My Houzz: Colorful, Eclectic Style in an 1890 Kentucky Brick Home
A musician and a designer get creative with the walls, lighting and flooring in their live-work house
The Main House
The Lehmans’ goal was to create a home that was welcoming with a touch of the unexpected. “My style is a bit more feminine, boho and soft, while Aaron’s natural style is inspired by Africa and world travel,” Mandy says. “But we both agree on the industrial-modern look and opted to keep this look for the walls, flooring and other ‘more permanent’ features.”
The blend of styles is evident in the kitchen, which received a total overhaul with help from First Ward Wood Co. in Hamilton, Ohio. Custom ash wood shelving, concrete countertops and black appliances play up the industrial vibe. The matte black cabinets are custom-made.
Find a kitchen designer near you on Houzz
The Lehmans’ goal was to create a home that was welcoming with a touch of the unexpected. “My style is a bit more feminine, boho and soft, while Aaron’s natural style is inspired by Africa and world travel,” Mandy says. “But we both agree on the industrial-modern look and opted to keep this look for the walls, flooring and other ‘more permanent’ features.”
The blend of styles is evident in the kitchen, which received a total overhaul with help from First Ward Wood Co. in Hamilton, Ohio. Custom ash wood shelving, concrete countertops and black appliances play up the industrial vibe. The matte black cabinets are custom-made.
Find a kitchen designer near you on Houzz
Many of the home’s furnishings, including the large kitchen island, are made to be mobile. “One of our goals with the house is to rent it out as a location for photo shoots. Every space is truly customizable,” says Mandy, who used to work for a local branding agency.
Find a rolling kitchen island in the Houzz Shop
Find a rolling kitchen island in the Houzz Shop
The Lehmans chose a white backdrop for the living room, accenting it with a teal velvet couch and hits of fun, bright colors, such as the blue chairs.
Mandy notes that the couple’s inspiration comes from a mix of creative workspaces she has been in, places they have stayed, and restaurants and bars they’ve frequented. “I resourced Houzz for inspiration. I looked at other people’s houses, and understanding how and why they made the decisions they did helped us make the choices that were right for our house,” she says. “Other than that, we let the house dictate what unique elements and design choices were brought out in each space.”
New to Houzz? Here’s How to Create and Use Ideabooks
Mandy notes that the couple’s inspiration comes from a mix of creative workspaces she has been in, places they have stayed, and restaurants and bars they’ve frequented. “I resourced Houzz for inspiration. I looked at other people’s houses, and understanding how and why they made the decisions they did helped us make the choices that were right for our house,” she says. “Other than that, we let the house dictate what unique elements and design choices were brought out in each space.”
New to Houzz? Here’s How to Create and Use Ideabooks
The couple worked with MKA Construction in South Lebanon, Ohio, for the big projects, including demolition, refinishing and painting. They then hired friends, family and fellow artists to contribute what they are able to do.
“We love being surrounded by projects our families have worked on. Whenever we need something, we look first to our friends, family and local community to solve our needs or wants because community was our highest priority with this house,” Mandy says.
Find a homebuilder near you
“We love being surrounded by projects our families have worked on. Whenever we need something, we look first to our friends, family and local community to solve our needs or wants because community was our highest priority with this house,” Mandy says.
Find a homebuilder near you
The Lehmans removed the wall that separated the dining and living rooms to create a large combined space. Mandy continued the white wall paint into the dining area to unify the two spaces. A large cased doorway and an additional and unexpected pass-through window over the wine storage area provide easy access to the kitchen.
As part of their plans for creating a community space in their home, the couple started an artist-residency program. They invited Beth Holladay from Maryland to live and work in their home. During her stay, Holladay created this custom piece that sits above the fireplace in the dining area.
The Lehmans turned what had been a side door into their home’s main entrance. The new entryway is painted top to bottom in a deep emerald green. “Carey Warman, an interior designer we hired to give us advice, convinced us that painting our foyer in a dark color would add a lot of character, and she was right,” Mandy says. Mandy found the tile pattern through Tabarka Studio.
Wall paint: Breathe Deeply, Valspar
Wall paint: Breathe Deeply, Valspar
The couple removed both door frames to open the space and create the “grand entrance” they wanted. Sliding doors and a vintage-style brass chandelier complete the dramatic space.
Shop for a chandelier in antique brass
Shop for a chandelier in antique brass
A cozy reading nook is tucked in under the window at the top of the stairway to the second floor.
The upstairs master bedroom is a serene blend of new and old pieces, typical of the couple’s style. Mandy’s father made the frames around the leaf paintings, which tie in perfectly with the brick walls.
Favorite photos, drawings and plants create a colorful collage above the tall dresser to the left of the bed. The dresser was refinished by Dresser Up, a shop in Newport, Kentucky, that Mandy enjoys working with.
An antique armoire in the corner of the bedroom adds storage to this space. Overhead, the chandelier is the first one that Aaron and Mandy bought for the house. They loved that it was from the same era as the house and was a balance of edgy and modern, yet a little gothic and, in Mandy’s words, creepy. “It totally doesn’t match the rest of the house in style, but it’s the memory that makes it special,” she adds.
