Boise Beauty 

  • March 3, 2026
  • Written by Laura Shimko and Photography by Bret Gum

This Mid Century Modern Boise gem shines with several preserved original features, a fun retro palette and thoughtful updates.

When Ryan and Lauren Burke decided to move to Boise, Idaho, to embrace outdoor living, they were pleasantly surprised to find an abundance of mid-century homes in the area. “We are both fans of Mid Century Modern architecture and had collected mid-century furniture for years in our new construction homes in Chicago,” Ryan says. They knew exactly what they wanted, so they enlisted the help of TJ Pierce of Mid-Century Homes by Anthology (@boisemidcenturyhomes) to find a new home.

“We moved to Boise to spend more time camping and hiking, and split time between our Boise home and living and working a few months of the year out of our Airstream traveling the West,” Ryan and Lauren explain. With effort and a little luck, they finally discovered the perfect fit.

A living room with a wood plank ceiling and two walls of floor-to-ceiling windows. Brightly speckled terazzo flooring, a color-blocked geometric rug and modern furnishings are characteristic of a mid century modern home like this one.
Their renovation work brought the mid mod living room of their dreams to life. “A modern take on terrazzo flooring, a collection of furniture we’ve slowly built in our 15-year relationship, and custom wood paneling and a media console to match the original vintage ceiling,” the homeowners explain.
A small dining room of a mid century modern home. there are wood planked ceilings and mid century modern hanging lamps above colorful molded plastic chairs.
Old meets new in the dining room, where Ryan and Lauren and the design team worked to incorporate newer pieces with a vintage look and feel. “It makes up for the functional but aesthetically lacking flipped kitchen,” they say.

A small dining room of a mid century modern home. there are wood planked ceilings and mid century modern hanging lamps above colorful molded plastic chairs. In the background is a simple mid century modern style kitchen.

Finding Mid Century Modern Boise Home

As longtime lovers of all things mid-century, the couple jumped at the possibility of realizing a life-long dream. “Once we had seen the amazing homes Boise Mid-Century Homes were highlighting on social media, we knew this might be our one shot at owning a mid-century gem and began our search,” they recall.

“We try to collect pieces slowly and always focus on scale first. We always try to find vintage first and buy new after we’ve given up the hunt for a piece.”

A living room with an slightly angled ceiling made of wood planks. A corner fireplace made of stone is in the background and there is mid century modern furniture in the room. The living room is a sunken down by two steps.

An entryway with unique blue stone on one side and an staircase leading to the lower floor in the foreground.
While many key original features were preserved, some were lost in the flip. Here, the original railings were replaced by the home flippers. “We hung the Nelson lamps to give the classic mid-century look where the original details were replaced,” the couple say.

With their wish list in hand—a sloped roofline, classic fireplace, lots of windows and a carport—they began the hunt. “We had driven all around Boise on scouting visits, writing down the addresses of the homes that fit these criteria and we hoped would become available,” they say. They came upon a 1961 build: 2,236 square feet with three bedrooms and 2.5 baths. Not only did this mid century modern Boise gem have lots of windows to allow natural light to stream in, but it also had an intact original fireplace, carport and iconic sloped roof. In addition, the home has incredible views of the Owyhee Mountains and has access to the Boise Foothill trails they love to hike. “We were so lucky to find all those features in our home,” they say.

A small eating nook with a built-in booth like seating along the wall and a round table with three chairs in front of it. The booth seat walls are painted a very bright neon yellow. There is a large artwork of a geyser blowing a plume of steam in hanging on the wall.
In the lower-level living space, VCT flooring ties to the terrazzo floors on the first level. The team encountered a challenge when working the design. “This space has HVAC running near the ceiling. Our designer, Jessica, had the brilliant idea to take the awkward HVAC run and install a custom banquette below it, fixing the utilitarian awkwardness of the original space,” Ryan and Lauren explain. The vintage Yellowstone print from Dial M for Modern has a custom frame build by Ty Howard of Howard Built and the stain matches the cabinetry nearby.

Related Reading: Building New-Modern in Boise

An office space with gleaming white floors. A Cado wall unit hangs on the wall and a small mid century modern style desk sits in the middle of the room.
The wall of windows floods the space with generous amounts of natural light and a lovely view of the natural surroundings outside. “We both work remotely from home and wanted to create a minimalist but vintage-inspired office space on the lower level,” Ryan and Lauren explain.
a small counter with a sink and a small wine fridge below the counter. The cabinets are all a wood maple and the backsplash is made of turquoise blue tile.
The couple replaced the kitchenette on the lower level to better accommodate when their families visit. “We stock the fridge with local Idaho favorites and breakfast items before each stay,” they homeowners say. The bold blue tile continues the bright and cheerful theme.

Respectful Updates for a Mid Century Modern Boise Home

Since the home’s inception, it had only belonged to one family. As the decades passed, the home began to show signs of significant wear and tear. When the family finally sold to a home flipper, the house received a complete redo to bring it up to modern standards. “But many original features were luckily preserved: the exposed brick fireplace, the wooden ceilings in their original stain and the carport details,” Ryan and Lauren say.

