Do Not Disturb with Sean Famoso

Presenting Do Not Disturb, a series uncovering the oasis behind closed doors. We’ve been invited to the homes of indoor enthusiasts—and you’re our plus one. In the next installment, music executive and creative Sean Famoso welcomes us to his Los Angeles lounge.

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear “Do Not Disturb?”
SF: I immediately think about home, rather than a state of mind. The embodiment of being home is equivalent to not being disturbed or not wanting to be disturbed. Once the door is closed behind you, you're basically shutting out the rest of the world.

How do you spend your time when no one’s around?
SF: I play with Legos and I'll DJ for myself. I'm very unstructured as a person. So when I do these adult Legos, it's a really easy way for me to turn off a certain part of my brain and just follow directions.

What’s your first move when you know you’re not going to be disturbed for a while?
SF: Honestly, chasing the sunlight. Different rooms in the house have a way of manipulating how you feel, or the mood of the room based on the time of day, like when it's sunrise and I'm in my bedroom and it's soft enough that it wakes me up but not harsh enough to annoy me. During golden hour, no matter where you are, the entire home just changes color. I think it's a really interesting way to, even in a home as small as mine, feel like it's as big as you need it to be.

What happens when you take the “Do Not Disturb” sign down?
SF: The disturb sign is never up. Taking it down really just means I'm ready to have company. It means that hanging out with myself is no longer what I want to do at that moment, and I'd rather entertain somebody else or something else.

What does chaos look like for you?
SF: Chaos only happens if I don't give myself the grace of being able to control exactly how I want to start my day. Making my bed is honestly probably one of the most important parts of my day. It starts my day and sets the pace for not being chaotic because I'm choosing to control the end of my day by starting it a certain way.

What does good design mean to you?
SF: Good design is something that's functional, equally intentional, but also has a sprinkle of random magic. When I was redesigning this home, I thought it was mid-century modern, right? But there were so many really cool, quirky things about the home that I appreciated. Being able to reimagine those same quirky things and add little creature comforts to them to make it of today was how I thought I was able to not go against what the home was meant to be or meant to feel.

Describe the perfect afternoon at home.
SF: I recently learned how to make martinis. A perfect afternoon is a gin martini that may or may not be made properly, but I made it, so it's proper. There is music blasting on every speaker in the house. The pool's heated to 92 degrees. I may or may not get in, but I know it's ready at any moment. And Uber Eats is on the way. A little like high and low, you know.

What’s something special about your home that no one knows?
SF: One of my friends that helped me put together the home had an idea to quite literally blow up these balloons and put paper mache on the outside of them and let them dry into the shape of the pendants that you see. Because of that, we got to paint it any color we wanted. I love the cobalt blue that we found. Now, every time I come home, I get to see that little pop of blue over the counter.

What gets you out of bed in the morning?
SF: It's easy for me to get out of bed in the morning. I recently realized that I appreciate my days more than late nights.

How do you wind down at the end of the day before going to bed?
SF: Once I step into my bedroom, my body tells me that it's time to wind down. The reality is winding down has become more of a natural process rather than a regimen.

What makes your home cool?
SF: It's cool to me and it's not for anybody else, but I can appreciate it if anybody else finds it cool.

If your home had a theme song, what would it be?
SF: I just discovered this new artist recently. My neighbor had a party at his house because he fell in love with this artist and wanted to showcase her. He had her come play at his home a couple of songs, acoustically. And I equally fell in love with her. So now, she's a part of my day. If my house had a theme song, it would be Hannah Cohen's “All I Ever Wanted.” It's fire. But also depending on the time of day, it might be “Bricks” by Gucci Man.

What’s one design element that sets the tone for your home?
SF: I have this really interesting cassette player in my living room that a friend of mine in Sweden made. It's the perfect blend of nostalgic old and technically, futuristic mentality. It's colorful, has character, there's wood, and I've never seen anything like it. If my house was burning down and I had to pick up and run out of the house with something I could fit under my arm, it would probably be that.

What’s something small that would make a big difference in how you’d reset?
SF: If the windows are open or not. I think I'm the type of person, no matter what, I need at least a little bit of the window down because I have to feel something.

Do you design for comfort or do you design for style?
SF: I'll be lying if I only said one of them. I design for comfort and style, and I say that because I could never be comfortable if I don't feel like it looks good as well. I think it's an equal balance. Not that the balance is 50/50, but the balance is 100/100 because you don't have to give up one for the other.

Describe your style in three words.
SF: Comfortable, but tailored with a sprinkle of random razzle-dazzle.

What's your hosting routine like?
SF: When you walk through the door, you'll be prompted to take off your shoes, but we'll trade them out for house slippers. There will already be music playing. The martinis would already be shaken, not stirred. And you don't have to go home until I get tired.