Lauren Caris Cohan knows that most people can’t stand mirrored walls, but that didn’t stop her and her partner (in life and business) Matt Jacoby from using it in their Laurel Canyon home renovation. Reflective panels line the wall between the entryway and the dining area, while rectangular ones act as a backsplash in the kitchen. Depending on where you’re standing, they could easily be mistaken for windows. “I love that people [think they] hate it, because when they walk in, they realize how much it actually accents a room,” Cohan says. “Mirrors bring an airy feeling to a space that otherwise would feel quite small.”
Cohan understands the power of angles and lighting: She worked for Free People for 10 years, co-founded of the lingerie brand Cuup, and is currently the chief creative and brand officer at Reformation. Jacoby has a similar eye, having spent time in filmmaking and digital media before pivoting to architectural design and development. Under their firm Bob Audrey, the couple have been taking on what Jacoby likes to call “hybrid restorations” in Los Angeles.
This Laurel Canyon house, which they bought in 2023 and recently sold for $2,000 a square foot, is a prime example. Although originally built in 1954, it had been renovated many times over the years—the kitchen was full-on IKEA. “It had been stripped of its glory,” says Jacoby. “But some designers will go and source toilets from the 1950s to make it feel era-specific. That wasn’t our goal.” Ahead, the pair share how they preserved the past while also accounting for how people like to live today.
The Groovy Wood Paneling
One surefire way to bring a mid-century house back to its roots? Rich wood paneling. Jacoby whipped up a custom stain for the white oak walls throughout the property. Meanwhile, Cohan hunted down midcentury door knobs by Italian architect and furniture designer Luigi Caccia Dominioni at auctions. “Each one is a little work of art in itself,” she says.
To keep the wood from weighing down the living room, they used a warm white, Farrow & Ball’s Pointing, on the post-and-beam ceiling. In one of the guest baths, they lightened up the mood with—you guessed it!—floor-to-ceiling mirrors along one wall.
The Artful Lighting
Almost all of the lights in the house are original Murano glass pieces from the 1950s by makers like Carlo Nason and JT Kalmar. It’s a good thing Cohan snapped them up when she did—she’s noticed a serious spike in their popularity since. “Even in just the past three months!” she says, revealing that she has had the most success sourcing through European websites like Selency and intOndo. To keep the glass touches going, the designers tasked a local craftsman with making a hand-blown pane for the primary bathroom shower.
The Semi-Closed Kitchen
The designers simplified the choppy kitchen layout by creating a single entry point into the room. In part, they wanted to take the kitchen back to the days when the cooking zone (and the inevitable mess) was separate from the rest of the home. Still, to make the space feel prime for entertaining in 2025, they carved out open shelves in the wall adjacent to the living room.
The banquette, however, is the real connection point between the two spaces. With its overstuffed cushions covered in silky soft mohair from Scalamandré and large windows overlooking the lush yard, the spot is easily the best seat in the house.
The Future-Proof Built-ins
When Cohan and Jacoby restore homes, they approach them like the eventual owners, not as flippers. “The focus is always on creating a beautiful, lasting product rather than cutting corners,” says Cohan. At their own house, they invested in built-in benches that can serve as cozy reading nooks and custom closets that maximize every inch. Why should they treat this project any differently?
In the garage-turned-ADU, the sofa, desk, and storage are all one with the architecture. The designers even sectioned off a corner with a wood-paneled cabinet, envisioning someone might put a mini fridge inside it one day. “The hope is that there’s a buyer who appreciates what we’re doing and is willing to pay a bit more for stuff that’s thoughtfully designed,” says Jacoby.
The Monochromatic Bathrooms
Riffing off old midcentury homes they’ve seen with floor-to-ceiling tile, Jacoby and Cohan swathed almost every inch of the bathrooms in the house in monochromatic square tiles: 5x5s in chocolate brown in a guest bath, 1x1s in mint green in the primary. Both are from a go-to vendor in Japan.
Another bathroom detail they tend to splurge on? Waterworks fixtures. “Between those and the Murano glass, there were some hefty purchases!” says Cohan.
The Burst of Greenery
The backyard got the biggest transformation by way of a kidney-shaped pool and a masonry wall that completely secludes the lot. At the same time, Jacoby and Cohan wanted to honor the original landscape, which was designed by Garrett Eckbo in the 1960s (he’s the one who added the massive pine trees out back). They peppered more tall greenery around the pool, which also acts as a shady shield around the sun loungers. “We wanted it to feel like you were in Costa Rica,” says Cohan. Even the outdoors transports you to another time—and place.
Originally published in Domino
Text by Vaishnavi Lydia Geisel
