A Historical Hancock Park Abode Gets A Retro Update

When it comes to design, art and style, Los Angeles is a city known for its individuality. So, when a couple and their teenage sons discovered a 1917 house for sale in Hancock Park with the square footage they were looking for, they purchased it almost immediately.

“The house was originally built by The Milwaukee Building Company,” the client says. “They also did Grauman’s Chinese Theater and Grauman’s Egyptian Theater.”

Not long after buying it, the homeowners called on designer Sarah Shetter to help reimagine the rooms of the Tudor-style residence, which also displays elements of Jacobean and Craftsman influences.

“Like the architecture, the furnishings are from different periods and eras,” says the designer, who created a mix that was also inspired by the wife’s affection for older items with a story and the husband’s love of sleek elements.

The house required little change, but before the couple called Shetter, they contacted architect Sonny Ward, who painted the facade, restored the moldings and updated the kitchen and baths.

“These clients like to take risks,” Shetter says. “They have their own sense of style and didn’t choose a house or an interior design for anyone but themselves.”