A room with wood plank ceilings and a brightly speckled terrazzo style floor. An Eames lounge chair sits in the middle of the room with a vintage mid century modern cabinet against the wall. In the glass-cased upper portion of the cabinet is a vintage bar-glass collection.
Ryan and Lauren’s vintage furniture collection takes center stage in the living room. “We always dreamed of the Eames lounger and ottoman, and we finally had the perfect spot to add it next to the perfect vintage fireplace,” they say. “The credenza is vintage and contains vintage finds from our time together.”
A bedroom with a wood-planked ceiling, high narrow windows and wooden closet doors. The bed is dressed with a mustarn quiilt and has a red upholstered headboard.
In the primary bedroom, the small space is compensated by gorgeous views, courtesy of a large slider, of the Owyhee Mountains and Boise Foothill Trails. “Our guest room on the lower level has more vintage charm, but our smaller bedroom blends the indoors and outdoors beautifully,” the couple say.

With a desire to preserve and enhance what remained of the home’s original features, they hired Jessica Luque of Stussi Luque Design, Ty Howard of Howard Built, and Ogata Construction for renovation work. “We wanted to add back more period-appropriate character,” they say. Their renovation included revamping the living room, lower level and guest suite. They made sure to utilize materials that honored the mid-century vibe, like terrazzo floors in the living room and VCT flooring on the lower level.

A bathroom with seagreen colored tile in the shower-bath and behind the oval-shaped vanity mirror.
In the guest bath, minimalist meets a splash of color. “It was brought to life with loud tiles and matching cabinets to the kitchenette right outside the door,” Ryan and Lauren point out.
A bedroom with the wall behind the heeadboard paneled in wood. On the floor is a large boho-modern run in a deep terracotta color.
The wall paneling here the guest room is an addition by Jessica Luque and Ty Howard. “It gives the room warmth and a mid-century feel that was previously lacking,” Ryan and Lauren say. The furniture here is mostly vintage pieces from their collection, including the bed frame, chaise lounge, cube side table, light fixture and dresser.

Mod Styling

Finding the balance between old and new can be tricky when renovating a mid mod home. Ryan and Lauren worked with the teams they hired to create a design that stuck to the home’s roots while also reflecting their own unique style. “We wanted a modern, minimalist take on mid-century design with pops of color through our furniture,” they say. “While our space is minimal, we try to bring in bold accents.” A neutral backdrop serves as the perfect canvas for their vast collection of vintage pieces to shine.

A view of the back of a mid century modern home in Boise with a second story deck bearing a decorative iron railing. On the bottom floor is a gravel patio with a small dining table and chairs.
Landscaping was another major project the homeowners undertook in their renovation. “We replaced the original paved back patio with stone to give it more of a Palm Springs look,” Ryan and Lauren say. “The back patio has a view of the Owyhee Mountains.”

Related Reading: The Past Perfected in a 1965 Boise Home

A view through a carport of a mid century modern home in Boise, Idaho.
A glimpse of the couple’s Airstream from the carport. “We had a project to install mid-century-inspired landscaping to the front and incorporated a space and landscaping for our Airstream,” Ryan and Lauren say of their Mid Century Modern Boise home.
A view of the interior of a carport of a mid century modern house in Boise. A partition is visible which is made of a louvered aluminum.
Personal touches make this exterior design meaningful in addition to the mid mod elements. “We wanted the house to scream mid-century from the front and painted the door a bright yellow, our wedding color, and purchased vintage bowtie sconces from Hip Haven,” Ryan and Lauren say.

Placing their furniture is like art: it takes time, thought and adjustment to get it just right. “We want everything in the room to feel like the perfect size and maintain flow throughout the space,” they say. Adding to their collection is likewise the result of careful consideration. “We try to collect pieces slowly and always focus on scale first,” they say. “We always try to find vintage first and buy new after we’ve given up the hunt for a piece.”

A mixture of bold colors, original mid-century elements and personalized features make this house feel like home.

The upper deck of a mid century modern home in Boise overlooking a tree-lined view.
Nestled on top of a vintage bomb shelter—a throwback to the “atomic” in Atomic Ranch—the back patio is the perfect outdoor living space. “Our back patio is an extension of our living room, and we wanted to take the mid-century styling out the door,” the homeowners explain.

Learn more about Modernism in Idaho with this post about a tour of a vintage-filled Boise home.

And of course, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest for more mid century articles and ideas!

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Sarah Jane Stone

Sarah Jane is a former editor of Atomic Ranch. She has over 12 years of experience in editorial strategy and content creation. She has built brands, grown audiences, coordinated storytelling across channels, launched products, and more. This work spans a global PR agency, magazine publishing, and an open-source software business — highlighting a nature of collaboration, adaptability, learning, and creativity.

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