A Pasadena Restoration: Design by The Taylored Home

09/01/2017 | Sara McLean |

If there were any question that Marilynn Taylor, interior designer and owner of The Taylored Home, loves color and collaborating with clients, look no further than a recent project she completed in Pasadena, Calif. The home is an historic, 1930s Pasadena bungalow owned by a Mary Lou, a professional woman looking to create her dream home, who worked with Taylor and Taylor’s sister Allison Allain of Plumb Crazy Inc. to create her dream home.

“She had never lived in a space designed the way she would want it so this was her big chance. She is a very bright personality and, while she originally thought she would want a home with more subdued color, the more she investigated what spoke to her, the more we realized we were going to have a very colorful home on our hands. The home was built in the 1930s, and she wanted to stay true to the character of the home while still
bringing it up to date,” said Taylor.

To make the project a unique and comforting experience to the client, collaboration was key to create a design that spoke to the client, a combination of Hollywood Regency and Mid-century inspiration. Regarding this collaboration with the client, Taylor said, “She has great taste and knew what she liked, which made it so much easier for me to design spaces for her. In each of the rooms, there were pieces that she already owned or art collections that I needed to work with. I love doing this because it is an instant guide to what my client likes and provides inspiration to launch from. I would present her with an idea that she would approve and then she would help me source items and, together, we made a great team.”

Using a range of Dunn-Edwards colors as a base palette, as well as custom colors using Dunn-Edwards products, the palette brought together a variety of art collections and pieces gathered over time, blended with design inspiration from Taylor.

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The Taylored Home: DIY Design Model

Taylor has created an online design platform to serve the DIY community with design inspiration and insight. Many are looking for design assistance but are unsure regarding how to hire a designer or would rather design a space themselves, yet seek guidance when stuck.

“Not everyone can or wants to hire a designer but they would love to be guided by a designer. Most designers aren’t willing to work as consultants so I’m building a website model that will be a ‘go to’ space for anyone looking to DIY their remodel or redecorating project,” Taylor said. “The goal is to lay it out like a road map where, depending on the project they are working on, they would click on the corresponding project — let’s say a kitchen — then they would be taken to step 1 (Planning and Preparation), where they would be provided with planning tools, resources and tutorial videos on subjects like how to choose a contractor, creating a realistic budget, checklists, knowing how to not over or under renovate for their neighborhood, etc. Then they would then be taken to step 2 (Get inspired and Design), which would include my pre-designed kitchens that they can choose from and purchase and use as their design plan or they can consume my content that would help guide them in designing their own. Then, of course, they would be taken to step 3 (Execute and Manage), which would provide the tools they need to execute their plan.”

To learn more about Marilynn Taylor and The Taylored Home, visit www.marilynntaylor.com. She began her webinar series on Aug. 2 and posts once or twice a week, when she can answer questions from her followers, giving them a resource that they can find easily and go back to whenever they want.

You can find Taylor on the following social media sites: