenting the geometric patterns

that we have going on.

It gives off a nice glow light

and I think it'll bounce really nicely

off of all the blue walls.

I'm gonna do sconces on either side of the fireplace,

and those are also from my collection.

They feel like angular and weird,

almost like origami sheets of brass.

And then there's like a rock crystal inside.

And then in the corner over here,

I just wanna have like a totem.

It's from Allied Maker.

Again, I have alabaster up in the ceiling light,

so I wanted an alabaster friend that I didn't create.

There's something almost spiritual

about the light warming itself through the alabaster.

[upbeat music]

So I've been talking about the paneling,

custom tailoring it,

I'm envisioning that we do custom sized panels

on either side of this wider fireplace,

that house Daisy Patton portraits.

Daisy Patton is this amazing artist out of Boston.

I want some real plant life.

We're just gonna do an olive tree over by the window

and then we're gonna do like a gorgeous little arrangement

right on that mantle, use that shelf space.

And a friend of mine in San Francisco,

he's my floral designer, co-conspirator Mr. Lee,

and I love that his sculptures are actively in decay.

That's what flowers are, right?

Morbid but true.

And I think there's something really cool

about something that's always changing,

being a focal point in the room.

We're gonna use mirrors to help bounce light through

and they're just gonna be fun shapes.

It's like a really fun starburst mirror over the credenza.

Then over the fireplace,

this one that I found on First Dibs

is almost like kind of a handle

and then like a pot or a pan of mirror underneath it.

Since most of the furniture that we've added thus far

is kind of art in and of itself,

I want to be super selective with the art

and the decor that we're bringing in.

I would love to put a mirror over the fireplace.

I'm gonna choose this amazing piece by Misha Khan.

He's a contemporary artist

who I think is doing really cool things.

In between the two French doors,

I'm gonna add this beautiful ceramic sculpture

by Norwegian artist, Torbjorn Kvasbo,

and I'm gonna display it on a very simple black pedestal.

I'm gonna add in an art piece by the artist Lauren Halsey.

An artist from South Central LA that I'm a huge fan of.

It has a neutral palette

and also plays with the geometric shapes.

In this room,

the styling is really what's gonna bring it to life.

We've got this giant palm tree.

We're going for Casablanca, Monaco,

that upscale, tropical feel.

Adding to the drama on the back high roller room table

we've got a dramatic flower arrangement.

And then in terms of accessories,

we've got our game shelf with all of our games.

Whatever you feel like,

you can just walk over and pull an option off the shelf.

[light upbeat music]

To me, this room screams fun

and it's like ready for a sexy night.

This is like no kids are hanging out in here.

This is adults only.

We're coming in here after dinner.

Everybody's ready for some cigars and some drinks

and, you know, who knows what else.

But we're coming in here to, you know, have a good time,

let loose, play some games, maybe win a little money.

And again, maybe if we turn the music up,

take off our shoes and jump on the couches.

You know, that's kind of what the room is for.

I'm really happy with how this room turned out.

I really achieved the goal

of trying to brighten up the space

and making it feel welcoming and lively.

It feels like a much more modern and inviting space,

but still very respectful to a lot of the original features

that we wanted to preserve.

My final thoughts on this room are, I love it.

I love color, but like earthbound color.

It's a little bit fantastical.

Yeah, I'll move right in.

[gentle piano music]

Oh wow! Oh my god.

Oh my God, everything is so different.

The rug, I love [indistinct]

Whoa. That's crazy. This is super different.

This is my game night room. I love that.

And you created a partition.

[Hema] A partition 'cause this is like

where the serious card players go.

Oh. Wow.

Oh, that's like the high roller.

That's the high roller room. Yeah.

That's amazing.

But this rug, like, tell me everything.

Oh my gosh, It's so cute.

it's outta control, right?

I've been dying to use it in a project.

It's by Edward Fields. It's called Daisy.

It's beautiful.

But it's, like, it's always gets defaulted

to like a nursery

and I was like, You know what, I'm gonna make it happen

in the living room.

It's so cute.

I think this will help people understand, like, have fun.

Yeah, exactly. Yes.

It whimsical. Yeah.

Wait, Noz, your ceiling mural.

Oh my god. What is it? Watercolor.

This is actually like a decorative finish

that I've done in a Victorian living room project

in San Francisco. Ah, sick.

All of us kind of went whimsical, I think.

Yeah, so true.

I think these people are friends.

Yeah, I think so. Sure.

Friends who, like, go to each other's houses.

Game night. Game night over here.

Yeah, like, deco party, like vibing space,

like cocktail hour.

Yes. And that's like tea party day time.

This is like a cuddle puddle like.

Oh my god. I love it.

Wait, okay, so we start in Hema's room,

and then we transition to mine , have drinks,

and then yours is the late night.

Yeah, lounge hang.

Oh my God. I'm obsessed. I like it.