Omaha resident Lauren Williams arrives at her front door tall, striking and as colourful as her bright purple house. Her fruit earrings, unicorn shirt and two-toned bellbottoms preview what you’ll find inside — rainbows, carousel horses, disco balls and swirly items of every description. Even her two white cats have tinges of pink and blue. “I’m a 12-year-old girl in a 45-year-old body,” she says as she shows off the northwest Omaha home she shares with her two teenage sons. Her parents, Brian and Laura Bross, once lived across the street. Williams started work on the inside of what she calls the Kaleidoscope Home about five years ago after a divorce. Her goal, she says, is to come home to a happy house. No tan colours are allowed. Instead, her aesthetic is rainbows — many, many rainbows. She discovered they fill her with joy as she also dealt with the loss of her mother and then her job, so her preferred pastel version can be spotted everywhere. “Every room is done in a theme,” she said. “They all have a rainbow touch to them.” There’s her iridescent kitchen, with the cabinets and counter she redid herself; her carousel horse entryway and the rainbow jungle bathroom. Disco balls of every size dangle in the living space where she hangs out each week with her friends, who call themselves the Chaos Cats. Rainbow fur walls lead to the basement, nicknamed Candyland. It smells divine, too. Last year, she painted the outside of her house purple with butterfly shutters. Her collections spill across the front lawn, and the sidewalk to the front door is, you guessed it, painted in a rainbow theme. She’s had no complaints from neighbours, and sons Easton and Barrett have grown to like the bright interior. “Originally, they hated it. They said, ‘Mom, this is so girly.’ Then they started having their friends over,” Williams said. “Their friends think it’s the coolest house ever. I’m the hub. The kids want to be over here.” The expansive backyard has not been forgotten. She’s redoing it with an “Alice in Wonderland” theme and has turned an old basketball court into a chessboard. She’s creating all the chess pieces herself using her 3D printer. Each has three parts that take about eight hours to produce. “There’s going to be a bunch of little rainbow pathways, a water feature and a fire pit. I have a lot of ideas,” Williams said. “I want to put a small pool back there eventually. I have a third of an acre. I’m trying to use up less grass. My yard is a lot of work.” She’s already added 50 trees, including apple, cherry, weeping willow and Little Giant Arborvitae for privacy. Williams, whose mom was an artist and dad worked in construction, works full time and has many side jobs, including event planner. She’d love the chance to decorate for others who enjoy her whimsical vibe. It’s all-consuming. Work on the house takes up most nights and weekends. She isn’t afraid to tackle big jobs. She’s knocked down a few walls to build the bathroom and closet off the main bedroom and to expand the kitchen. Her original accent pieces are found at department stores, Facebook Marketplace, online and at Goodwill and are adapted to her style. A large pegasus outside, named Starlite, took hours to accent with rainbow colours. The stairway walls to the second floor have been done in a wallpaper collage. Butterflies she made from paint samples flit on the ceiling. A Dr. Seuss desk in her office area was constructed from 155 pieces of wood. She’ll never be done with the house or the yard, she says. She’s got too many ideas. She’s already redoing some rooms and has plans for every surface of the house. All involve colour. “Why do we have to get boring when we reach a certain age?”
