Former NFL running back Kevin Jones is full of surprises. Twenty five years ago, as the number-one college draft pick in the country, Jones was suspected to be choosing between Penn State and Virginia Tech. In a much-anticipated televised reveal, he picked up the Penn uniform and tossed it aside, ripping off his sweatshirt to reveal a VT jersey to announce he would be a Hokie. The stunt kicked off a long and fruitful pro-athlete career for Jones, who, after leaving Virginia Tech his junior year, went on to play for the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears. Then, when Jones retired in 2009, he made another surprising move, this time into the world of design. He returned to Virginia Tech for a bachelor’s in industrial design followed by an MBA, and then founded his own design firm, Joba Studio (Joba is an acronym for Just One Billion Attempts) in 2015 to pursue his longtime passion for creating objects and environments.

This year at Salone del Mobile in Milan, Jones unveiled his latest: an update to USM’s famous Haller shelving that represents a major update to the modular system’s functionality and industrial aesthetic. The release, a collaboration with French designer Marc Venot, introduces felted two-tone reversible panels and magnetic attachments that lets users customize their pieces on the fly. Here, Jones shares why it was time to bring a “more connected, more human, and more modular” touch to the beloved utilitarian shelving, and how his former career on the gridiron helped prepare him for one working with one of the biggest design brands in the world.

Dwell: Let’s start with your decision to make a leap from professional sports into industrial design—what was going on professionally, intellectually, or emotionally that made you want to change careers?

Kevin Jones: I left early from Virginia Tech to enter the NFL draft, so I didn’t finish my degree. I was studying business and property management. I didn’t know about industrial design as a practice or major, and I thought architecture was the same as construction at that time, so I had really no desire to pursue it. During my time in the NFL, I was sponsored by Reebok, Under Armor, and Red Bull. Having those relationships, you get involved—I wanted to make a decision on the color for my cleats, or I wanted the bottom of my shoes to be all chrome so when I’m running past somebody, they see the shining sole of my shoe. Sitting at the tailor’s shop, my wife was like, Oh, we got to be here all day, because I was so interested in the thread count of the fabrics and the colors. Back then, I didn’t see athletes really caring about fashion and things like they do now, from the standpoint of, like, having a custom-made piece.

So when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do next, I thought fashion was my gig. I went back to Virginia Tech and told an advisor I wanted to study fashion. They said go to Parsons in New York. And I’m like, Well, I’m a Virginia Tech guy. So what would be comparable if I didn’t do fashion? They said to go check out the architecture program—but again, I thought that that was construction. I talked to an advisor there, and she gave me a tour. They had this huge space where I saw architects and engineers and industrial designers. And I had an overwhelming sense of this is what I should be doing. As soon as I walked in the room, I was like, Oh my God. Product designers were making prosthetic legs and designing sneakers and handbags and all these different things over here, and then there were architecture students that had all these skyscrapers and buildings and pavilions. And I was just like, Yo, this is heaven.

You completed an internship with USM during school. What types of experiences were exciting to you that maybe still resonate with you today that made you want to work with them again?

In my junior year, I met the owner of USM at a Virginia Tech sporting event. He was a football fan, and invited my wife and I to sit in the president’s box—my wife was the president of her class at VT, so that’s why we were invited. We were having a conversation, and I said, Hey, do you guys give internships? And then he basically says, yes, but it wasn’t like this positive, yeah, we do internships. When do you want to start? It didn’t start off like that. But three months later, I got a call from my professor who said USM reached out and asked if I was still interested in an internship.

I went to the company’s headquarters in Switzerland and learned there was a process by which they do things. They manufacture on-site, so I was able to get a first hand experience of the company’s history and how they make the products. I got really familiar with all the parts and the modules and their ethos and way of thinking.

I also got to move around with the creative directors and the COO of the company. They had clients that were creatives—designers that worked for Louis Vuitton and all these other companies, but also work for USM. Most of the employees that work at USM are engineers: They never really have designers or creatives on their team because they don’t want to have group think; they want creatives to stay innovative and not just be stuck with the same modules and tools.

