Warmth on the Hudson
We’re venturing out of Fairfield County to Hastings-on-Hudson in Westchester where Brooklyn-based Interior Designer Lexi Brandfon of Lex & Hudson had the chance to help homeowners renovate their modern home on the Hudson River. The home was built for a sculptor by an architect in the 1920s. The new owners, a young family from Brooklyn, had no plans of sculpting in the large studio space, but they did need somewhere to watch television and play with their kids. And they wanted to honor the home's artistic roots and modern bones with their choices, while maintaining warmth. How do you make a room modern and warm at the same time? Read on to find out.
The Family Room Design:
The biggest room in the house was the sculptor’s studio, with a beat up tile floor that felt cold and basement-like. The goal was for the space to double as a television room and playroom. A wall of floor to ceiling windows facing the backyard let in tons of light and connected the space to the outdoors, so they chose an earthy color palette of burnt sienna red, navy, teal and mustard tones, which continue throughout the house. Painting the walls dark helped make the space feel more intimate. They chose Benjamin Moore Lead Gray, which reads a bit more navy, IRL.
To house the client's extraordinary collection of books, Brandfon used wooden Stax bookcases from CB2 that luckily fit just right. The shelves and the custom curved sofa were the foundations of the room. Brandfon found a rug from Kanters in White Plains that could be sized to fit the whole room without killing the budget. The coffee table is from Chairish, a vintage lamp was found in a Williamsburg shop, and the Finn Juhl-style Pelican chair is a replica from Eternity Modern. What we can’t see - a whole kids section of this room hidden behind the sofa complete with kid-size chairs and tables and baskets of toys. #winning
The Entryway and Living Room Design
The best entryways make a statement without hitting you over the head when you walk in. The homeowner fell in love with this geometric wallpaper from British brand Astrid & Rudolf and the blue-green color coordinated with the adjacent family room and living room. Brandfon describes the pattern as “simultaneously ordered and restrained.”
In the living room, the rattan console from CB2 is built to be a bar, but serves as overflow storage for things like hats, gloves, masks, etc. The walls are painted a subtle blue-gray by Clare called Chill, a great backdrop for a neutral performance fabric sofa and leather chairs. The focal point is the fireplace, who's dated brick got a modern makeover in Fireclay tiles.
To frame the windows looking out to the river, the couple splurged on gorgeous custom drapes from Isobel in a deco pattern. We think it was worth it, do you? There's a vintage MCM lamp from Montage Antiques and their favorite Audobahn poster survived the trip from their Brooklyn apartment. The rug is from Loloi, the side table from Chairish, the coffee table from CB2. The art is by Keren Tolendano.
The Dining Room
The Dining room is all about the chandelier from Hudson Valley Lighting and the rug from Ace Vintage Rugs. The transparent and family-friendly Phillipe Starck La Marie chairs by Kartell keep the focus on the windows and create a feeling of openness. The Chill wall color continues from the living room but looks like a different color in this lighting. This room achieves a simplistic elegance that is at once soft but modern.
Bathroom
Upstairs, the flooring and two bathrooms were completely gutted. The kids bathroom (pictured) was intended to be fun but stay in keeping with the color palette and sensibility in the rest of the house. The tiles are from Tilebar and the vanity was off-the-shelf from Wayfair. The mirrors are Pottery Barn. Brandfon emphasizes the importance of lights that put out real light in the bathroom. These globe sconces by Mitzi do that and the brass finishes keep the room warm, while the contrasting black mirrors give a modern punch.
What’s your favorite part of this renovation? Please let us know, or ask questions, in the comments below.
Photographed By: Sean Litchfield