The couple wanted the master bathroom to feel luxurious and different from the black, white and natural tones found in the rest of the house. “I wanted an all-white space so it would feel ultraclean,” Mandy says. They also went with a single sink to maximize the counter space. They ran teal tile in counter-to-ceiling bands as an unexpected way to highlight the his-and-her sides of the vanity.
Tile: Susan Jablon Mosaics; Calcutta marble countertop: Granite World
Tile: Susan Jablon Mosaics; Calcutta marble countertop: Granite World
A claw-foot tub was something Mandy had always wanted in a bathroom, and she felt it was a must-have for a house from the 1800s. Though the tub isn’t used a lot, “every once in a while, I indulge in a bubble bath,” she says.
Tub: Signature Hardware
Tub: Signature Hardware
The Music Studio
Aaron’s practice space is still a work in progress, but an area on the second floor is a substitute for now. The Lehmans call the space their upstairs living room. The room boasts a 20-foot cathedral ceiling, and it is where they can access the loft area they added to the home.
Sound Advice for Designing a Home Music Studio
Aaron’s practice space is still a work in progress, but an area on the second floor is a substitute for now. The Lehmans call the space their upstairs living room. The room boasts a 20-foot cathedral ceiling, and it is where they can access the loft area they added to the home.
Sound Advice for Designing a Home Music Studio
The stairs leading to the loft fold up against the wall so that they are out of the way when the loft isn’t in use.
Although the steps resemble a ladder, Mandy says they feel like regular stairs when you walk up them.
The upstairs loft, which extends over a good portion of the second floor, features the original exposed beams.
The Design Studio
The original front entry now opens to Mandy’s home office, which occupies the front two rooms of the house. A collection of artwork from several local artists adorns the fireplace mantel. A custom mural painted by Lindsay Nehls provides a vibrant backdrop, while a bright yellow radiator adds unexpected color to one corner.
The original front entry now opens to Mandy’s home office, which occupies the front two rooms of the house. A collection of artwork from several local artists adorns the fireplace mantel. A custom mural painted by Lindsay Nehls provides a vibrant backdrop, while a bright yellow radiator adds unexpected color to one corner.
The contractors hand-chiseled the plaster off walls in two rooms to expose the brick underneath. Removing the carpet revealed the original hardwood floors.
A refinished hand-me-down dresser stores art supplies, prints and other odds and ends in the main studio space.
The Rental Unit
The Lehmans lived in this renovated upstairs unit while the rest of the home was being remodeled. The space comprises a living room, kitchen, dining area, bedroom and bath. They now rent this space out and enjoy hosting out-of-town guests.
Dresser: The Turn Vintage Warehouse
The Lehmans lived in this renovated upstairs unit while the rest of the home was being remodeled. The space comprises a living room, kitchen, dining area, bedroom and bath. They now rent this space out and enjoy hosting out-of-town guests.
Dresser: The Turn Vintage Warehouse
The couple liked the clean lines of the window trim used throughout the house and didn’t want to hide it with curtains. For the rental unit, they went with a screen, which provides privacy while letting the light filter in.
Shop for screens and room dividers
Shop for screens and room dividers
Opening up a wall between the new kitchen and the living area also allows more light into the space.
The door between the living area and the bedroom leads to stairs outside the house, providing a private entrance for guests.
The exterior of the home also got a face-lift. “We removed some tired chain-link fencing, a huge tree, lots of plants and bushes, and all of the ivy that had taken over the front yard and gone up the sides of the house,” Mandy says.
See more of this home
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
More on Houzz
Trending Now: Polished Industrial Style
Find a general contractor
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See more of this home
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
More on Houzz
Trending Now: Polished Industrial Style
Find a general contractor
Shop for home products
Who lives here: Aaron and Mandy Lehman, co-founders of Manman Design & Photography, and their Boston terrier, Luna
Location: Dayton, Kentucky, about 3 miles east of Cincinnati
Size: 4,000 square feet (372 square meters); three bedrooms, 2½ bathrooms
Aaron and Mandy Lehman bought their 1890 Victorian Italianate home in Dayton, Kentucky, in October 2017. “It was basically a blank slate, so we could do whatever we wanted designwise,” Mandy says. The house had everything on their initial wish list, including being in a great neighborhood, lots of light, a private yard, separate studio areas and a space they could fix up as a rental unit. Mandy, a designer, and Aaron, a musician, immediately started remodeling their rental unit so that they could move in shortly after. They then spent all of 2018 renovating the rest of the 4,000-square-foot home.
“We could have gotten by with just updating wall colors and refinishing the floors,” Mandy says. “But, of course, we took it further. Our dream was to have a home that acted like a true community center. On any given day, we have people coming in and out for different reasons. Someone might stop by to meet with me about a design project; then later a neighbor will pop by for a tour.” They’ll often host out-of-town guests in their rental unit, and sometimes local ad agencies will use the space for a photo shoot. “We have an open-door vibe in every area of our lives, this house included,” Mandy says.