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When designer Lauren Caron, founder of Studio Laloc, first stepped inside this Mercer Island home, she found a house caught between two identities. The front facade read Cape Cod, while the rear opened up with soaring picture windows overlooking Lake Washington. Early plans involved significant architectural changes to push the home further toward a traditional New England aesthetic, but construction estimates quickly revealed a different path.
“Rather than forcing the architecture to become something it wasn’t, we pivoted and focused on highlighting the home’s existing character,” says Caron. That mindset became the guiding principle for the renovation. Through strategic millwork, thoughtful storage solutions, and a few unexpected flourishes, she transformed the 1970s ranch into a home that feels warm, traditional, and tailor-made for a family of five. Here are five ideas worth stealing.
Turn a Closet Into a Hardworking Mudroom
With three active children, improved storage was one of the homeowners’ first requests. Rather than building an addition or sacrificing valuable square footage, Caron looked at what was already there. “The mudroom was created from a former closet that we completely rebuilt with custom cabinetry designed to accommodate coats, shoes, backpacks, and sports equipment,” she says.
The transformation gave the family a dedicated landing zone for everyday clutter, helping the rest of the house stay organized. Elsewhere, she gave underutilized spaces a similarly thoughtful treatment, including a laundry room outfitted with custom cabinetry and a fold-down drying rack above the sink. “When not in use, it folds flat and reads as a simple shelf,” Caron says.
Play With Scale to Preserve the Best Features
One of the biggest budget-saving decisions happened before construction even began. Instead of replacing or significantly altering the home’s original picture windows, Caron chose to preserve them and build the design around them.
To shift the home’s character toward a more traditional aesthetic, she increased the scale of the window and door casings and added taller baseboards throughout the house. The result is a space that feels more refined without sacrificing the expansive views and natural light that made the home special in the first place.
Add Millwork Where It Matters Most
Rather than panel every wall in sight, Caron strategically introduced architectural detailing in locations where it would have the greatest visual impact. “The paneled ceilings in the entry and living room, along with the paneled walls in the powder room, give those rooms a stronger sense of presence and importance,” she says.
Paneled ceilings immediately create a sense of arrival, while the redesigned stair hall received a significant boost from custom detailing and a new railing. By concentrating millwork in a handful of key locations, the home feels far more custom than its renovation budget might suggest.
Turn an Awkward Leftover Into a Design Moment
After updating the stair railing, the team was left with an awkward ledge that felt unresolved. Instead of disguising it, Caron used the opportunity to introduce something entirely unexpected: a wavy trim detail beneath the ledge. The playful addition injects personality into the stairwell and softens the home’s more traditional elements. It’s also proof that some of the best design ideas emerge from solving a problem rather than following a plan.
Pick Wallpaper That Echoes the View Outside
The homeowners had long dreamed of installing a scenic wallpaper, and the dining room provided the perfect opportunity. Because the space overlooks Lake Washington through a canopy of evergreens, Caron wanted the walls to create a similar feeling of immersion in the landscape. She landed on a panoramic wallpaper, selecting a version that omits architectural ruins and statues in favor of a more natural picture. “While the scenery isn’t identical to the views outside, it evokes a similar feeling and helps blur the line between indoors and out,” says Caron.
The most impactful renovations aren’t always about adding square footage—they’re about making what exists work better.