Rental Revamp: Textile Designer Josie Ford Adds Layers of History to Her 1920s L.A. Apartment

Sometimes, it’s love at first sight. That was the case for textile designer Josie Ford when she first saw an online listing for an apartment in a vintage building in the Hollywood Hills. "I had been living in Venice, but I was ready to leave," recalls Josie. "I found this apartment, and it was the only one I looked at. I was attracted to the charm of the building and the fact that the unit had historic details from the 1920s that hadn’t been touched."

Known for reinterpreting traditional printmaking techniques to create contemporary, functional soft goods like quilts and pillows, Josie is a longtime student of history and appreciates the small details that make a design come to life. "The whole neighborhood of this building was so charming," she says. "The first time I visited, it felt like I had left L.A. and was in Europe."

When it came time to make the apartment her own, Josie knew she wanted to introduce art, furnishings, and textiles that would complement the inherent beauty of the unit’s historic details. "I loved this spot because it felt untouched: the windows, the tile in the bathroom and the kitchen, the high ceilings. Even the placement of the light fixtures is all original," she says. "I didn’t want to do any renovations to the space itself, because I would rather preserve something than put my stamp on it."

"I’m attracted to more antique, old-world pieces, so I felt this apartment would be a perfect backdrop for the things I had collected or made over time," says Josie, who designed many of the furnishings in the apartment herself and describes her style as collected and artistic. "I love the Art Deco style of the 1920s, but I also love earlier movements like Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts. Anything glam that nods to the past is what I gravitate toward."

In the living room, Josie introduced two sofas she designed, both of which were inspired by antique pieces. She selected an eye-catching red mohair velvet for the showpiece sofa, which matches the red mohair rug she brought from her previous place in Venice. (She had the rug custom made by her friend Gregory Parkinson, who works directly with weavers in India.) "I went through a really big red phase," says Josie. "Even though it’s a bold color, I feel like it’s aging well with me."