Because it was never on the table to go from being an intern to a creative person within the company, I found other ways to work with them—I had the USM internship, and then they recommended me to Scott, which is a bike and outdoor product company. And at the end of my senior year, I wound up using USM as my thesis project.

Now you’re back with USM, this time collaborating on its famous Haller shelving system. Tell us about the new iteration.

It’s like sports—there’s a system that you put athletes into. That’s why I like the USM Haller system—you have a set of rules, and you have a system, and you can play within those rules. These are the tool: In sports, you have a quarterback, a running back, offensive lineman, wide receiver; in the Haller system, you have a tube, a ball joint, and panels. This is how you put it together. For the new Soft Panel system, we were thinking about the phrase, “More connected, more human, and more modular.” And I was scared to say more modular, because USM is the modular company, right? For us, it was a doubling down on the brand promise.

As a customer, I can build my Haller system from a modularity standpoint online. I can make what I want, but then when I get it in person, it’s hard for me to change it and adapt it in my house to something different. You need special tools, and it’s a tough process. So when we were creating the Soft Panel, we used magnets. It has magnets on the four corners, and you can literally just take a panel, and as soon as it hits the metal, it’s in the frame. And then you can flip the panel up or down, or slide it left and right, depending on what size you have. We also have a two-color panel: Every time you flip the panel, we want the consumer to have a new option. If you have vertical lines on the panel, when you flip it, the other side is going to have color.

Welcome to How They Pulled It Off, where we take a close look at one particularly challenging aspect of a home design and get the nitty-gritty details about how it became a reality.

Northern California’s Bay Area is known for its resplendent natural beauty. In a home in Oakland, New York-based design studio Kalos Eidos paid tribute to the characteristics of that ecosystem, with a nature-inspired palette and a layout designed to encourage flow between interior and exterior. “Our approach to the renovation was really geared towards having an emphasis on the main living spaces, extending them to the outside, and really seeing that part of the property as an underutilized asset when they purchased the home,” Kalos Eidos founder Ryan Brooke Thomas explains. 

At 1,400 square feet, the three bedroom, two bathroom home’s spaces are each relatively tight, so Thomas decided to utilize the 2,900 square feet of exterior space by creating intentional distinct areas to allow for a much roomier living environment. The living space already had large windows and a fireplace, so the studio’s work was in figuring out how to fully honor those details in their new design.

“Once we kind of sorted through the kitchen and the dining and  what we had decided on as the best kind of open plan in terms of where the partitions would go, what remained for quote unquote ‘living’ was still a pretty tight footprint,” Thomas explains. “Whatever solution needed to both complete the living area floor plan in a way and participate in that functionally, while also helping to shape and frame up the window and the hearth.” The team landed on a terracotta bench that extends from the back of the house to the front entryway. 

Location: 3747 SW Chehalem Avenue, Portland, Oregon

Price: $1,665,000

Year Built: 1956

Renovation Date: 2018

Footprint: 3,181 square feet (4 bedrooms, 3 baths)

Lot Size: 0.15 Acres

From the Agent: “This midcentury-modern home sits on a corner lot in a fantastic Council Crest location in Southwest Portland. The gate opens to an intimate courtyard patio with multiple outdoor entertaining and dining areas. The interior features original cedar-lined ceilings with heavy beams, large windows, a white brick fireplace, and large clerestories lining the roof’s gabled ends. The remodel added additional interior clerestory windows which transmit light while maintaining acoustic privacy, and recessed lighting that kicks a warm glow onto the extensive vaulted ceilings. Other improvements include a studio with a cantilevered bay window and custom cabinetry in a blue-green color that compliments the rich wood tones. There are three bedrooms (one being the studio) and two baths upstairs. The lower level was converted into an independent living quarters, complete with a contemporary kitchen, eating bar and bath, bedroom, living area with fireplace, media room, and private deck.”

