Name: Jon and Ro
Location: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, NY
Size: 1,100 sq ft, 2 bedroom, 1.5 bathroom
Years lived in: 1 year
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Not everyone enjoys stark white walls and flush flush flush as is all the rage among residential architects over the past few years. Jon of house call fame, for one, loves the visual impact of molding. Inspired by the brownstones in his Brooklyn neighborhood, he decided to bring some of that turn-of-the-century texture to what was once a bland office space in a 4 story walk-up...
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The difference is striking. While the apartment had already been renovated when Jon and Ro moved in, the renovation was 'characterless.' A huge leap in size from their old apartment, Jon wanted to feel like every inch of this spacious 2-bedroom was used to the best of its abilities. So, he took some sage advice from an architect friend and opened both of the bedrooms (via pocket doors) onto the living room. When all the doors are open, the living room seems huge. And when the doors are closed, the pattern of molding is continuous across the entire wall and looks rather stately. Jon considers the extensive molding throughout the apartment to be the "closest to a grand look, without being too fussy."
Jon's renovation is incredibly meticulous and impressive. While it is his first home renovation, Jon started working on it after coming off a full renovation of his company's office space. As a result, he was already experienced at sourcing exotic details, and hardware, working with suppliers, and envisioning a complete space. Of course, it doesn't hurt that his contractor was equally meticulous, offering great solutions and solid skills.
To be sure, Jon says, there was no "massive splurging" during the furnishing phase. He and Ro researched all the furniture online and via design blogs so that they could make all the purchases within a month of moving in. The only pieces they brought with them from their former apartment was the ABC couch in the living room and their noguchi table (also in the living room.)
It's a stunning space made all the more impressive when one is privy to the before photos....
Apartment Therapy Survey
Style: We wanted something that was a bit of a hybrid: contemporary yet traditional; clean yet comfortable; grand yet inviting. And something that was our own – thoughtfully designed and unique.
Inspiration: Our inspiration was one part the beautiful high ceilings and moldings of old-school Brooklyn Brownstones, and one part the clean grand geometry of classic Georgian homes. We fell in love with the baseboard first, and everything pretty much followed from that.
Favorite Element: The lighting throughout – the natural light that floods the apartment in the morning, the recessed lighting that washes the wall panels and the dining room pendant that fills the room with a lattice silhouette.
Biggest Challenge: Getting the geometry right. Symmetry was a big part of the design aesthetic and it was a real challenge to make all the elements (the wall panels, the double doors, the furniture and the lighting) work in and of themselves, and also fit the geometry of the space.
What Friends Say: That it’s surprisingly big (to be fair, we did previously live in a 385 sq ft walk-up in Greenwich Village). We reoriented the space to make every square foot usable, and doubled the closet space to help the living space feel spacious.
Biggest Embarrassment: When we had our first friends to stay, they locked themselves in the guest bedroom for about an hour. That’s how we decided to put handles on the inside of the doors….
Proudest DIY: Turning two beautiful leather panels from a built-in headboard into benches that sit either side of the TV.
Biggest Indulgence: The David Trubridge Kina lamp over the dining room table. I lived in New Zealand before moving here and he has long been a favorite designer. We couldn’t believe it when we saw this lamp on sale 50% off at DWR just as we were finishing up our renovation.
Best Advice (we received): To knock through the walls between the living space and the bedrooms. We talked through the plans with architect friends of ours and they immediately saw the potential to create an expansive living space that could be converted back to individual rooms by simply closing off the doors.
Dream Source: Friends – we’re lucky enough to have friends who are furniture designers, artists and photographers and they live all over the world. We’d love nothing more than filling our home with things they’ve created.
Resource:
Contractor: Chris Larkin at Synchro. According to Jon, "he’s an extraordinary craftsmen and I’d highly recommend him."
Dining Table: CB2
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(Images: Jill Slater)
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Sigh. A favorite. I love absolutely everything here. Just beautiful.
