Laura bohn seems to have played, and won, a game of finders keepers.
Nearly everything inside her Ottsville, Pennsylvania, cottage has a secondhand story. Laura discovered the floor tiles that cover most of the tiny bungalow when she spotted a country road sign that read "Tile: 99 cents." She pulled over and bought every piece. When a rustic log chair fell out of favor with a friend, Laura called dibs and put it front and center in her living room. Likewise, the oversize (and very stylish) fixture above the dining table was another friend's castoff. "It was bright orange," Laura says. "I covered it with silver paint." A pair of sleek stainless barstools just appeared on the curb, and there she was—as luck would have it—to pick them up. "I find the most outrageous things," she says with a laugh. "I don't go through trash, but if it's glaring at me from the side of the street, I'll pick it up."
photography: Roger Davies
In the living room, a rustic log chair and woven rattan sofa (here, corgi Amy's perch) share space with modern furnishings like the wooden coffee table and metal floor lamps. |
photography: Roger Davies
Everybody who comes to the cottage has to draw on the wall covered with chalkboard paint. |
An interior and architectural designer by trade, Laura admits she'd probably get some flack from her clients for this come-what-may approach, but with her personal space, anything's game. "The projects I do for myself are the most fun," she says. "I take all the chances in the world." For example, she painted a chalkboard wall in her dining room, installed the bath sink on top of a rolling cart, and created a woodsy backdrop in the master bedroom with a wall mural found in a hunting catalog. "I could look at a tractor magazine and find something I like," says Laura, who bought the mural panels and hung them up as wallpaper. "It was tough getting the deer noses and antlers to line up," she recalls, "but it was incredibly inexpensive." 
photography: Roger Davies
Tiles for the backsplash were a fortuitous find in a funky tile warehouse located in route from the city to the country. Laura bought the portrait at an auction; it's unfinished, "which is what I like about it," she says. |
photography: Roger Davies
Magenta painted cabinets, white laminate countertops and a mix of other colors in the kitchen created a cacophony of colors in the kitchen before the renovation. |
photography: Roger Davies
Master bedroom before. |
photography: Roger Davies
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photography: Roger Davies
Laura laid gray and white tiles diagonally in groups of four to make a large checkerboard pattern. She extended the palette by painting the walls gray halfway up and the rest a high-gloss white "to make the ceilings appear taller." A friend gave her a bright orange, fifties-style light fixture, which she painted silver and hung above the table.
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Though Laura goes for it with chalk, wheels, and camouflage, she doesn't abandon the principal rules of design she's created for herself after 28 years of running her own firm. In many of her projects, she "splits" the walls—painting the lower half one color and the upper half another, just as she does here with gray and white in the living and dining rooms. "It anchors lighting and makes the ceiling look higher," she explains. It also adds architectural interest. In other projects, Laura often uses the same trick on curtain panels and wall tile. "Curtains allow you to use different fabrics and add more texture to a room," she says. Covering part of the wall with tile not only creates another layer but also—with less surface area to paint—"gives you the option of easily changing a wall color if you get bored with the one you have." She also sticks to her style of choosing bold, overscale pieces. "But not too many," she stresses. In the living room she has only a sofa, armchair, and coffee table, but all are generously sized, and cushy pillows add even more comfort. The giant silver pendant fixture in the dining room tops off a simple table surrounded by a set of clean-lined, modern chairs. "Don't be afraid to go extra-large," she says. To showcase her bold furniture, Laura uses a limited palette, working mostly with cool, serene colors. "I never do all-white spaces—there are too many gorgeous colors out there. Besides, too much white makes me fall asleep."
photography: Roger Davies
The bath sink, installed on top of a rolling storage cart, has plumbing mounted to a wall. "I love wheels," she says. "I put them on everything." |
photography: Roger Davies
Laura replaced the bathroom radiator with a baseboard heater and the traditional sink with a Kohler vessel sink mounted on a metal cart. |
So in a classic three-bedroom bungalow full of modern surprises, perhaps the biggest of all is the house itself. "It came in a box in 30,000 pieces," says Laura of the 1931 cottage built from a Sears, Roebuck, and Co. kit home design. "The kit had the option of putting in a bath. The original owners installed one, but it was so tiny that the tub was only 4 feet wide and the toilet stuck out in front of the door."
