The New York Post dubbed Lili St. Cyr “the Kim Kardashian of her day.” A burlesque performer known for her bubble bath strip tease, St. Cyr got her big break in 1951 when she was charged with indecent exposure while making a splash at Ciro’s in LA.
Photography by Austin Leis, courtesy of Ome Dezin (@omedezin), unless noted.
@media(min-width:0px){#div-gpt-ad-remodelista_com-medrectangle-3-0-asloaded{max-width:320px!important;max-height:50px!important;}}It’s easy to see why St. Cyr fell for the 1927 hideaway—and why, more than half a century later, Joelle Kutner and Jesse Rudolph of Ome Dezin saw the house’s next-act potential.
Photograph by Christopher Lee Foto.
Set behind a high wall with a courtyard in front, the house is “Tudor with a Hollywood vibe,” say the designers, “we let that dictate where we took it.” The property was recently on the market and quickly sold: “we’re usually happy to move on, but it was hard to let go of this one,” Rudolph tells us.
The living room—formerly painted and carpeted in shades of yellow—came with its cathedral ceiling and has lath and plaster walls throughout.
The designers installed engineered medium-wide oak flooring (“selected because it can withstand a lot of wear and tear”) and added the decorative herringbone brick to the fireplace, which has its original marble surround.
The dining room has the second of five fireplaces, most of which work (this one has a gas insert). A Gubi Semi Pendant hangs over a round table surrounded by 1960s French pine chairs that the designers bought at a Billings auction in downtown LA.
In place of what had a been a galley kitchen with a laundry squeezed in and small breakfast room, Kutner and Rudolph envisioned an English take on a modern Tudor kitchen and fully opened up the space.
The sink is set in a new addition with a cathedral ceiling that matches the existing other half of the room. The custom cabinets are solid alder (painted Benjamin Moore Nantucket Grey) with leathered Quartzite counters.
The designers modeled the banquette after church pews. The paneled door leads to one of the four bedrooms.
The den is an addition that dates from the 1970s or ’80s—likely introduced by the owners who bought the house from St. Cyr and sold it to Ome Dezin.
A mudroom/library off the front door adjoins the den.
The designers preserved St. Cyr’s bedroom much as it was.
The faux-foxed mirrored closet is original (restored with some new panels).
Photograph by Christopher Lee Foto.
One of the house’s four bathrooms. The walls have a Roman clay finish (in a shade called Rustica) from Portola Paints.
There are two bedrooms upstairs—both with fireplaces—and two down.
The kitchen’s checkerboard floor (from local supplier Emser Tile) flows out to the enclosed patio:”They’re 12-by-12 squares; we considered porcelain but fell in love with natural marble. It will weather over time,” says Rudolph.
Off the front gate, the designers introduced an antique limestone basin, sourced from Berbere, and cobblestone pavers from Eco Outdoor.
Ome Dezin worked with the existing layout and made artful updates, including a through line from front to backyard, and entirely reinventing the kitchen.