Actors are celebrated for communicating their story through acting and their performance, while designers convey their story through artwork. However, Hamilton stars Daveed Diggs and Emmy Raver-Lampman, with no experience in designing, succeeded in conveying their personal touch and their story through their home in LA. 

This house located on a placid street of LA, designed with the help of Mandy Cheng and the vision of Emmy Raver—Lampman is a quintessential example of how to make a place home, where each nook has a story to portray and all spaces have an emotional touch with spaces in the house defining the owners’ character. The two stars met on the set of Hamilton and have been together ever since. The home is constructed on a 3500 square foot property on a LA street that Diggs and his partner Emmy Raver-Lampman acquired in 2018. 

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Both the stars enjoying the pool_ ©Yoshihiro Makino
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The welcoming couple in their living room. PC – Yoshihiro Makino

The house has been designed with the help of Mandy Cheng by keeping in mind Emmy’s vision. “Every time I showed up, there seemed to be some sort of surprise waiting for me,” revealed Daveed. “Whole sections of our home were being created without me—yet clearly with me in mind,” confesses Daveed on how Emmy made it her project to make the place a home.

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The vibrant staircase. PC – Yoshihiro Makino
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Use of staircase wall as a blank canvas to display coffee bags _ Yoshihiro Makino

The whole house looks like a treasure of memories with each space having a unique, warm story. The transitional spaces in between have certain display pieces that tell their story, mostly put together by Emmy. Be it the column with a picture frame of Emmy’s father’s renowned writing works or the most ingenious invention that adorns the staircase wall-  The whole wall looked like a blank slate that allowed Emmy to showcase her talent. 

She covered the expanse with burlap coffee bags stamped with the country of origin that she found in London. Such personal touches can be seen throughout the property. An empty sitting-room wall became a canvas for Raver-Lampman’s vast collection of baskets from around the globe. The staircase itself is covered in a colourful patchwork runner composed of small rugs acquired by the actress and sewn together by Cheng’s artisan team members.

Family room | Daveed Diggs and Emmy Raver-Lampman

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Full view of the living room. PC – Yshihiro Makino

Positioned just near the kitchen with a view of the backyard, this room has a very snug ambience with 2 hanging chairs and a yellow couch adding vibrancy to the entire room. There is a massive bamboo tree with little house plants at random intervals to supplement some greens to the room. As soon as you enter the room you see a beautiful mantlepiece with a photo of the two stars just above the captivating fireplace. 

An entire wall has been dedicated to showcasing hats as art pieces. The arrangement of the hats adds a whimsical beauty and vibrancy to the place. Various rugs can be seen throughout the home.

Dining room

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The welcoming dining room _ Yoshihiro Makino

Emmy mentioned that the dining table and chair were the first set of furniture that showed up after they moved in there. The dining table is a very welcoming oval-shaped piece of furniture with turquoise-coloured comfortable chairs. The dining room is lit by 3 large windows and pendant lighting above.

Living room

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New York style inspired couch that reminds them of their time there _PC –  Yoshihiro Makino

The story behind the living room was the emotional connection both the stars had with New York and its fame to couches. The couch is an extremely comfortable ochre-coloured piece that could hold 15 people—which they both desired. The centerpiece of the living room is an ottoman that Emmy thought to give a more personal touch; by using the fabric Daveed’s mother gave them. 

The room is also lit by a huge glass wall with linen curtains that compliment the vibe of the room. Various plants can be seen in this room as well. 

Powder room | Daveed Diggs and Emmy Raver-Lampman

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Wallpaper in the powder room _ httpswww.popsugar.comhomephoto-gallery48213697image48213930daveed-diggs-emmy-raver-lampman-los-angeles-home-tour-video
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The powder room. PC – Yoshihiro Makino

This room was Daveed’s passion project. The wallpaper was his decision. The wall incorporates all baseball references with TV anchors with very specific inside references. Everyone who comes to this house at one point or another uses this room and appreciates it, revealed Emmy.

Kitchen

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The vibrant kitchen _ Yoshihiro Makino

Initially, the kitchen was a very monotonous white room. To add more colour to the kitchen and complement the palette of the whole house, they painted the cabinets and added tiles near the countertops. Everyone who comes to the house uses the kitchen as a dining room because of its welcoming essence. The kitchen is a very unusual space with monochrome tiles all over. There are open cabinets with an amazing showcase of crockeries. They added a bar in the kitchen considering how everyone just spends their time in that room. 

Workspace

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Emmy’s quarantine project of decorating the wall _ Yoshihiro Makino

The workspace was Emmy’s quarantine project. The wallpaper of the room, which took several days to complete, was hand-drawn by Emmy. They are black brush strokes on the wall which gives a very unique experience to the room. This room is a small place with some posters hung up, some flowers spread across, and 2 sofas. They both agree that the room is very utilitarian. 

Guest room

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Beach themed guest room. PC – Yoshihiro Makino

This room has a beachy ambience. There is an abstract blue wallpaper on the wall with the same colour scheme coordinated throughout the room. There are a lot of wooden finishes in the room with handmade art pieces. This room has been home to a lot of their friends and hence has a very special attachment. 

Master bedroom | Daveed Diggs and Emmy Raver-Lampman

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Quirky frame of both the Obama’s over the night stand _ Yoshihiro Makino

The bedroom has an intricately carved wooden backrest which compliments the little wooden pieces in the room. The trend of using house plants has been continued in this room as well. To add to the eccentricity of the room, the art chosen for the bedside table is both Obama’s seating on sandwiches which grabs all the attention. 

To add to the personal touch collection of the whole house, the room consists of a very candid picture of them. One thing that contrasts the whole room is the two chairs, very vibrant but beautiful. 

Backyard

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Relaxing backyard _ Yoshihiro Makino

The backyard, also their breakfast nook is a well-designed space and acts as a nice relaxing spot. It was initially just grass which was later developed in a space that offered a place to sit, bask in the sun, play, relax and take a nap—as Daveed very subtly puts it. The cabana and pool are preferred spots for both Daveed and their dog to rest. There are diverse seating spaces to host guests for a party. 

The whole hall has a very personal touch and gives an insight into their personality. The house gives a very warm touch with all the personal art pieces and story behind each space. 

References 

Architectural digest ( 2021 ), Inside “Hamilton” Stars Daveed Diggs & Emmy Raver-Lampman’s L.A. Home | Open Door [ Youtube Video ] Available at – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKUyX7cjum4

David. C. Kaufman. [ March 11, 2021], Step Inside Emmy Raver-Lampman and Daveed Diggs’s Colorful Southern California Home 

Available at – https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/step-inside-emmy-raver-lampman-and-daveed-diggss-colorful-southern-california-home

Author

A keen observer and nature enthusiast, Pranita is a final year architecture student. She believes architects need to be empathic and compassionate to acknowledge users’ obstacles and comfort. She relishes reading about urban design, art, aesthetics, spaces, people, countries, culture and craves to learn more. Barring this, she squanders her time overthinking and anticipating the worst aftermath.