Jun 08, 2023

CREATIVE COMMUNITY #5: DISCOVER BETHANY BRILL'S COLOURFUL WORLD

ONCE A MONTH, WE HIGHLIGHT A CREATIVE IN OUR COMMUNITY WHO NEVER FAILS TO INSPIRE US. WE RECENTLY CAUGHT UP WITH ART & DESIGN CO-FOUNDER + CREATIVE DIRECTOR BETHANY BRILL WHO DOCUMENTS HER HOME DESIGN JOURNEY ON INSTAGRAM. SCROLL ON TO READ MORE ABOUT HOW SHE WORKS FROM HOME, THE WAY SCENT IMPACTS HER HOME, AND DESIGN MISTAKES.

LOHN: TELL US ABOUT YOUR SPACE!

BETHANY: I live with my husband Jorge and 3 children; Zara, Billie and Margot in Costa Mesa, California— its a little beach town an hour south of LA with lots of creatives and fun little coffee shops and we really love it here! We are freelancers and homeschool so its all very fluid lol. We take turns giving each other work time and we are slowly building out a studio in our garage to have another place to get some work done while keeping all the plates spinning. : )

We got our house in Nov 2022, completely gutted it and have been in the process of renovating to make our own version of a creative oasis for our family! It’s been a labor of love and one of my favorite projects I’ve ever worked on!

LOHN: HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT RENOVATING/DECORATING?

BETHANY: I always start with the feeling I want to have in the space— that obviously shifts with different seasons of life. For this home our biggest desire has been to nurture our childrens’ interests and make our home a super creative place for learning and exploring and practicing whether it be music or art or who knows… We are trying to listen to their cues and support them in what they want to learn and explore. We try to lead by example by allowing ourselves to explore and experiment (and fail) as well. A lot of our home renovation project has been exactly that.

The process of imagining something into existence is beyond addicting. The whole middle part of all the grunt work and the “that was harder than I thought” is a lot less magical lol. But for me— theres really no other way. I need to make my surroundings reflect me as much as possible— I’ve always been like that— even in my shoe box apartments in New York— I always put way more effort into making them “mine” than was probably reasonable for only living there a year or two. But it’s just the way I’m wired, and in a way, it feels essential to my creativity.

LOHN: HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT RENOVATING/DECORATING?

BETHANY: I really love the problem solving of making a home. Like how can you make it comfortable and meet your realistic needs and lifestyle while also being stimulating to your brain and bring out whatever you need it to bring out in you. I like my home to serve me— not me serve my home. If I need my home to be energizing or relaxing or just comfortable… I try to check all those boxes while also meeting aesthetic needs.

It’s a lot of gray area and finding the balance of form and function and I find that decision making process really enjoyable.

That journey never feels finished— I’m always tweaking things and learning and experimenting how I can get the most of out it.

LOHN: ARE THERE ANY SPECIAL RITUALS YOU LOVE INCORPORATING INTO YOUR SPACE?

BETHANY: Smell is everything!!! My entire goal in life is for every person that walks through my door to say “whoa it smells good in here” and at the same time I am really sensitive to strong smells. So really quality non-toxic candles (ESTE is my FAVORITE) and Palo Santo lighting is a big part of our routine. It’s such an easy way to boost my mood— slow me down or help reset the atmosphere.

LOHN: IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND GIVE YOUNGER BETHANY ADVICE, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY?

BETHANY: I would love to go back and explain to myself the dichotomy of creativity— feeling unstoppable and euphoric one minute and then questioning everything the next minute is just really part of the creative cycle and those feeling don’t mean something isn’t right or you should do something else or I must not be cut out for this… I wish I understood that everything is an experiment and all the mistakes are a sunk cost of being creative and its all about learning things each time. As long as you are trying to create and not replicate you will constantly feel uncomfortable and that’s just how it is.