This is proof that a good architect is worth their weight in gold.
Simply beautiful!
Wow. So many amazing spaces are highlighted on AT, but this is definitely one of the best.
The moldings are perfect -- right scale, right style. Bravo!
The architectural transformation is incredibly tasteful...
...but regardless of what the homeowner calls them, those aren't pocket doors - they're flush-mounted double doors.
What kind of dining room chairs are those?
The moldings are what totally make it awesome.
haven't we seen this before?
The change of the floor plan is brilliant! This is probably my favorite apartment on AT.
The proportions are so elegant. I can't believe it's the same apartment as the Before.
best remodel i've seen on this site. the new layout is amazing. excellent job!
wow!
I love this - but I agree that they're not pocket doors.
Pocket doors push back into pockets. They're neat, but not nearly as neat as what they've done here.
LOVE.
All the cb2 stuff looks great too.
I love the idea of the pocket doors. Such a simple, elegant idea.
Beautifully done. One question - what kind of hinges did you use to get that flush look on the doors?
I LOVE THESE DOORS. Seriously great job.
I have to say however the sofa looks out of place.
Wonder how hard it was to source those hinges, where did they come from?
Guh.
It grew! I loved the fist post and now even more in love you guys have good taste!
Absolutely gorgeous. What color stain did you use on the floor?
"Guh" is a compliment, by the way. :)
I do remember seeing this before, but still want to know the paint color for the blue wall....love it!
really well done. just perfect. i thought many times about trimming out walls but always thought it would be too busy and look out of proportion - jon's is spot on perfect in its scale. i just realized someone else said that as well. we need a third.
Hot Hot Hot!!
I think that it should also be noted that Jon has installed lighting that highlights the frames on the walls. This provides depth and makes make each panel its own space. Very clever.
This apartment is a minor masterpiece.
Thanks everyone for the comments. The double doors are indeed french doors not pocket doors, and the hinges were the big challenge. We were going to go with wide-throw butt hinges (with enough throw to allow the flush-mounted door to swing back clear of the wall and moldings), but we really wanted to keep the clean line of the doors, so our contractor custom-made these offset pivot hinges which he mounted flush into the doors (one of the benefits of a contractor who's also a perfectionist!)
Super pad.
Great pictures, too. You really get a feel for the whole place. Other house tours can learn from this.
Awesome! Incredible transformation from the rather bland "before".
And, please, what is the dark grey paint color in the office area?
Love almost everything.
Love the molding.
Love the doors.
Love the paint colors.
Preferred the kitchen before.
I'm amazed at what a difference it made moving the bedroom doors. What a great apartment. Just the right note. Bravo.
Any info on the couch in the office? Love it.
Heh - your friend unable to escape the office/guest room for an hour. That's priceless. Happened to me one (in an acquaintances bathroom of all places) and I still remember the awkward panic of it all.
Love it. I live in a 100-year-old building that has all those original moldings. In the beginning, I was a bit annoyed by how they dictated the placement of my art, but now after living with them for a couple of years, I love how stately and elegant they make the place look, and how distinctive from all the bland cookie-cutter apartments I see! The moldings have instantly transformed your place!
Holy cow I'm obsessed with those walls.
My new favorite House Tour! The color choices were perfect. I love everything about it.
Impeccable. Such a wonderful mix of tasteful furnishings without swinging too heavily towards any one particular style. Great art work throughout as well. I especially love the last photo of the happy home owners (just as gorgeous as the apartment, btw). Too often I find that House Tour homes are presented as ends in themselves. To some extent they are; however, it's always nice to see evidence of "life" within them, kwim?
What a beautiful home!
I really like the placement of the two living room chairs. I have a couple of matching chairs I wasn't sure what to do with and you inspired me to think outside the box. Thanks! You have such a lovely home.
Thanks for posting the full tour great renovations and a lovely home.
Thanks for the inspiration! Just what I needed to get my own renovation finished. I've been stalling...
