Every corner of Laura Lee Gulledge’s Brooklyn, New York, apartment oozes with her philosophy that colour adds happiness. “I feel a great deal of people are scared to bravely use colour, particularly in decorating,” states Gulledge, a graphic artist, author and educator. “New York can be such an unpleasant environment sometimes — dark, grey, dirty. Everybody requires a space where they can walk in and immediately feel happy and bright.”
Her happiness-inducing design is made possible by her collection of art from friends, family and shop display windows, which give a creative and personalized environment where the decoration never lacks inspiration.
at a Glance
Who lives here: Laura Lee Gulledge along with her cat, Rory
Location: Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood ofBrooklyn,New York
Size: About 900 square feet; 1 bedroom, 1 bath, small office
Chris A Dorsey Photography
“Everyone loves this tiny door,” states Gulledge, shown here in her favorite place. “It’s an Alice in Wonderland texture to it with the small door and regular-size chair” Gulledge brought home the door after it had been used at a Lord & Taylor holiday window screen she designed. She hopes to eventually add a hinge so it’s going to really open to reveal something. A framed greeting card with Elvis hangs.
Gulledge’s decoration is grounded in her journeys and expertise designing seasonal eye catching window screens for large retailers. The star lanterns were picked up on a trip to Spain.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
The apartment came with a corner on the left, where Gulledge added a custom-built bookshelf along with her dad.
The black cat drawn on the corner of this wall is inspired by a web comic about a “party feline” Gulledge drew it spontaneously as an ode to her love of hurling parties.
Red paper lanterns: Pearl River
Chris A Dorsey Photography
Gulledge discovered a way to personalize even her noisy radiators. “I named [them] Melissa and Peter, after two of my favorite people from studying abroad. When I moved in, the radiators would make freaky noises in the night, and these 2 friends have the best laughs on the planet. Now when I hear them wrapped about, it makes me grin.”
She played opposites in picking her paint colors. The living area has a great deal of art with red accents, so that she chose Cool Aqua by Benjamin Moore to provide a complementary backdrop, then went with Redstone by Benjamin Moore for the kitchen.
Framed corner art print: page from the book Habibi, by Craig Thompson
Chris A Dorsey Photography
In a small area in the front part of the home is Gulledge’s office and art studio, full of inspiring objects and past projects, including a massive rainbow circuit board left over from a Macy’s window screen.
“Everything in my apartment is inspirational. It’s fine, since writing can sometimes feel like a solitary endeavor. When I’m here I’m surrounded by imagination,” she says.
Desk: Under the Roof; paint: Summer Blue, Benjamin Moore
Chris A Dorsey Photography
Gulledge’s beloved cat, Rory, loves to sleep on top of her desk. “I named her Rory as a tiny Gilmore Girls inside joke; collectively we’re Laura Lee and Rory,” she states. The series focuses on a mom named Lorelai and her daughter, Rory.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
In her workplace Gulledge finds a creative way to stay organized and display her upcoming projects. “I knew I had to have some sort of system, so why don’t you make that imaginative too? This is my ‘project stove,'” she explains. “The pots up front would be the first that are going to boil, and the ones toward the back, I’ve got a little more time on.”
Chris A Dorsey Photography
When Gulledge works in the home, she discovers ways to stay motivated. “I’ve all kinds of inspirational knickknacks drifting about. It’s about incorporating you in your apartment,” she states. “This one says ‘Move’ on one side and ‘Go Faster’ on the other.” It’s also an item left over from a retail holiday display.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
Gulledge has written and illustrated two books: Page by Paige and Will & Whit, set to launch in summer 2013. Page by Paige is about a woman named Paige Turner who just moved to New York, and at the pages of her sketchbook, she tries to make sense of her new lifestyle, whilst Will & Whit explores a woman coming to terms with a family tragedy and her fear of darkness.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
Gulledge’s decoration in the bedroom comprises lots of memories. “I made this umbrella to the Mermaid Parade. It’s a parade out on Coney Island every year, where folks dress up in those mad costumes and outfits and just have a fantastic time,” she states.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
The bedroom is painted in bold green and blue stripes, while handmade paper pom-poms plus a assortment of clothespins hang from the ceiling. The print above the mattress is from the Mucha Museum in Prague; a painting about the adjoining wall is a study piece Gulledge’s grandmother did of her when she was a kid.
Blue color: Summer Blue; green paint: Stem Green, both by Benjamin Moore
Chris A Dorsey Photography
A couple of photos her dad took through a plane window are framed in smart eyeglasses, and a Linus dye bit from Junk at Williamsburg hangs above.
Chris A Dorsey Photography
Gulledge likes to depart herself little notes where she will see them, as exhibited above the mirror here. The necklace holder to the best was a gift from a friend; each hook is made of a very small animal head figurine.
Art above belt rack: Bishop203
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