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For years, the family room in Christy and Link Neal’s Los Angeles home was a place where just about anything went. There was a foosball table, a big screen, and a comfortable couch that could withstand a few chicken-wing casualties. And with three kids, that was exactly the point. But when their second left for college and their youngest turned 16, the couple decided it was time to reclaim the space. “No more foosball,” Christy remembers thinking.
Enter interior designer Jessie McLaughlin of Jessie Lane Interiors, who happens to be one of Christy’s closest friends. Their husbands, Link and Rhett McLaughlin—the duo behind Mythical Entertainment and YouTube’s Rhett & Link—have known each other since first grade, while Jessie and Christy have been friends for 27 years. So when Christy enlisted Jessie to give the room a grown-up makeover, there wasn’t much of a learning curve.
The timing was fortuitous. Link’s vinyl-collecting and DJing hobby was becoming more than an occasional pastime, and the back half of the room, formerly occupied by the foosball table, offered an opportunity to take it to the next level. The concept: a listening lounge inspired by the Japanese-style hi-fi bars he loved, with enough room for entertaining friends and family. Think less man cave, more members-only club—with a non-negotiable weekly reality TV screening for Christy.
Go All In on One Material
Jessie had long dreamed of wrapping an entire room in burl wood, but she hadn’t found a client willing to commit. When presenting the initial design, she anticipated some pushback. Instead, the Neals went all in. “I was kind of shocked,” Jessie admits. “I like to take things as far as you can take them. I like them to be dramatic.”
They settled on Carpathian elm burl, whose swirling, irregular grain has a psychedelic quality. The existing curved soffit got the burl treatment, too, with a swooping silhouette that inspired the shape of the DJ booth. A bookmatched wall behind the sofa takes the effect even further.
Getting there required a bit of patience. The veneer arrived in thin sheets, each with its own color variations, knots, and patterns. Some were noticeably pinker than others, turning the installation into a serious puzzle.
For Link, the material does more than look far-out. It’s surprisingly good company for a listening party. He compares staring at its swirling patterns to watching a campfire, a kind of effortless attention known as “soft fascination.” The idea is that your eyes have something to do while your ears get all the attention.
Make a Conversation Pit Without Digging One
The one thing the couple wouldn’t budge on? Keeping their RH Cloud Sofa. “That couch is the best thing in our house,” Christy says. “It’s so comfortable. I don’t know how many people have crashed on it.” To make it work with the room’s new vibe, Jessie channeled the sunken conversation pits of the ’70s without actually lowering the floor.
Instead, she framed the sofa with a low, wraparound partition clad in—you guessed it—burl wood. The architectural addition carves out a cozy lounging zone on one side and flows into Link’s DJ booth on the other, creating two distinct spaces that still feel connected.
The real transformation, though, came from the new slipcovers and upholstery. Jessie had been saving a richly colored velvet (Kravet’s King’s Road in Amber) for just the right project. Christy immediately fell for it, then learned she’d managed to pick the most expensive option of the bunch. “Why did you even bring this one in here?” she joked with Jessie.
Put the DJ in the Middle of the Party
Most DJ booths keep the person behind the turntables separated from a get-together. Link wanted a booth that would encourage friends to flip through records, request songs, or chat while he spins. Their solution was a curved, floating island that puts Link in the middle of the action—literally.
The sound system required equally careful planning. After consulting with Common Wave, a Los Angeles audio-design firm, Link selected speakers that could be integrated into the wall of built-ins behind the booth, rather than simply tucking conventional speakers into cabinetry. They ran the wiring before installing the millwork and designed the shelving around how he actually organizes his collection, which spans classic country, yacht rock, ’90s hip-hop, and more.
The final setup takes inspiration from Gold Line, a Japanese-inspired listening bar in L.A.’s Highland Park neighborhood. Jessie compares the process to designing a kitchen. It even has its own lighting scheme. Multiple options allow Link to illuminate the speakers, records, and architectural details independently.
One tiny detail might be the most luxurious of all: The record nooks are lined in the same soft amber velvet as the sofa. Apparently, the family’s cat has discovered this and claimed one for naps.
Make Room for Movie Nights (and Cocktail Hours)
For all its cocktail-lounge energy, the space still has to work for everyday family life. Jessie worked with Fabrica on motorized blackout curtains that Link can control from his phone, transforming the listening lounge into a darkened screening room at the tap of a button. No one even has to leave the couch.
When it’s time to entertain, a bar topped with richly colored red travertine comes into play. Jessie experimented with several configurations to maximize counter space without creating a bottleneck as guests move through the room. The stone’s natural pitting was part of its appeal, adding another tactile layer to a space already rich in texture.
Let Last-Minute Finds Have Their Moment
Not everything in the room was custom-made. Jessie ordered a coffee table from an Italian artist through a vendor in Mexico, but two days before a photo shoot, only the tabletop had arrived. With no base in sight, she turned to Facebook Marketplace.
The search turned up a vintage 1970s burl-wood base. At that point, there was only one logical response: More burl. “We’ve already gone this far with burl. Why not keep going?” Jessie says. The last-minute scramble turned into one very happy accident.
The most personal items, however, didn’t require international shipping. Two teal ceramic pieces displayed on the coffee table were made by the Neals’ youngest son, who has been developing his skills.
The Only Problem? Everyone Wants a Turn
What began as Christy and Link’s attempt to create an adult hangout has become something of a scheduling nightmare. The kids want to hang out with friends. Christy wants to entertain or watch TV. And Link frequently wants to host what he jokingly describes as a “listening party for one.”
They’ve discussed establishing a sign-up system. But there’s one standing reservation that outranks all others: Wednesday night belongs to Survivor. The kids may have outgrown the foosball table, but everyone is still working on taking turns.