I think many of us would like to know: what paint colors did you choose from the white, the bedroom blue, and the office gray?
Excellent job!
Thanks folks...
- the sectional sofa in the study/bedroom is Manstad from IKEA (amazing value, and pulls out into a double bed)
- the wall colors are Benjamin Moore Wolf Gray (study/bedroom), Benjamin Moore Cascade White (master bedroom) and Benjamin Moore Super White (everywhere else)
Jon, great work! We have just purchased in Clinton Hill. While the apt we bought is very cookie-cutter other apts we saw in the building, and one in particular, had the same sense of style as yours that persuaded us we could stamp our own character on it. The apt that inspired us had the same molding as you put in, but had pocket doors with glass windows in not the same doors as you. As mnay have said it is very stately but not overdoing it. We'll try not to plagiarize too much when we move in August.
Great apartment. How did you make the DIY benches in the LR?
Beautiful apartment. Love the Kina lamp.
The best AT home I have seen so far (according to my taste that is!). I just love everything. Such a great eye for utilising a space so well and only using what is necessary to make all rooms 'pop'. Are the main bedroom walls a pale blue? A beautiful colour for the spare bedroom too. We have just purchased a very interesting building in Melbourne Australia and can't wait to add our touches too. Very inspiring - thank you.
I truly adore the light fixture and the living room seating
I love your home! Please tell us where you purchased the light fixture in the dining area.
Jon & Ro - You have a lovely apartment, everything is incredibly well done. We absolutely love the silhouette portraits of queen elizabeth with the modern flair. Can you tell us where you found them? Thanks!
This is beautiful.
Where is that lattice lamp from??? I would love to have that in my dining room.
Thanks again for all your comments...
Midwestdive - the dining room pendant is the Kina lamp by David Trubridget (a NZ designer) that you can find at DWR.
nycbound09 - the Queens are by a Canadian artist called Gran Innes: http://www.innesart.com
Petitebee - the benches were originally leather panels from a built-in headboard that a friend no longer wanted. We adopted them, reinforced them and put them on Ikea Fintorp legs.
mcookie - the main bedroom walls are a pale greenish-blue (Cascade White by Benjamin Moore) and in the spare bedroom a much darker version of similar shade (Wolf Grey by Benjamin Moore).
Jon&Ro: Great job with your renovation and you've got some great things going here that explain your classic taste. There's so many little things in my mind in the detailing and geometry that distinguishes something that can seem like its a dressed up modern vs a reductive traditional renovation. I think yours does very well due to good room symmetries, molding with the right proportions and corresponding furniture layouts.
Might I suggest some improvements?:
- double sliding pocket doors in lieu of rajack offset pivots? I'm sure you pondered this one. It could free up some space from the pivot door egress and not require moving furniture in bedroom to close doors. But you wouldn't have that slick great oval office look when they're closed. But I'm assuming they're always open? Love the painted white pulls.
-2 pc crown molding that rides mostly on the ceiling and a small pc on the wall which won't crowd the wall with too much detail but can cover that wall to ceiling transition.
- Patterncut makes paintable wood air grilles that are decorative laser cut. This and maybe some metal accenting in the furniture could add to the luxury factor that is happening with your wall paneling and the floor to ceiling curtains.
Loved the comment on the closet photo about how the mirror made the closet look huge....the closet IS huge! Great apartment! If I ever win the lottery and can afford it, this is what I would aspire to.
What a difference just your new lighting makes!! Great job adding architectural details, your "before" looked so "tract home"!
Great use of recessed lighting! Nice job!
can anyone tell the source of the chairs seen in the waiting room before you enter the main bedroom!?!? been looking for that exact chair.
thanks!
Pls let me know the source of the bedroom bedside lamps. I've been looking for just that lamp.
Thx
SWEET HOLY MOTHER of amazing. It's so lovely. It makes me dream of growing up and buying a boxy white condo of starkness and making it fabulous. I love it.
so cool!