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B radley Agather and Coley Means were just two months away from their wedding day in 2013 when the starter house of their dreams came onto the market. The timing couldn't have been more perfect — or more stressful — for 31-year- old Agather, a lifestyle influencer whose popular Luella & June blog turns 10 this year. Means, an oil-and-gas attorney, had recently accepted a job in Fort Worth when their real estate agent called about a house for sale there. Agather begged off, explaining she was deep into wedding-planning mode. "No, you really need to come see this house," the agent insisted. Located near the historic River Crest Country Club, the mid- century modern residence was designed in 1961 by Dallas architect Glenn Allen Galloway. It was love at first sight the minute they stepped onto the front porch. "Coley and I looked at each other like 'You've got to be kidding me.'" Agather says. "I've always wanted a house with an orange front door, and this house had one. I've also loved pineapples ever since I was little — and it had a pineapple door knocker." Talk about serendipity. Throughout the couple's engagement, Agather had been on the hunt for an easy, ready-made nest. "I didn't want to redo a kitchen or bathrooms. I just didn't need another project," she says. None of that mattered the minute they walked inside. "Oh, my gosh. This is the house," she remembers saying. "And I'm going to have to renovate the whole damn thing." The kitchen and bathrooms would need overhauling for sure, but the bones of the house were sublime. With vast walls of glass and an open floor plan, it is one of Galloway's most beautiful designs. The architect's signature floating walnut bookcases and cabinets, which he used to divide the large living area, remained intact. "Finding a mid-century house like this one is rare, and we weren't going to come across another one soon," Agather says. "Coley and I left to have a glass of wine and think about it. Then we said, 'Okay, let's do this.'" There were already numerous offers on the table from other interested buyers, but Means found a way to appeal to the homeowners' emotions. Along with their best offer, he attached a heartfelt missive. In it, he mentioned the pencil lines he'd seen on the wall marking the owner's children's and grandchildren's heights over the years. Means had made a mental note of their names and referenced them in the letter. "We got a call three days later — and we'd gotten the house," Agather says. A fter a year of renovations, the couple moved into their new house in April 2014 — a month before celebrating their first anniversary. Only two rooms were furnished: the master bedroom and the kitchen. The rest of the house was almost empty, and that's exactly how Agather planned it. "The bedroom and kitchen were the two rooms where we spend all our time, so I wanted them to be ready to go," she says. "The other rooms we pieced together slowly. That's the bit of advice I'd give anyone: Wait and figure out how you use the house before you fill it with furniture, and be thoughtful about your decisions. That way you end up with things you really love." Agather collaborated with Fort Worth-based Kelley Parker Roberts of Beckley Design Studio on the renovations and interiors. "I wanted someone close to my age in Fort Worth who had a similar style to mine," Agather says. "Also, I learned a long time ago that in everything you do, hire someone who is smarter than you are. That was definitely true of Kelley." The admiration was mutual. "At the time, we didn't have a lot of 20-something clients, and I was struck with how mature Bradley was," Roberts says. "She was confident in what she wanted, very sophisticated, and very knowledgeable." As a former fashion editor for FD Luxe and the daughter of stylish power banker Elaine Agather, she has an inherently great eye for design. "Bradley could look at things and quickly say what she liked or didn't like," Roberts says. "We've had clients in their 50s who couldn't do that." Agather's strategy was simple, yet methodical: Find one great piece she loved, and build the whole room around it, slowly. She kicked off the dining room with a vintage burl-wood Milo Baughman table, discovered at Sputnik Modern. Next came a Lindsey Adelman light fixture, which Agather had long coveted. Bradley Agather. (continued on page 74) 73