Scene Stealers: Moody Vignettes in the Brooklyn Loft of the Founders of Ridge House

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Last month, Annie shared Brooklyn-based design firm Ridge House’s neo-Gothic restoration in Nebraska. Today, we’re admiring another project by founders Lauren Lochry and Jeff Gillway: the couple’s own Bushwick loft, a space they use as a workshop, showroom, and, of course, home base.

Just as the site—its architecture, environment, location, and history—led the design on the Nebraska project, their loft takes inspiration from its Brooklyn setting. “The space is in a converted industrial building, and that roughness is still inherent. This overall character has lent a lot of creative energy in the building. There is art/graffiti in the stairwells, and experimental concerts on the roof. Its imperfection allows for more to happen,” says Lauren.

“Our intention was for all areas of the project to be true to New York,” she continues. “We have collaborated with makers in Brooklyn, sourced all items locally, and drawn inspiration from our area’s history. We were very inspired by the loft as an expression of New York’s history in industrialism and transition into a creative community.”

Indeed, their space has a distinctive Brooklyn-bohemian—by way of antiquarians—feel. The couple are collectors of artful decay, from found driftwood and bird nests to a cover-torn early-American dictionary and 17th-century Chinese ceramic bowl (all sold on their website), and masters at creating vignettes with their objects. “Jeff and I are constantly switching items out for projects, photographing, building, and curating configurations. We like to create vignettes and test narratives,” says Lauren.

Join us for a tour of some of the compelling visual stories they’ve created in their home.

Photography by and courtesy of Ridge House.