ABOUT THE OWNERS
Brianna Marks Brownley // Women's Senior Design Manager // Reef
Russell Brownley // Owner, director, cinamatographer // The Wuss Productions
ABOUT THEIR HOME
1. Where do you gather your home decor inspiration?
We both have the amazing opportunity to travel a lot with our jobs in fashion and film, so I think that we gather a lot of our decor inspiration from around the world.Our most recent trips, both professionally and personally, have been Bali, Morocco, Paris, Hong Kong, etc.
I am very attracted to vintage pieces, mixed with a worldly view and small touches of imperfections.
2. What would you call your decor style?
3. What is your favorite furniture find?
I have a few favorite pieces:- Vintage distressed wooden dining table and rusted metal garden benches - It took me forever to find a dining set that I loved. I finally ended up visiting an antique warehouse in the San Diego area and fell in love with this set, balancing the delicate nature of the table with the heaviness of the benches.
- Turkish glass mosaic chandelier lamp - This is a favorite not only because of its beauty but because of the story behind it. We bought it at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul when we had a 24hr layover there after a production trip to Israel. We had to buy a Turkish carpet bag just to carry it home on the plane. Russell carried it like a baby through the airport to make sure it would stay safe and unbroken all the way back.
- Moroccan wedding blankets - I just recently went to Marakesh on an inspiration trip for work. The only thing that I really wanted to bring back for myself was an authentic vintage Moroccan wedding blanket, traditionally used by Bedoin couples during their wedding ceremonies.
4. How long have you lived here? 3 years What specifications were you looking for when house hunting?
Southern
California has a ton of new home developments that lack unique
character. We were looking for a house that had something different
about it. This house has a lot of impact on first impression because of
the open beam ceilings. We loved that!
5. Where do you like to shop for furniture?
5. Where do you like to shop for furniture?
We
are lucky to live near several amazing vintage swapmeets. I have bought
some of my favorite pieces at Pasadena Rose Bowl Swapmeet and Long
Beach vintage Swapmeet.
6. Have y'all done any renovations?
We
have only done minor renovations since moving in... knocking down a
partial wall, refinishing the wood floors, painting the kitchen
cabinets. However, we have a new kitchen remodel in mind for the next
few months... Excited to see how that goes!
7. What is your favorite room in the house?
7. What is your favorite room in the house?
Well,
one of the things we love about our house is the open floor plan in the
front of the house. I'd have to say that the living/TV rooms are my
favorite places in the house because they are such cozy seating areas to
hang out in and the openness allows for great parties.
8. What is your social security #? I kid I kid! Anything else you'd like to share? I am in love with your house y'all did an amazing job!!! I felt really comfortable there, I was in awe, and it didn't feel like I couldn't touch anything. So many cool things put together so cleverly. It was just all around bad to the bone! and it was Great to party in:)
We love having a place where people can feel comfortable to hangout in... A place of refuge for the night or celebration with a group. I appreciate having a lot of separate intimate seating areas that friends can talk and meet in, while still being open to the rest of what's going on.
We have a few collections that help to round out the character of our home:
- Natural minerals - My mother is an amazing jewelry designer (barbaramarksstudios.com) and she frequently takes me to gem and mineral fairs with her. I have a deep appreciation of the beauty of rocks and crystals in their natural states and see them as miniature pieces of art.
- Shoes - As a shoe designer, this is obviously one of my first loves. I have over 200 pairs and try to use them all, but obviously have some favorites. Now I just need a bigger closet :)
- Surfboards - This is Russell's collection (although I have one foam board for myself). He is constantly buying, selling, switching boards... And like my shoe collection, all are used frequently. My favorite is the balsa wood fish in our living room shaped by our amazing shaper and friend Richard Prause (grasshoppersurfboards.com), I think too pretty to use in the water.
BONUS: These two love birds just started a blog. Check it out.