photography: Roger Davies
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photography: Roger Davies
Laura varied counter heights in the kitchen to change up the scale and customize the look of her off-the-shelf cabinets. |
All of the rooms were so small, in fact, that Laura reconfigured the walls between the living room, dining room, and kitchen, opening them up to one another and giving the house a more spacious feel. And by closing off the back portion of the stairwell and the original side entrance, she found room for additional cabinets in the kitchen. Now Laura's enjoying the fruits of her labor. "This was a hands-on project, and everybody helped out," she says. "The people at my office would come out and paint, and my husband, Richard Fiore, is a builder and developer who's up for anything." These days friends gather at the cottage for her cocktail parties that have become quite popular—one even involved the police. But don't worry: "His brother was a previous owner," Laura says. "Everybody stops in to see this house because it's just so different."
Mail Order House Forum
Click to the next page to find the product sources for the home.
photography: Roger Davies
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Interior design: Laura Bohn of Laura Bohn Design Associates, Inc.; 212/645-3636 or lbda.com.
Living and dining areas
Lower wall paint: Sensible Hue (6198) by Sherwin-Williams; 800/474-3794 or sherwin.com.
Ceiling and upper wall paint: Ceiling Bright White (7007), also by Sherwin-Williams.
Log chair: For a similar look, try Original Grove Park Lounge Chair by Old Hickory Furniture Co.; 800/232-2275 or oldhickory.com for retailers.
Floor tile: For a similar look, try Matte ceramic tile in Arctic White and Architectural Gray by Daltile; 214/398-1411 or daltile.com for retailers.
Sofa: Canyon Sofa in Natural Bark by Ralph Lauren Home; 888/475-7674 or ralphlaurenhome.com for stores.
Floor lamps (by sofa): Kulla Floor Lamp in White by Ikea; 800/434-4532 or ikea.com.
Coffee table: Paris Coffee Table (50078) by Donghia; donghia.com for retailers.
Ottoman: custom design by Laura Bohn; for a similar look, try Berlin Ottoman (0500), also by Donghia.
Rug: For a similar look, try Henley Rug in Bronze from Pottery Barn; 888/779-5176 or potterybarn.com.
Grimle Dining Table from Ikea; 800/434-4532 or ikea.com. Chairs: Anziano Chair by Donghia; donghia.com for retailers.
Kitchen
Cabinetry, countertops, and Center island: Akurum kitchen with Adel birch doors and drawers and Varde units from Ikea; 800/434-4532 or ikea.com.
Backsplash tile: World of Tile; 973/376-7750 or worldoftile.us for more info. Faucet: Kohler; 800/456-4537 or kohler.com.
Barstools: For a similar look, try Jamaica Barstool in Aluminum from Design Within Reach; 800/944-2233 or dwr.com.
Bedroom
Side table (in foreground): custom design by Laura Bohn, made of rough-cut cedar.
Lamp (on cedar table): Antifoni Work Lamp from Ikea; 800/434-4532 or ikea.com.
Lamp (on far table): antique vase made into lamp; for a similar look, try Capiz Block Table Lamp from West Elm; 888/922-4119 or westelm.com.
Chenille throw and pillow shams: Nancy Koltes Linens; 212/995-9050 or nancykoltesathome.com for stores
Deer Wall Mural (UH-612502), $79.99, from CabelaÕs; 800/237-4444 or cabelas.com
Bathroom
Rolling cart: discontinued; for a similar look, try Metro Commercial Serving Cart from The Container Store; 888/266-8246 or containerstore.com.
Sink: Conical Bell Vessels Above-counter Lavatory (K-2200-G); Faucet: Falling Water Wall-mount Lavatory Faucet; Toilet: Purist Hatbox Toilet (K-3492), all by Kohler; 800/456-4537 or kohler.com.
Mirror: Grundtal Mirror from Ikea; 800/434-4532 or ikea.com.
