L.A. Digs: Los Feliz Boho
In 1998, artist Antonio Mendoza and his wife, writer Deirdre Mendoza, walked down a sleepy street in their Los Feliz neighborhood and chanced upon their dream house. They bought it soon after.
Over a decade later, the couple (and parents of two of the most charming kids in town — Galatea and Cassio), said the house has changed substantially over the years. And their style — a warm, eclectic desert cool that feels modern in the most casual way — has evolved with it.
Still, “we have kids, so it can’t be precious." said Deirdre. "We can’t have everything white or have a place where people are nervous about putting a glass down.”
Rather than focus on overly designed items, the Mendozas look for pieces, “that will last and have a style that is eclectic,” said Deirdre. The house itself was built in 1926, so the pair incorporates pieces that complement their home’s existing architecture and provide a neutral backdrop to display their sizable collection of art, which includes pieces from Antonio himself — an artist and painter, translator and semiotician trained at Brown University — as well as by international artists such as Becca, Rafael Serrano, Oliver and photographer (and Antonio’s cousin) Tony Mendoza.
“In our house, the art takes center stage,” muses Deirdre, a fiction writer and writing professor, who also maintained that when putting together the pieces of her home, patience was a definite virtue. “It’s okay to make an impulsive decision at a yard sale," she notes. It’s another story to make an impulsive decision about big ticket items. Whenever I have the urge to redecorate, I first rearrange the things that are already here. That seems to satisfy whatever my design whim happens to be. Then I can give more thought to what the new piece should really be — how it’s going to look in the room, and does it work with the pieces I already have?”
WORK IT OUT: “In 1998, Antonio had this idea that his friend Jose Perez de Lama, an architecture professor at the University of Seville would come for the summer with a few of his architecture students to build a studio for him (pictured),” said Deirdre, laughing. “And I thought two or three architects were coming but suddenly it was, ‘wait a minute, we have twelve adorable Spanish architects living at our house!’ They drank a lot of coffee and they livened up the neighborhood because they would dance flamenco in the driveway until all hours.”
FAB FOUR: (Clockwise from top left) Deirdre, Antonio, Cassio and Galatea Mendoza eating breakfast on a sunny Saturday morning.
DOG DAY: A picture of the Mendoza’s pup, Rita, graces the mantle of the Batchelder fireplace. Earnest Batchelder, a seminal artisan known for his hand crafted tiles, was a major figure in the Southern California Arts & Crafts movement in the first half of the 20th century.
WARMING UP: Latte-colored walls create a cozy sleeping environment in the Mendoza master bedroom while bed linens sourced in Portugal provide a pop of color.
QUITE A COMPLIMENT: A wicker chair rests beneath one of Antonio’s collages, part of a series of his recent work.
MODERN MIX-UP: The Mendoza’s design aesthetic boasts a quiet color palette of earth tones. “I like more muted tones,” explained Deirdre. “So, there are a lot of greens and browns.”
L.A. PORCH: A succulent-and-cacti-covered deck leads into the back of the house.
Lizzy Epstein is a veteran freelance writer — and a Senior Writer for Style Section L.A. — based in L.A. who masterfully (and unabashedly) mixes Chanel diamond necklaces with hippie dresses.