Behind the Scenes – Westchester Living Room

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While the photos of this light-filled living room are recent, I designed this project over 25 years ago.

Gracious and refined understatement was the standard by which everything in the room was selected.

Class Carr Sofas from Jonas Upholstery are covered in ‘Luxurious Cotton Velvet’ from  Gretchen Bellinger – a textile that is soft and luxurious with a wonderful lustre.

The Barcelona Table designed by Mies van der Rohe had been purchased by the clients decades before I met them, illustrating a long-held interest in modern design.

The pair of iron and oak Pierre Chareau stools were purchased from Ralph Pucci.

The floorcovering is a ribbed wool sisal installed wall-to-wall, with a beautifully washed- out antique Garden Tabriz area rug – both rich and subtle.

The now classic Saladino Lamp sits on the table behind one of the sofas.

The 1958 lithograph ‘Nocturne’ from Derrière le miroir by Joan Miro, was part of my clients existing art collection.

Modern Venetian architect Carlo Scarpa was the inspiration for the custom designed limestone fireplace surround.

The clean, elegant lines of the Klismos Chair designed by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings fits seamlessly into this highly edited room.

Arts & Crafts accessories are from David Rago Auctions (the ‘old-days’ of David Rago when auctions were held in the ballrooms of NYC hotels, and when David sported a long ponytail!)

Behind the Scenes: A Curated Cozy Corner

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One of my goals in furnishing Living Rooms is to create places that the owners are drawn to use, if even by themselves.

In this spacious Upper West Side Living Room I designed a daybed to sit near the fireplace – bathed in daylight from three windows, it makes an ideal place for reading. The design was intended to be both classic and modern, while being extremely comfortable – my ‘go-to’ upholsterer, Jonas, came through once again! The daybed is upholstered in “Tahira Ottoman” from Lee Jofa.

Chelsea antique dealer Kimcherova provided the Vienna Secession Side Table by Gustav Siegel produced by J & J Kohn c.1905.

Another distinctive Austrian item is the circa 1950’s modern floor lamp by J.T Kalmar which was found at the extraordinary lighting dealers at Retro-Modern in Greenwich Village

The curtain panels are made with ‘Window Pane’ from Lee Jofa; the unconstructed Roman shades are made with Gretchen Bellinger‘s ‘ Martinique – Nun’s Veiling’.

 

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Behind the Scenes: Loft Dining Room

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In this dining area in a new York City loft, the design intention was to create both openness and grounded-ness.

That may sound like a contradiction, but there was thoughtful intention behind these potentially contradictory goals.

This loft has a challenge that is not uncommon with lofts – a lot of space but not a lot of windows: in fact this dining area is over 30 feet from the nearest window!

To help bring the sense of openness and light to this area I had an enormous mirror made to sit behind, not over, the large sideboard.

Because the dining area was floating in a very large open space, I employed a number of ‘tricks’ to ground the space. I interrupted the large expanse of ceiling employing drywall reveals from Fry Reglet to quietly mark the space. To further reinforce the center, I hung an antique iron chandelier over a substantial 70″ diameter ‘Aspen’ table from Holly Hunt Studio. The table is surrounded by ‘Russell’ side chairs from Dessin Fournir, upholstered in a Great Plains ‘Toscana’ leather.

The robust French 1940’s oak sideboard designed by Charles Dudouyt, came from Henry Maus Antiques. A collection of multi-cultural artifacts including a cast iron fireback from Amy Perlin, some mid-century ceramics, and an oversized mercury glass vase are reflected in an enormous mirror from Bark Frameworks. Patrick Naggar designed the ‘Bubble Wall Sconces’ from Ralph Pucci.

The space between the two pocket doors that lead to the Kitchen became the place for a very special drawing by the Abstract Expressionist Joan Mitchell. The drawing came from the estate of Jean-Paul Riopelle, a French painter, who had a long and stormy relationship with Mitchell for nearly twenty years in France – it is a gem.

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Behind the Scenes: Children’s Bathroom

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Sometimes we really just want to have some fun!

Two siblings, a boy and a girl, use this interior bathroom in a New York City apartment. While the public spaces of the apartment are understated, my clients and I decided to go for some hot colors in this bathroom.

I assert that “storage is a key to mental health” especially in New York City apartment, and to avoid any interpretation of favoritism with kids – everything needs to be absolutely equal! The vanity and medicine cabinets were designed to give both children equal storage, and lots of it. Outlets inside of the medicine cabinets power up electric toothbrushes out of sight, and the center drawer holds a blow drier that is plugged into an outlet underneath the counter so the unsightly cords are hidden when not in use.

The white subway tiles, and white penny-tiles are from Nemo Tile Company. The penny tiles on the floor have a dark grout to emphasize the shape of the tiles and camouflage the dirt that gets into grout.

The custom polished nickel ‘Sonoma’ wall sconces with glass shades are from Urban Archaeology.

The rectangular sinks are from Kohler, and the ‘Etoile’ low-profile faucet set with cross-handles is from Waterworks. The rectangular undermount ‘Iron Plains’ sinks are from Kohler; the countertop is Thasos.

A ‘Beach Street’ storage bench from Restoration Hardware provides storage for additional towels and tub toys.

Lets not forget about the colorful elements of this room – ihe inset panel on the vanity is Benjamin Moore Habanero Pepper # 1306, the wall color is from the Donald Kaufman Color Collection – DKC-63. The custom shower curtain is made from ‘ Granville Stripe’ from Hinson Fabrics.

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Now for the fish ‘swimming’ on the wall; they are vintage ice fishing decoys – used in an off-beat sport in the mid-west.  The owners had a handful (that were supplemented by purchases on eBay), custom mounts were made to install them on the wall.

Framed drawings of fish and flower is by the children – one each – so everything is even-Steven!

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Behind the Scenes: Apartment Foyer

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The 1940’s closed console with cerused oak frame and parchment marquetry door panels from Pascal Boyer Gallery is attributed to the French designer Jean Pascaud; it confidently anchors one end wall of the hallway in a large New York City apartment.

The hand forged oil-rubbed bronze ‘Stiges I’ wall sconces with stitched silk shades were designed in 1960; they are from Roman Thomas.

The pair of c.1900 patinated bronze organic root candlesticks designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany are from Ophir Gallery, and the bulbous ‘Granny Smith Green’ 1950’s vase from was an eBay find.

The paneling and walls are painted in DKC #9 from the Donald Kaufman Color Collection .

And finally, the c. 1970 framed artwork is by the artist Harvey Quaytman; it is quite unique in that it is two sided with another complete drawing on the reverse side.

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