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Amanda Thomas, founder of jewelry brand Luv AJ, was sold on this 1,200-square-foot West Hollywood home the second she stepped in the driveway. A dramatic Australian eucalyptus tree greeted her, which instantly reminded her of her mom, who grew up in Adelaide surrounded by them. Never mind the fact that the inside of the house consisted of plain white walls and cheap dark floors or that the sprawling backyard was just gravel and a rickety old fence. Sure, it sort of looked like an early-2000s apartment complex, but that tree. “It just needed someone with a good eye to come in and make it feel special,” says Amanda. And that someone was her sister, Claire Thomas, filmmaker and cofounder of Sweet Laurel Bakery, who designs homes for a client roster that includes Bryce Dallas Howard.
Having recently gone through a divorce, Amanda was determined to create a mini oasis for herself, especially because she had never been on her own before. “I actually lived with Claire until I was 25, and then I got married,” she shares. Despite being roommates for most of their lives (and the fact that they’re only 14 months apart in age), the sisters’ aesthetics couldn’t be more different. Claire loves a whimsical floral wallpaper and doesn’t shy away from scalloped rattan lighting, but Amanda leans toward clean silhouettes and neutrals, even when she’s getting dressed. “I wear a lot of black,” she says. “But I knew that I wanted the house to feel homey and also a little eclectic. Bringing Claire in made sense.”
Claire was honored to push her “cooler little sister” outside her comfort zone. All it took was one reference image of a green kitchen to inspire a visit to Portola Paints, where they landed on Grape Leaf for the space and similar earthy Roman Clay tones, including Serene Thought, to swath the entire house in. Every wall, from the living room and the guest bath, down to the entire exterior, is plastered in a soft shade of sage or olive. “I would have never done that on my own, but Claire was like, ‘No, I think it will look really cool,’” says Amanda, admitting her previous home was cozy but very beige.
For a moment, they considered bringing a Key lime pie hue into the picture, though shortly after Amanda polled her Instagram followers on the matter, it was cut from the plans. The siblings also debated leaving half of the kitchen’s original cabinets a natural tone, but once they saw how busy the wood grain looked after stripping away the previous paint job, they chose to drench it all in Grape Leaf, too.
In the primary bathroom, stacked zellige tile stands in strong contrast to swirly Calacatta Viola—a last-minute splurge after the sisters’ original, budget-friendly stone got lost at sea. “The boat apparently never came to port and they never got the shipment. Two weeks before I moved in, we had to go down to the marble yard,” recalls Amanda. It was actually the project highlight for Claire. While expensive, the marble is timeless, and committing to it for the kitchen counters, bathroom vanities, and shower niche and bench was worth it—it automatically elevated the house. It’s eye-catching enough to distract from the fact that the standing tub is one of the smallest models there is. (How else do you think they were going to squeeze it in on an angle?) “It gives the home a [sense of] cohesion,” says Claire. “It’s also giving presidential suite vibes.”
Meanwhile, the powder room is giving selfie energy. Whenever friends come over, Amanda is bound to see a mirror pic pop up on Instagram later that night. On the other hand, their mom is still a little baffled by the drippy Concrete Cat mirror. “She was like, ‘You girls are crazy.’ Like, whatever, Mom. It’s very sexy. I love it,” says Amanda.
Completing Amanda’s dream bachelorette pad came down to addressing a lack of closets with a custom fluted walnut unit in the bedroom, refinishing the dark floors to lend an airy ambience, and laying checkerboard tile around the new in-ground swimming pool. “I wanted it to feel like Montecito meets Tulum,” says Amanda. Their landscape designer, Haley McMillen, added olive trees, lavender, and cacti for good measure.
Most important, if you want to live in a luxurious “jewel box” (the name Claire gave the remodel), you need good lighting. Multiple skylights keep Amanda’s allover green home from feeling overwhelming. “The more light you have, the richer you can go [with color],” argues Claire. That’s why they replaced a solid wall in the main living area with wraparound glass to show off the tree’s twisted trunk and eucalyptus leaves. When she looks out onto the lush front yard, Amanda never forgets what brought her there in the first place.
The Goods
Dillon Armchair, Soho Home ($1,128)
Laurel Coffee Table, Burke Decor ($1,510)
Absinthe 2X6 Tile, Zia Tile ($1.50 per tile)
Casper Table Lamp, Soho Home ($1,000)