The living area features original beamed ceilings and a large white brick fireplace.

Justin Jones / Jones Media Shop

Houses We Love: Every day we feature a remarkable space submitted by our community of architects, designers, builders, and homeowners. Have one to share? Post it here.

Project Details:

Location: Plockton, Scotland

Architect: Baillie Baillie Architects / @bailliebaillie

Footprint: 409 square feet

Structural Engineer: Design Engineering Workshop

Cabinetry Installation: Chris Richards Carpentry

Photographer: Marcus Quigley / @marcus.o.quigley

Photographer: Murray Orr / @murrayorr

Photographer: Alexander Baxter / @alexbaxter.co

Photographer: Richard Gaston / @richardgaston

From the Architect: “Iorram is a contemporary take on a traditional cottage in the Scottish Highlands by Baillie Baillie Architects. Celebrating the use of local timber as well as local tradition, Colin and Megan Baillie designed and built the house for themselves, creating a compact holiday let that allows them to share the virtues of sustainable design and craftsmanship.

“The self-build project took a low-tech, natural materials approach, using monolithic clay block walls—a material which is simple to build with, durable, and completely plastic free. Scottish Douglas fir, sustainably felled and milled in the Highlands, was used for all timber structural elements, wall linings, and details. Baillie Baillie minimizes waste material by using timber offcuts as mortised doors and kitchen cabinets.

“Despite a compact internal area of 409 square feet, Colin and Megan wanted to show that they could create a feeling of generosity, which is achieved through varied qualities of light and volume, as well as the use of warm, tactile materials. Apertures are configured sparingly with a single large east-facing window angled to take in the landscape with long views across the bay and low-morning sun.”

A recent trip to a bar decorated completely in various shades of purple left me feeling underwhelmed by the execution. Despite being saturated by various delicious shades of purple-ish, reddish hues, the room lacked the cohesion and visual impact I’d expect from such a choice. This particular space could’ve been an absolute moment—but the subtly clashing hues threw the design off entirely and something about the draped LED chandelier lights made the colors feel flat and one-dimensional. While these were obvious faux pas to my barely trained eye, I wondered what could’ve been done to remedy these issues (or avoid them in the first place). 

As it turns out, monochromatic doesn’t always mean just one color–including a different color might’ve breathed more life into this aesthetic. And judging by the aforementioned monochromatic mishap, there’s more to this process than saturating a room in a single color and calling it a day.

This isn’t quite color drenching, but something a bit more nuanced. We spoke with Kasandra Rafter, founder/designer of Canyon Creative Design and Andrea DeRosa, co-founder and CEO of Avenue Interior Design for all the ins and outs of properly tackling a monochrome palette. 

The perks of a single-shade palette

In DeRosa’s opinion, monochromatic palettes are a rare occurrence in interior design and the impact it makes serves as one of its strongest advantages. Opinions vary on whether monochrome decor skews too cold but those who love the trend have described it as “calming,” lauding its ability to create a coziness caused by the intentional focus on a sole color.

“Monochromatic interiors have an allure and mystery to them—they are undeniably powerful, almost drawing you in,” DeRosa says. “They are also more curious, complex and almost confident in nature.”

Finding the perfect monochromatic color and room placement

In a world where beige and grey interiors reign supreme, a fascination with the creative application of colors almost feels radical—but the best monochromatic palette designs require a bit of outside-the-box thinking. If not, you run the risk of creating something boring, which Rafter says can be avoided by paying attention to undertones and using an accent in the room as the foundation for the color palette.

“If the undertones don’t align, the entire space can feel off,” Rafter explains. “Start with a single anchor—whether it’s the perfect sofa fabric, a rug, or a piece of art—and then build the palette around it by layering in varying tones of that color.”

Before you take the paintbrush to your tiny bathroom, bedroom, or entryway, a word of caution. The monochrome technique works best in specific spaces. According to DeRosa, the room size and ceiling height could make or break the design.

