This Mad Men-Inspired Loft Blends Retro Decor With Modern Luxury

Tour a cool-toned apartment in the heart of Downtown LA.

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Starting from zero with an empty space and brand-new building can be daunting, but it also offers plenty of opportunities to showcase the homeowner’s taste and personality in every aspect of the decor.

For this particular home, a brand-new loft situated in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles, that meant combining modern luxury with more retro, 1960s-inspired touches.

In the lead image: Benjamin Moore Paint in “Blue Note”

“Since this client is planning on using this loft as a second home for entertaining work clients and friends before and after games and concerts at the Staples Center down the street, he wanted the space to feel luxurious, much like a retreat to your favorite hotel,” said Lindye Galloway, who designed the boutique-style loft. “But he also wanted this home to feel trendy and bring in a mid-century feel. In his words, he wanted a Mad Men loft.”

The building itself was built by Trumark Urban and has an uber-modern exterior, so it’s no surprise that the interior includes some equally contemporary features. Clean lines, plenty of natural light, and modern appliances provide a base for the interior design.

“Our client gave us so much creative freedom, which always makes our job fun! We wanted to capture the essence of the Mad Men feel but keep every part of the home fresh and modern,” says Galloway. “We focused on unique statement furniture pieces and just the right amount of color with interesting wall features.”

In this image: Ralph Lauren Jazz Age Geometric Wallpaper

Even the colors—a cooled-toned palette, featuring blues and greens peppered with the occasional pop of mustard yellow—pay homage to the Mad Men era, with Galloway looking to the hit show for inspiration. Updating the colors to suit a more contemporary motif, she incorporated pops of color in everything from the furniture to paint colors. And given that the base of the apartment is whitewashed and minimalist, the colors make even more of a statement.

Another unique color piece? The blue siding wall, a favorite of Galloways and something that the design team added in themselves.
“I felt like the space needed something to break up the white modern space and give more interest,” she says. “This wall was the perfect addition to bring in that texture and color for a little bit of pop and really ground the living room.”

In this image: Anthropology Geo-Marquetry Nightstand, $348

Besides the punchy hues, another standout feature of the loft is the geometric-print theme that runs throughout. From graphic gray wallpaper in the entry hall to checkered curtains to even the artwork above the master bedroom, geometric elements are mixed and matched—yet somehow look cohesive instead of clashing.

“Mixing patterned statement pieces with geometric elements is a careful balance to make sure they complement each other,” says Galloway. “I usually always look to mix pieces that have similar qualities but that contrast in color. That way, the pieces don’t overpower one another.”

Nowhere is this more evident than in the combined living/dining/kitchen area, where Galloway implemented a variety of patterns in blue, green, and beige colorways. Given the challenge of maximizing the space’s functionality (“In Downtown LA you pay a lot of money for a small amount of square footage! We needed to make it comfortable but also practical with flow for entertaining”), Galloway used two printed chairs to section off what used to be a window nook into a makeshift dining area.

In this image: Sean Woolsey Bliss Walnut Dining Table, $2,750

“We decided to creatively use the window cut out as a seat for one side of the table to save space. With custom cushions, you barely even notice that it’s not typical dining!” she says.

In this image: Benjamin Moore Paint in “Balsam”

Incorporating a wide array of color (how pretty is the vibrant green paint in one of the bedrooms?) and prints, Galloway proves that a lack of square footage doesn’t necessarily have to correlate to a simple,

minimalist decor

aesthetic.

Photography by Chad Mellon

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Elly Leavitt

Writer and Editor

Elly enjoys covering anything from travel to funky design (tubular furniture, anyone?) to the latest cultural trend. Her dream apartment would exist on the Upper West Side and include a plethora of mismatched antique chairs, ceramic vessels, and floor-to-ceiling bookcases—essential to her goal of becoming a poor man’s Nora Ephron. You can probably find her in line at Trader Joe’s. You will never find her at SoulCycle.