This Brookhaven abode gets an upgrade in style, color and function, creating the perfect spaces for art, design, entertaining and—most importantly—everyday life.
The living room is a perfect example of how color composition can be carried throughout a room. Here, a Rosemary Hallgarten rug, Bertoia Diamond chairs in boucle and a Coup D’Etat velvet sofa ground the room, allowing the decor to be a vehicle for color.
The dining room features the famous Frank Gehry Cross Check chairs combined with High Sticking chairs at each end. At the center is a tapered walnut table from Fair, and to the side, a server piece from Salon Design.
After purchasing this home in Brookhaven, the homeowners said goodbye to their swanky Midtown loft, but with help from Melanie Millner and her team at The Design Atelier, they didn’t have to say goodbye to their style. With a great appreciation for art and a love of midcentury modern design, the homeowners had a strong basis for what we see now—a colorful, modern cottage, elegant enough for entertaining and comfortable enough for real life. “It was great to utilize the couple’s amazing art and furniture collection throughout the project,” says Millner. “They have a love for midcentury modern furniture mixed with pieces that have a classic design, which were perfectly accented in the color palettes inspired by the art.”
Bold accents of red in the family room pop, almost mimicking the artwork.
This 5,000-square-foot home, featuring five bedrooms and four full baths and one half-bath, opens onto a foyer, featuring a large piece by contemporary painter Fabio Modica. This purposeful decision sets the stage for art appreciation throughout the home. Off the foyer is the dining room. Says Millner, “Using the clients’ existing Frank Gehry for Knoll Cross Check chairs, we selected a walnut table that complemented the lighter wood of the chairs.” The chairs are architectural marvels themselves. Comprised of bentwood that mimics a ribbon-like design, they create conversation within the room, without monopolizing the direction, and are perfectly grounded by the darker wood of the walnut table. In the living room, bright blues and modern silhouettes take form, starting with two Bertoia Diamond chairs that Millner updated by recovering in neutral boucle. “We first selected the Rosemary Hallgarten wool and silk rug as a starting point for this room and then selected neutral textures to balance out the strong, rich hue of the rug,” says Millner, “then sourcing and curating the bookshelves with books the same hue [as the] rug.” This gives the room a cohesiveness through both color and texture.
In the breakfast room, a whimsical light by Bocci hangs over the clients’ Knoll Saarinen Tulip table and chairs. Beneath it all is a hide rug custom colored to coordinate with the Bertoia bar stools.
In the breakfast room, a classic Knoll Saarinen Tulip table and chairs and a suspension light from Bocci create an allocated space for the clients to sit with inspiration and be transported to another time and place through their collected works of art. And to round out the renovated spaces, Millner explains that the most frequented and challenging room for this project was the family room. “We worked with the clients’ existing sofa and lounge chairs and we completely redesigned the fireplace, which was the most challenging aspect. It was a large plaster/stone profile that was way too overwhelming to the space,” says Millner. “We added a more sleek and modern stone profile to the mantel to accommodate the TV above,” which aligns perfectly with the clients’ overall task: making their love for midcentury modern more elegant and comfortable for their family.
A different angle of the dining room highlights the contrast of the walnut table.
Design Details
Type
Single-family home
Location
Brookhaven
Interior Designer
Melanie Millner, The Design Atelier thedesignatelier.com
The foyer features Fabio Modica artwork, a bench by Natasha Baradaran and a rug by Merida.
Resources
Bertoia
Living room Diamond chairs; kitchen bar stools
knoll.com
BOCCI
Breakfast room light
bocci.com
Coup D'Etat
Living room sofa
coupdetatsf.com
Design Within Reach
Family room cabinets
dwr.com
Douglass Workroom
Family room ottoman
douglassworkroom.com
Frank Gehry for Knoll
Dining room chairs
knoll.com
Knoll
Breakfast room tulip table and chairs
knoll.com
Kyle Bunting
Breakfast room rug
kylebunting.com
Rosemary Hallgarten
Living room rug
rosemaryhallgarten.com
Salon Design
Dining room server
salondesign.us
The Design Atelier
Breakfast room custom console
thedesignatelier.com