“If you have a very small space, a space without natural light or an abundance of ambient lighting, or if you have a low ceiling height, the space tends to feel confined when limited to a single color.”

On the other hand, Rafter recommends the tonal approach for bedrooms and living rooms for a space that soothes the senses.

‘We love using monochromatic palettes in formal living rooms and serene bedrooms. In a living room, deeper tonal ranges—like inky blues or charcoals—can instantly elevate the space and give it a rich, refined feel,” she says. “In bedrooms, soft tonal palettes can create a sense of calm and quiet—think layers of ivory, oatmeal, and putty. It’s a look that’s both restrained and deeply intentional.” 

Make it multi-dimensional

So you’ve selected your color and decided which room will get the all-beige-everything treatment. But by the time you’re done decorating, the design falls flat. That stylish cream sectional practically melts into the cream backdrop, plus you can hardly tell where the drapes begin and the complementary lamp shades end. It could be that you overlooked tones and textures, a key to creating the perfect monochromatic look, Rafter says.

Houses We Love: Every day we feature a remarkable space submitted by our community of architects, designers, builders, and homeowners. Have one to share? Post it here.

Project Details:

Location: Mapleton, Queensland, Australia

Architect: Atelier Chen Hung / @atelierchenhung

Footprint: 2,282 square feet

Builder: AMBuild

Structural Engineer: Westera Partners

Civil Engineer: Stantec

Landscape Design: BrushBox Design + Ecology

Lighting Design: Volker Haug

Photographer: David Chatfield

From the Architect: “The design brief called for a compact home for two on a suburban-rural site in Mapleton, perched atop the ridgelines of the Blackall Range. The client sought to take advantage of elevated views toward distant Mount Ninderry and and Mount Coolum while ensuring the home remained functionally versatile and energy-efficient—all within a modest footprint.

“The main house is strategically sited below street level, allowing passersby to continue enjoying the magnificent views from both the street and the public staircase. Native landscaping around the house enriches the public interface, softening the fenceless boundaries between private and communal spaces.

“The stepping platforms of the house accentuate the experience of the sloping site, taking cues from the public staircase. Exterior walls are intentionally angled to align with sight lines towards the mountains, creating a dynamic and playful interior. Living spaces expand towards the view, enhancing a sense of openness, while sleeping and bathing areas contract to evoke intimacy. An outdoor space is embedded within the plan as the primary circulation path, encouraging occupants to engage with the ever-changing outdoor conditions. Large sliding glazed doors allow the occupants to adjust their patterns of use and respond to changing climate conditions. Service cores discreetly conceal daily domestic functions and practical amenities, creating an intricate layering of pathways and spaces.

“The exterior is entirely clad in natural zinc, achieving a monolithic and enduring form. Locally sourced materials including silver ash, hoop pine ply, and yellow sandstone work in unison to create a cohesive and cavernous interior.

“Oriented to capture natural breezes from the east, the house can open up to maximize ventilation. Perforated screens provide sun shading and privacy but can be adjusted to invite winter sunlight into the interior. The client’s electricity bills indicate a carbon-negative operational energy usage, with excess energy from the small 3.5 kW solar system exported back to the grid. A 40,000-liter double water tank supplies 100 percent of the household’s drinking and washing water, while a biological septic tank ensures safe, non-toxic sewage treatment and additional site irrigation.”

Set on the northeastern coast of Spain, Cadaqués was once an isolated fishing village before it rose to prominence in the 19th century as a summer hotspot for Barcelona bourgeois. Over the years, it’s been home to Salvador Dalí and drawn all manner of artists—from Matisse, Picasso, and Duchamp to Mick Jagger and Shakira.

In the 1950s, a group of modern architects were equally beguiled, among them, Federico Correa and Alfonso Milá of the notable Barcelona firm Correa Milá Arquitectes. Correa and Milá would later be known for projects like the rehabilitation of Plaça Reial in Barcelona in 1985 and the Montjuïc Olympic Ring in 1984, but before that, they designed houses, many of which are in Cadaqués. 

