Tour a Moody Brentwood Home Designed by Jeremiah Brent
Los Angeles spec houses are blank slates—or “super [widely] open and full of possibilities,” as Jeremiah Brent phrases it. The AD100 talent’s clients, with whom he recently completed just such a house in Brentwood, were analogously open-minded. Brent had previously designed the couple’s primary residence outside LA, and as the parents began picturing life with an empty nest, they asked Brent to help them envision their next act, in which the 4,500-square-foot Brentwood purchase would serve as a weekend place.
“They’re two of my favorite people, and this new house represents a way they had never lived before,” Brent reflects. “They had centered their lives around taking care of [their] two daughters, and this project allowed them to design something for themselves. There was a lot of freedom in that exploration.”
Brent’s exploratory method should be familiar to fans of his work on camera. (He stars in shows such as The Nate & Jeremiah Home Project with his husband Nate Berkus.) “I’m exactly who I am on television: Much of my process is talking about the most important moments in a person’s day and the things they need to do to feel anchored to the rhythm of life,” says the designer. He adds that, earlier in his 11-year tenure running Jeremiah Brent Design, “I was surprised that [private clients] were surprised to be getting the same experience.”
For the Brentwood project, Brent and the clients first had to imagine a weekend in which parenting was no longer a priority. The couple wanted to enjoy one another’s company and to reconnect with friends and family. Brent adds that the husband is an avid wine collector. In response, the designer made a defining social (and oenophilic) statement at the house’s entry, installing a custom bar in mahogany, bronze, and marble at the foot of the staircase.
“You would never think to put this big architectural moment, a mini kitchen, right where you walk in the door,” Brent says of the opening gambit, which he faced with a furniture vignette to accommodate drinks for two. The pairing of bar and seating also draws a threshold between the entry and a dining area for 10 farther within the house, about which Brent explains, “We were challenged to create a space that unfolds even though it’s [an] open-plan.”
The entertaining-friendly vision is manifested repeatedly thereafter, from the sprawling living room to an equally generously scaled guest room that shows off the golden daylight streaming through the house. “I’ve always had a deep appreciation for the moments in your home that you can tether to a memory,” Brent says of the multiple spaces for fun and togetherness. Asked to choose a space that most vividly represents this framing of deeply personal experience, he opts for a more intimate example, in the corner of the primary bedroom, which nestles a Soriana chaise by Afra and Tobai Scarpa: “They both like to be in the bedroom, to read a book, sit by the moonlight, and talk. So I found this great 17th-century alabaster light that I hung at a funny height, because it reminded me of the moon. It was a really sweet moment that they use constantly.”
Overall, Brent describes the Brentwood residence as “another evolution” of the homeowners, adding that “the scales feel a little bit tipped” toward pragmatism when he designs for clients caring for small children.
The project has boosted the multihyphenate’s creative evolution too. Brent specifically expanded his design vocabulary in the dining area thanks to the Apparatus pendant that the smitten husband and wife had purchased. Considering the home more widely, he cites his use of ochres and dusky jewel tones as a big step forward. “My concern with color has always been about making sure it’s timeless,” he says of his characteristic palette of warm neutrals. But a recent run-in with a pair of oxblood velvet sofas that had been passed down to a friend made him realize that “there’s a lot of power to color, and it can transition with you.”
Brent adds that his current focus is on creating interiors that are original. “My fantasy, if I can be so blunt, is to create spaces that people don’t want to leave, where they stay for 20 years and their children come back to,” he says. “I love this idea of heirlooms.” The Brentwood residence may someday count among them.
1/12In the transformed entry, a fluted center table and corresponding bench defines the circulation between the bar—which was made by Wood Wizard and Elite Stone with custom pulls by J. Pickens—and seating area.
2/12The threshold between entry and dining room, as seen from the bar, underscores Brent’s use of furniture and olive trees to distinguish one destination from the next. Davint Design supplied the 1930s-era armchairs via 1stdibs, and Brent upholstered the pieces in Cowtan & Tout cotton velvet with leather trim from Samuel & Sons.
3/12A look across the dining room toward the entry, where a custom bar marks the threshold to the Brentwood residence. Brent used furniture as well as potted olive trees to delineate rooms within the open floor plan.
4/12The custom dining table by Ross Alan Reclaimed Lumber is lined in Monk chairs designed by the Scarpas and overseen by a Talisman:14 pendant from Apparatus.
5/12Brent says the living room exemplifies the project’s focus on “the ceremony of entertaining and enjoying one another,” adding that the homeowners “wouldn’t have done a giant clean sectional in the living room” had their children been younger. The fluted-plaster fireplace surround and Tiffany quartzite ledge that anchor the living room were specified from Kamp Studios and Stoneland, respectively.
6/12In the kitchen, clean lines find their counterpoint in the swirled veining of Calacatta turquoise from ABC Stone. The swagging of a custom Cerine Triple Pendant from Trueing underscores the kitchen’s combination of gravitas and delicacy. Kitchengoers can slide into the island via four Loz Feliz counter stools from Blend Interiors, which Brent upholstered in a Cowtan & Tout bouclé. Waterworks Henry fixtures service the island. Antiques, as well as glassware and teapots, from Brent’s Atrio collection line the marble shelves.
7/12The primary bedroom’s multiple vignettes occupy a lawn of sheared mohair, which Brent sourced from Los Angeles–based Woven. Obsolete made the disc overlooking the bed and the chandelier is an Elena luminaire by Paolo Moschino. The alabaster pendant was acquired from Handelshuis Wassenaar to evoke moonlight in the corner. The Soriana chaise is upholstered in Holland & Sherry alpaca.
8/12Jeremiah Brent conceived a monumental fireplace to face the bed, crowning the Bardiglio marble element with small items like a vintage Carl Auböck candelabra for punctuation.
9/12Of generation-spanning combinations like a Gustavian dresser, Fontana Arte mirror, and 1930s-era stool designed by Jindřich Halabala, Brent says, “I’m always going to love that conflict between old and new. All these silhouettes are timeless.”
10/12The primary bath is a destination for personal time thanks to Brent’s weaving of art, antiques, and lighting through the necessary wash stations. To help the homeowners relish in the slowness of an empty nest, Brent embedded a seating area within the vanity, at which he placed a Canossa Chair by Gigi Sabadin.
11/12The centerpiece of the guest bedroom is an RU Suspension Bed Canopy by Rose Uniacke on a Mongolian cashmere rug from Woven. The bed shares the space with a vintage Caprani floor lamp sourced from Verbo Studio as well as Soho Home’s Nieve Bench.
12/12A James Grant artwork and Charlotte Perriand sconces line an in-home cinema space.
