Vibe Shift- With confident vision, designer and activist Aurora James takes an ever-evolving approach to making a vintage LA house her very own

Aurora James has a strong sense of intuition, and it often pays off. In July 2020, James-who counts footwear designer, activist, and investor among her myriad of titles-was gearing up to make an offer on the first house she ever toured in Los Angeles. After scouting the listing on Zillow, she scheduled a viewing and hopped on a plane from New York. It was hard to resist the sweet Laurel Canyon cottage with a towering redwood out front, tucked away off a winding wooded road. For James, it was immediately a yes, though the friend she had brought along begged her not to pull the trigger so quickly, even calling the place a "tragic disaster." But James, as usual, trusted her instinct and bought it. "I think I always see potential in things," she explains. "I just saw that there were some easy tweaks that could make it better, and I felt at home."

- By Carly Olson

Aurora James has a strong sense of intuition, and it often pays off. In July 2020, James-who counts footwear designer, activist, and investor among her myriad of titles-was gearing up to make an offer on the first house she ever toured in Los Angeles. After scouting the listing on Zillow, she scheduled a viewing and hopped on a plane from New York. It was hard to resist the sweet Laurel Canyon cottage with a towering redwood out front, tucked away off a winding wooded road. For James, it was immediately a yes, though the friend she had brought along begged her not to pull the trigger so quickly, even calling the place a "tragic disaster." But James, as usual, trusted her instinct and bought it. "I think I always see potential in things," she explains. "I just saw that there were some easy tweaks that could make it better, and I felt at home."

A mixed-media artwork by Mickalene Thomas overlooks the living room. James wearing a Miu Miu dress, sits on a Le Bamboléanos sectional sofa by Mario Bellini for B&B Italia. 1950s French cocktail table; 1960s Percival later MP-115 chairs.

James is the founder and creative director of shoe and accessories label Brother Vellies and the founder of the Fifteen Percent Pledge, a nonprofit calling for major retailers and corporations to commit a minimum of 15 percent of their annual purchasing power to Black-owned businesses, among other workplace-equality initiatives. After living in Brooklyn (where she still has an apartment) for years, James felt drawn to LA for more space and privacy.

In the dinning room, chairs by Green River Project surround a Willy Rizzo Table, light fixture composed of nine Fortune Cesendello pendants. The stairway wallpaper and paint are both by Farrow& Ball.