NorvilleNursery_Native

Most expectant parents who decide to move do so in search of square footage, whether in a spacious kitchen with an eat-in island or a dedicated playroom. But for Brooklyn-based florist Ryan Norville; her artist husband, Kyle; and their 1-year-old son, Ciel, it was much simpler than that: They needed a washing machine.

When graphic designer Amanda Jane Jones and her law professor husband, Cree Lane Jones, began making plans for a move from Chicago to Utah (he had just gotten a job at Brigham Young University), the perfect home practically found them.

(Kyle did the bulk of the laundry and was tired of making the trek outside during the wintertime.) “We were hoping to stay where we were, but our landlord just wouldn’t budge on it,” recalls Ryan. Knowing the chore would only become more tiresome (and more frequent) once their second child arrived, they started looking. Finding a place within their Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood that checked all of the boxes was a challenge from the get-go: The area has become a hub for designers, writers, and other creative types, making it a more competitive market. The search got even harder after the couple saw an apartment that had two bathrooms, a perk they hadn’t considered. “After that, we were like: Man, we really want to have everything,” says Ryan, laughing. Eventually they discovered the best of all worlds—a two-bed, two-bath with an in-unit washer and dryer—just on the border of Crown Heights.

The couple’s friends in Provo, a picturesque college town with nature at its doorstep, proposed they buy the mid-century modern house right next door. The 2,800-square-foot fixer-upper leaned Scandinavian with its clean lines and simple architecture, a detail that Amanda says more closely aligned with her personal style.   There was just one problem: “It wasn’t for sale,” she notes, laughing. “But it was the only house I saw that I felt really connected to. It was secluded and up in the mountains with this incredible view. I thought, I can make this work.”

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Double the Fun

This Family’s  Mid-Century Fixer-Upper Was One Renovation Surprise After Another

With a 1-year-old at home and a baby on the way, florist Ryan Norville took a fresh approach to her kids’ shared nursery.

Think: ceiling beams held together with tin cans

Photography by Belle Morizio Words by Lydia Geisel Styling by Naomi deManana January 27, 2022

Photography by Alpha Smoot Words by Jennifer Fernandez   December 10, 2021

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