At Home with Ben & Lauren

In the otherwise happy process of moving in together, reality-TV stars Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell faced an unexpected challenge: realizing their belongings weren’t as cohabitation-ready as they were. But with a little compromise and the help of an objective third party (our style director), they transformed Ben’s bachelor pad into a cozy love nest reflective of both their styles. Here, the loved-up pair chat merging styles, share the stunning results, and even indulge us with one last final rose ceremony.

Tell us about your respective styles.
Lauren: I definitely love neutrals, and I like mixing more modern pieces with rustic, second-hand finds. With the light and airy colors, I feel like I brought a piece of California with me to Ben’s home. But I didn’t want to make it feel too feminine—I’m moving into his house, so I tried to keep him in mind throughout the process.
Ben: I tried to stay out of it. She’s moving into this house, and I wanted her to feel like this is home. If I was to choose everything, it wouldn’t feel like that. The other part is… I just don’t think about design too much. I had my couch, my futon from college, and my deer antlers above the fireplace, and I was happy with that. I trusted her to make the place look better.

Did you have specific inspiration when you set out to decorate? 
LB: I have a set of watercolors that were painted by a friend—they have a lot of light pastels and these clean-lined, white frames. They really inspired the entire space, and now they’re hanging above our table. 

Lauren—Ben decorated his place solo before you moved in. What would you say was his biggest bachelor-pad offense?
LB: Probably his bedroom—it was all brown. Everything was brown.
BH: I’m a rustic man.
LB: It made me just want to sleep there, then close the door in the morning and not let anyone in.
BH: Isn’t that what it’s for?
LB: I feel like it should be a sanctuary—peaceful and a place you want to cozy up in.
BH: Now it is.

Speaking of peace, how do you keep it living in such close quarters?
LB: We don’t have a ton of space, but we’ve still managed to carve out areas we can spend time in by ourselves. I can imagine having two bathrooms would also help—wouldn’t two bathrooms be nice?
BH: Yes.
LB: I don’t need more space; I just need another bathroom!

And maybe a walk-in closet.
LB: He moved all of his clothes to the basement so that I could have all the closet space on the first level—it was really nice.

Were there any other cohabitating grand-gestures?
BH: We have no central air, so this tiny brick house gets really hot in the summer. For me, I’d just open the windows and be fine. But bringing Lauren into the house, that wasn’t exactly fine.
LB: You’re making me sound so high maintenance!
BH: No, it actually makes complete sense! I just never thought about the idea that I needed an air conditioner. So we did get a window unit and it is—
LB: The best purchase.
BH: One of the best I’ve ever made. Maybe even the best.

So it was a win-win—which isn’t always the case with compromises. Were there any deal-breaker items? 
BH: My deer antlers were above the fireplace, and Lauren came home one day with this antique cow skull and said, “Look what I bought!” and I was like, “That’s great, where’s it going?” She said above the fireplace… so my antlers were out.
LB: You wouldn’t let me paint the brick. A painted brick house is so cute.
BH: This was, to be honest, a struggle at times. There were items—some sentimental, some I just liked—that I told Lauren, “Hey, these are things I would love to keep, the rest is yours.” They are now all gone!
LB: They were also, like, the main items of the house, so it was kind of hard.
BH: I got used to the idea that I could get rid of things as long as she was happy with this house. As a compromise, I’m now building an office in my garage, and the furniture I cared about most will be there.
LB: It was so important to me to create a place that was both of ours. We’re in the next chapter of our relationship—planning a wedding and building a home. That means getting rid of things from when we were a bachelor or bachelorette. And that’s okay, because it’s the memories that count, not the furniture they were created around—and it worked out great that Ben has this office space.

The great thing about letting go of old furniture, is that you get to buy something new. Of all the updates, which were your favorites?   BH: The couch and the Chewbacca pillows. I also love the marble table—I think it’s classy, it’s sophisticated, and it looks good with a cocktail on it!
LB: My favorite piece is the chandelier above the table. I wanted it to be the first thing you saw when walking in the door.
BH: Can I add how cool the bar cart is, too?
LB: The bar cart is pretty cool. That was really for you.
BH: I know it was!

And what about your favorite room? If you had to give just one room a symbolic “final rose," which would it be?
BH: Definitely the living room—it’s bright, it has beautiful windows, it has the original 100-year-old hardwood floors, and now it has beautiful furniture. It has a lot of character, and I’d say it’s the most special room in the house.
LB: I would definitely say the living room—it’s where we spend the most time.  

Let’s play finish this sentence. First one: Home is…
LB: Cozy, and where the people you love are. Home is a feeling, not necessarily things—but there are pieces, like a soft throw or comfy sofa, that can help make a house your home.
BH: Home for me is really where I lay my head at night. And I think it’s the place that, like Lauren said, is where your loved ones are.

The hardest part of moving in together is…
BH: The feeling of unsettledness. I was established in Denver, this was my home for two years prior to Lauren. She moved here and started a whole new life. So it’s been hard to see through her eyes how new this is. But, it’s a whole new outlook for me as well. I think that’s probably been the hardest part, just getting used to that.
LB: It’s not necessarily moving in together, but moving to a new city. It’s a lot of change—a new home, making new friends, and being newly engaged. I had my family in L.A., and now I’m in a whole new place. It’s a sense of starting over, which is exciting and presents a certain challenge I like, but it also can be overwhelming.  

The best part of moving in together is…
BH: Having the chance to learn more about each other. I’m excited to see the place with Lauren’s touch on it and how happy she is, and how she operates in this environment.
LB: The little things. I think that’s what we missed the most about being on the show. We did some amazing things—we went on airplane rides and helicopter rides and all that, but we missed the everyday things together: grocery shopping, cooking, watching movies, getting takeout, and just enjoying our home together. Now that we’re able to do those on a regular basis, it’s been so nice.