7 minute read
SPARKLES OF JOY
With homeowners spending more time staying put, designers are seeing an increase in demand for their services. Kitchens are being used more than ever, with house “chefs” working overtime to produce three family-style meals a day. In-home bars are getting daily foot traffic, and closets are under a critical eye with occupants spending more time decluttering and reorganizing. We’ve found sparkles of joy that are sure to help inspire your personal wish list for your next home remodeling project.
Kitchen Storage and Built-in Space: Interior Design: Rachael Dolan, Mitchell Wall Architecture and Design
This Hamptons-style house includes a large, white kitchen built for a homeowner who loves to cook. She wanted the house to be infused with as much natural light as possible. The main area includes a custom-designed La Cornue stove and hood, but it’s the cabinet storage by Beck/Allen Cabinetry that steals the show. The butler’s pantry “is a place to store linens and silver, and display china and crystal,” the homeowner says. “I wanted to have everything handy rather than running around all over the house, looking in every drawer.”
Cabinetry is key in a bedroom transitioned into a spacious yet cozy area with a built-in window seat. Rachael Dolan of Mitchell Wall Architecture and Design says, “The idea was to create a cozy nook that tied into and grounded the vaulted ceiling above. It needed to be aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional.” She adds, “Every detail was planned down to the pull-out counter to rest a book and a glass of water tucked under the bench. A serene vignette around the window drenched in white.”
The Art of Entertaining: Interior Design: Kelly Johnson, Kelly Johnson Design
This homeowner’s artistic eye is evident in each carefully considered detail of the home, especially at the bar. Handmade brass barstools by artist Anna Karlin mimic chess board pieces, inviting guests to “play.” The bar is located at the rear of an expansive foyer which runs from the front entrance straight through to the back of the home and is very visible from various rooms used for entertaining.
Kelly Johnson of Kelly Johnson Design says, “We tried to elevate the design of the bar by using suspended polished stainless steel shelving in lieu of typical upper cabinets.” She adds, “A dimensional Ann Sacks tile clads the wall behind the shelving. We upholstered the front of the bar in leather and chose sculptural bar stools to add interest.”
The Pink Sanctuary / Interior Design: Ken Stückenschneider, Stückenschneider Decoration & Design
Ken Stückenschneider of Stückenschneider Decoration & Design helped this homeowner incorporate an important collection of paintings and antiquities into a 1982 Higginbotham-built beauty. Subtle yet sublime makeovers were completed in each room, as this bedroom turned into a “Hollywood Glam” dressing lounge. Stückenschneider brought in filtered light with grosgrain-trimmed window treatments on brass rods.
Above the sofa, a Chagall captures a couple embracing in the moonlight. To accommodate the owner’s wardrobe, Stückenschneider designed a custom 3-door armoire finished in the same luscious shade as the walls, ceiling, and trim— Benjamin Moore’s “Touch of Pink.” Full-length, mirrored armoire doors reflect the pastel, further enhancing the delicate mood. Another closet displays an enviable collection of shoes, though a soft Aubusson rug in watercolor florals feels amazing on bare feet.
Stückenschneider also crafted a traditional dressing table, finished in pink, and paired with an Egyptian revival chair. A leopard upholstered seat adds just a touch of wild to the mix.
What He Wants: Interior Design by April Jensen of ADJ Interiors
This 10,000 square foot house sparkles in the reflective dazzle of crystal chandeliers, suspended brass arms holding glass tubes, and Baccarat. April Jensen of ADJ Interiors says, “We knew we wanted really elegant and classic materials: marble, wood floors, plaster walls. We went with really washed-out wood on the beams to make them look like they had been here for a while. Then we also wanted it to have some bling. Not just a splash of color but texture and metals. We mixed a lot of metals, silver, gold. We have some crystal elements. We tried to take the common rules that we set up about this house and incorporate them from room to room so the house is very pulled together.”
The homeowners requested “glamorous, yet masculine” for the bar, set off the main entrance and caddy-corner to the living room. A Dutch window opens to the pool area outside, making it easy for entertaining. It features Ann Sachs tile finished in gold leaf, vintage wine racks and a chandelier that looks like crystal.
The Fully Stocked Closet: Interior Designer: Colleen Ertl, Diane Breckenridge Interiors
This Tudor Revival home by Maritz & Young is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in the master closet, historic memories are sure to be made! With a small refrigerator stocked with water, iced tea, and the occasional adult beverage, this is where the party starts.
Enclosing the porch beneath created a foundation for the brand-new dressing room, explains interior designer Colleen Ertl of Diane Breckenridge Interiors. Outfitted with custom armoires, open shelving and a mirrored dressing table, the fabulously feminine room was created for the lady of the house at the request of her husband. “Yes, I take all of the credit, or the blame, for that idea,” he admits with a smile.
Centered under a chandelier, the granite-topped chest of drawers is gorgeous, but it caused the designer at least one sleepless night. “The slab of granite is enormous, and it had to be carried through the front doors, up and around the curved main staircase, through the sitting room and the master bedroom. It was so stressful for everyone!” And one homeowner couldn’t even bear to watch, the designer says. “She wouldn’t come in until it was safely in place.”
A Place For Everything: Interior Design: Laurie Dowling LeBoeuf, Castle Design
This homeowner has a strong yen for lots of storage spaces and a deep affection for hidden spaces. Designer Laurie Dowling LeBoeuf of Castle Design says the homeowner is, “A storage nut,” to which she replies, “And I fill it up.”
The walk-in closet style creates an open space for dressing while the designs by New Space create a place for everything to be hung, stored, or concealed. The homeowners love the stone countertops in Blanc du Blanc suede granite.
Classic Elegance: Interior Design: Marshall Watson, Marshall Watson Interiors
Marshall Watson of Marshall Watson Interiors says this was one of his favorite closets ever, and “a rescue.”
“Beautiful hand-painted panels, executed during the 1930s were so darkened by age, that they were unrecognizable,” Watson describes. “By peeling off years of aged shellac we revealed their warmth and skill– such an exceptional way to personalize your closet doors. And enjoy a closet transformed into a dressing room, another magnificent room in your home.”
“Though we relish closing off all the mess behind closet doors, we find that many of our clients sport extraordinary wardrobes with vital colors and fascinating cuts which look so attractive hanging. We have recently created a walk-in closet with sliding glass doors, all meant to showcase beautiful clothing, sumptuously lit and organized, so the observer feels like she is on a shopping spree in Bergdorfs,” Watson says. He adds, “But with the joyous perspective that if she selects a dress, she doesn’t have to pay for it. This does take a bit of discipline to think of the clothing as a visual display versus hidden away.” After all, Watson points out, none of us select our clothing because it is ugly!
