2024-09-04 13:35:02
The interior design process focused on creating a calm, neutral palette with an emphasis on natural textures. “Jen loves vintage pieces,” says Brooke, who acquired a French 1850s farmhouse table for the dining room, along with midcentury decorative items from Swedish and Danish designers. “There’s also something a bit whimsical about her. And she likes gentle shapes, curves. This place is kind of the house version of Jen’s personality.”
One of the most welcoming spaces is the kitchen, which features honed marble and soapstone countertops, rounded mohair-covered breakfast table chairs, and a fireplace. (It also opens directly onto the swimming pool.) “She responds to soft and cozy,” Steve says of his client. “She’s not trying to be showy or have huge pops of color or stuff like that. There’s a kind of natural quietness to the things that she likes.”
Garner also wanted to create spaces that support memory-making. “She had different ideas of what was important to her family and how she imagined using these different rooms,” Brooke explains. This led to unique features like a cozy blue study and an upstairs reading nook complete with a pair of stained-glass windows. The windows are the work of artist Reed Bradley and are inspired by the illustrations made by his mother, Marla Frazee, in the children’s book All the World, a family favorite. The work features owls representing Garner’s kids and their dog, Birdie.
The outdoor areas, designed in collaboration with landscape designer Christine London, are meant to be heavily trafficked. A kitchen garden provides fresh fruits and vegetables, while a pool and firepit area are perfect for hangouts and low-key entertaining. Having produce right outside the door is reminiscent of Garner’s childhood home. She says of growing up in West Virginia, “Very early, I remember my mom saying, if you pick something right off a vine, you’re so much more likely to like it. It’s like you can taste the sunshine.”
Because Garner really lives in her home, Steve and Brooke knew that the spot would continue to evolve. “I don’t think homes are ever finished,” Brooke says. “This is one moment in time in their life. As the family grows and as her children get older, they are going to add a layer and change things around.” Still, for today, Garner says with contentment, “I am happy that I feel like we use the space really well, and that the kids are all over the house. They’re as comfortable sitting in the living room as they are doing homework in the dining room. And that’s the dream, right?”
Fashion styling by Jordan Johnson Chung. Hair: Adir Abergel using Virtue Labs for A-Frame Agency; Makeup: Kara Yoshimoto Bua for A-Frame Agency; Manicure: Thuy Nguyen for A-Frame Agency.
Jennifer Garner’s house appears in AD’s October issue. Never miss a story when you subscribe to AD. Read more about the designers’ approach to the project on AD PRO.
