Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1546313
from a Tokyo dealer. The antique patchwork chintz quilt on the bed came from a dealer in the Midwest who spotted it and sent Lawson a photo over Instagram. And the string shade for the living-room floor lamp, his own design, was hand-knotted from butcher's twine by an artisan in New York City. The den's custom seven-sided ottoman was inspired by one Charles James created for Dominique and John de Menil's Houston residence in the 1950s. The escape that Lofgren had been seeking materialized in an instant when Lawson swapped the dining and living rooms. "It felt like a totally new house," Lofgren says. This project was about an education, from someone generous with what he knows. "I felt like I was injected with a new sense of spirit," Lofgren says. Four years and one long-distance friendship later, the collecting hasn't stopped — now, when Lofgren is chasing down collectibles, he admits Lawson's voice still lingers. "It's made me second-guess my own opinions about everything," he says. "You know — what would Ryan think?" In the primary bedroom, an antique patchwork chintz American quilt. Chiarastella Cattana bolster pillow. Antique woven Shaker stool from Area. Kate Breakey photogram, Catherine Couturier Gallery. In the primary bath, a painting by Greg Lofgren and table from Leighton Hale Antiques. Cat painting, dated 1946, by well-known Texas artist Madeline O'Connor, painted before she was married, when she was Madeline Fleming. This feline portrait was a gift to Lofgren from a drag queen in the 1980s. "You can't make a house that's rich with meaning overnight. You can't manufacture that." — Greg Lofgren