Two of these homes have important place in history: Casa Villavecchia, an adaptation of a vernacular fisherman’s house in town, and Casa Rumeu, a dwelling set farther out in the surrounding hills. 

For Casa Rumeu, completed in 1963, Correa Milá Arquitectes departed from the traditional whitewashed buildings found in town, and looked instead to the agricultural walls in the surrounding countryside. “The town is completely surrounded by these drystone walls built over decades and decades for the olive trees,” says architect Juan Gurrea Rumeu of Gr-os Architects. “This house is surrounded by these massive gardens of stones, so they used the local stone to build it.”

While the material was traditional, and easy for local builders at the time to work with, the home’s plan was more avant-garde: it consists of three conjoined hexagons, with nary a wall at a 90-degree angle. “What’s very special about this house is that there’s this tension between building very low-tech, with local and traditional materials, but then you see this more experimental intention in the plan,” says Rumeu. 

Before: Living and Dining Room 

Location: 7111 Applewood Drive, Middleton, Wisconsin

Price: $1,425,000

Year Built: 1974

Architect: John Bruni

Kitchen and Bath Renovation Date: 2023

Renovation Designer: Denise Quade Design

Footprint: 4,493 square feet (4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths)

Lot Size: 0.9 Acres

From the Agent: “This beautifully styled midcentury offers a wooded .90-acre retreat just minutes from Verona and Middleton. Thoughtfully crafted by renowned architect John Bruni, it showcases a gorgeous over-two-story living room with breathtaking floor-to-ceiling windows and a dramatic natural stone fireplace. Its open-concept, minimalist interior harmoniously blends the indoors and outdoors. The relaxing sunroom, expansive deck, and two inviting, stylish conversation pits enhance everyday living and entertaining. An intimate lower level features a cozy family room with a second fireplace, reading nook, music room, office, and additional bedrooms and baths.”

Location: 3 North Lemuria Road, Tres Piedras, New Mexico

Price: $290,000

Year Built: 1999

Footprint: 1,200 square feet (1 bedroom, 1 bath)

Lot Size: 0.7 Acres

From the Agent: “Here’s a special opportunity to own an architectural wonder in majestic Taos: a sustainable earthship set on just under three-quarters of an acre with some of the best views in northern New Mexico. The structure itself is custom built with several Southwestern touches throughout the split-level structure with an indoor atrium perfect for growing greenery year-round. Brick floors, art nichos, thoughtful cabinetry and shelving, vibrant tile, and bancitos for extra seating and ample storage are a few special features within the home. There’s plenty of room for guests to sleep comfortably, and the drop-down Murphy bed is ideal for providing extra space in an already free-flowing floor plan. The outdoor space at 3 North Lemuria is an absolute gem with plenty of space to garden, with immersive mountain and gorge views in all directions.”

Read more about earthship homes on Dwell.

• State Farm, Farmers, and other top home insurers are being sued for allegedly colluding to cancel policies in high-risk fire zones in California, pushing homeowners onto the state’s costlier, lower-coverage FAIR Plan. Here’s what the lawsuits claim. (Property Casual 360)

• Santa Monica just pulled out of hosting beach volleyball for the 2028 Olympics, citing financial risks, unclear terms, and limited community benefits. The nets are still going up, but it’s not yet clear exactly where. (Santa Monica Daily Press)

• Airbnb will now display taxes and fees up front for rental pricing by default, ending an era of surprise charges at checkout. Here’s what’s behind the change—and how looming federal regulations on junk fees are shaking up the travel industry at large. (Yahoo)

• Trump’s tariffs could hike material costs for U.S. home construction by billions, delaying builds and driving up prices for both new homes and renovations. This is how import duties—and the confusion surrounding them—could make home buying more expensive and worsen the housing crisis. (Dwell)

Top photo courtesy of Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images