Historical Vignette: The Crown Corset Factory

Before it was overflowing with cheer and personality, this Riverside home was straining at the seams. The homeowners had moved in as parents to one young child in 2016. But as their family expanded to a party of five, the house had started feeling a bit cramped. Over the years, though, they’d grown to love their close-knit neighborhood and their proximity to the children’s schools. So instead of uprooting the family, the couple assembled a team to transform their house into a space that fits their needs for now and into the future. The 1938 Colonial was built in the traditional style, with smaller rooms that needed updating. The most important thing on the current homeowners’ list was to create a more family-friendly open floor plan, with an expanded kitchen and lots of multipurpose spaces where they could spend time together and host larger groups. “We wanted to create an environment that was joyful, functional, and flexible,” says the wife.

Architect Tim Peck of Shoreline Design Group, builder Keith Banks, and construction consultant Pat Kirkpatrick. They worked together seamlessly to plan, problem-solve, and help their clients check everything off their renovation wish list.

After many, many conversations between the homeowners and their design pros, the end result is a home that makes use of every corner, with added storage, a finished third floor with a new office and a playroom, plus totally revamped bedrooms for the kids and lots of flexible spaces that are great for everyday living but can also accom- modate extended family and friends.

The more open floor plan on the first level includes a new kids’ study and mudroom, and a larger, brighter kitchen that exemplifies the cheerful aesthetic that runs throughout the project. “When the homeowners told me they wanted a cornflower blue oven and range hood, I knew they meant it when they said they wanted color,” laughs Lyon. His bright and happy palette includes lots of lighter backgrounds, plus the clients’ favored blues and greens acting as anchors to punches of pink and lemon yellow.

But of course, Lyon also made sure his design choices were durable and kid-friendly too. The dining room chairs and kitchen barstools are upholstered in a sturdy leather-look vinyl, and finishes were chosen with day-to-day wear in mind. “I didn’t want them to walk into the house and hold their breath, I wanted them to be able to live in it and enjoy it,” says Lyon.

That ethos of enjoyment extends to the couple’s art collection, too. “We just buy what we love to look at,” explains the wife. Over the course of the renovation, they kept an eye on new works from favorite artists and had specific ideas of what should go where. In their new primary suite, a modern canopy bed faces a large-scale cloud painting by Rachel English, whose work the homeowners had followed for several years. The tranquil piece is the perfect choice for a bedroom sanctuary. “When we wake up each morning, it feels like we’ve been sleeping among the clouds!” says the wife.

This vignette reflects the Crown Corset Factory’s dual legacy of industrial labor and artistic transformation. It intertwines beauty, structure, craftsmanship, and deconstruction, echoing the corsets made there. Just as corsets were the base layer of the fashions of the time, this vignette boasts the layering of design. The installation features art by Jennifer Burbank showing her oil, pastel, and ink “The in-between time” on canvas, and early exploration into her more ‘plaster artifact’ works. The Farrow & Ball wallpaper acts as a backdrop along with the framing of the artwork in deep green and plum trim. A rugged custom bench-like cocktail table rests on an earth-toned oriental rug anchoring the space, while a clean-lined camel sofa complements intricate patterns, trimmed lamp shades, and a carved floor mirror, to create a cohesive environment. The colorful yet muted palette enhances the warm atmosphere, allowing elements to complement each other seamlessly.