Designer: Ron Marvin
Location: FInancial District, New York, New York
Size: 600 square feet
If "haberdashing" isn't a word, it should be. And Ron Marvin would own it. He's made a mark in the design world with menswear-inspired interiors that come together like a polished GQ how-to: Start with the well-tailored groundwork (charcoal suit, sofa or wall paint), add a splash of color (tie or pocket square or lamp), give it a little bling (cufflink or nailhead trim) and make sure the details are right, polished and impeccable. It's signature Ron Marvin, and dandy never seemed so fine. Even on a bit of a budget.
Enter "Ron Marvin" in the Apartment Therapy search bar, and you'll find a long list of links, tours and tips from this dashing designer. Ron's no stranger to Apartment Therapy, whose own home made him a past top-contending contestant in the Small, Cool contest. And as an Apartment Therapy all-star of sorts, he's parlayed it all into a buzzing and buzzed-about career, landing him in the NY Times, a recurring role on HGTV's Small Space, Big Style, and a slot in the inaugural 2011 "New Trad Designers" (the ones to watch collected in the e-zine offshoot of Traditional Home.)
Ron garnered the New Trad honor as a designer worth watching for his deft ability to breathe colorful new life into tradition-based décor. His signature style is a little Hollywood Regency, a little Savile Row, always jazzed up with a dash of strong and confident color, nods to the past, and lush and layered styling. And boy, the boy can tablescape.
Ron was one of five designers selected to complete and compete with model makeovers of units at 116 John Street, a commercial-turned-residential building near South Street Seaport. And like his past experience with design Olympics, he rose right to the top podium, taking co-star status (with past Tour designer Kevin Dumais) by architect/designer Deborah Berke.
Ron's sartorial-inspired style comes from suiting fabrics, charcoaly colors and a generally buttoned up demeanor. But how does Ron keep the starch out of his handsomely tailored interiors? Color is a strong tool in Ron's hands, and he mixes vintage, store bought, custom and DIY, with crisp white (moldings, mats, and painted furnishings) the sharp through-line, like a glimpse of shirt cuff from beneath a chic and well-tailored suit.
Not even a restricted budget (each designer was given a cost cap based on each unit's square footage) put a damper on this dandy, proving that even ready-to-wear can still look haute. Haberdashing, even.
See the other units here, here, here and here.
What floorplan did you get and what was the square footage? One bedroom - 600 square feet.
What was your decorating budget? $8,000
Who's your fictional client/resident? Mr. and Mrs. Smith, a young couple. This residence is their pied-a-terre in the city. Mr. Smith works on Wall Street and this is his apartment in the city, and for when Mrs. Smith comes into the city.
What was your inspiration piece or first decision made? The inspiration was the color of the kitchen tile and the floor colors. When I first was approached for the project I thought I would use a lot of color and pattern and was thinking about using pink, orange and brown. But, when I saw the color of the tile in the kitchen, the flooring, the space and the neighborhood, that changed everything. I then went to a classic "Ron Marvin" style and went to a "Wall Street Chic" look, using green as the inspiration. Greens, blues, greys and luxury. The first piece I bought was the Chinese chair in the living room, and then upholstered in deep teal, men´s wool suiting.
What was your biggest splurge? Why? Without a doubt, my splurge piece was the piece of art in the entry. I refused to budge on that piece. Since my entry was so small, (you basically walk into a wall), and there wasn´t space for a console, I need another ¨"wow" moment at the front door. I got this idea in my mind and I had a photo taken of my friend, in profile. I have her looking down the hall, lit from where the light of the apartment comes from, subconciously leading you down the hall. I blew it up to 4 feet x 6 feet and framed it to make a stunning entry piece, creating my "wow" moment.
What "usual suspects" were on your shopping list? Yes, I think we were all forced to shop at IKEA, West Elm, and CB2, However, surprisingly, I don´t think there were any repeat pieces, which impressed me. If I used something from one of those places, I tried to manipulate it, so that it wouldn´t look like any one else's, in case they used the same thing. For example, I sewed trim to the edges of my West Elm curtains to make them stand out.
What source will people find most surprising, given the budget? Salvation Army and flea markets. A majority of my furniture and nearly all of my lighting was from the flea market. The dresser in the bedroom is from Salvation Army for only $97!
What were the biggest "builder basic" challenges in the unit? My biggest challenges were the entry wall, then turning the corner and looking straight into the bathroom. I solved it by my entry piece, and then painting out the door of the bathroom the same color as the walls. So, if Mr. and Mrs. Smith have a party, they can simply shut the door to the bathroom and it disappears with the wall. If the door is open, there is a tongue-in-cheek photo of a man hiding his eyes, hanging above the toilet for a bit of humor.
The other was the size of the bedroom. It's small! The only size bed I could fit in there was a full bed, if I still wanted to get a dresser in, too. Mr. and Mrs. Smith would have, of course, preferred a bigger bed, but I gave them a lot of style and a dresser instead.
How did you decide what and where to add or start/stop paint? In my apartment it was fairly easy, as I had good breaking/stopping points. So, the breaks were rather obvious.
What's the one idea someone should steal from your design? My headboard. It´s made up of four IKEA dining room table tops, hung vertically, that I upholstered in grey flannel wool. Then attached them to the wall using French cleats. It´s a LOT of look for not much money.
Don't miss: The DIY art and headboard, bright white accents and trim, and Ron's signature vignettes.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
My Style: "Wall Street Chic."
Inspiration: Men's haberdashery. Jean Michel Frank. Vintage finds. Dark colors. Green glass tiles. Black and white photography. Clean lines. Martinis.
Favorite Element: The entry piece of art.
Biggest Challenge: Figuring out how to handle the entry. Walking into a wall and making it exciting and interesting. Giving it a "wow."
What Friends Say: About this apartment, they say it's "Classic Ron Marvin," which is exactly what I wanted. They love it. They all love the look and feel of it, all and are proud of all the elements I did myself, such as the all of the paintings, the headboard and the entry piece. When I first approached the project I wanted to use a lot more color and pattern, but I didn't want people to come in an say, "It's very Mad Men", or "It's very Palm Springs", or "It's very Domino." I LOVE all those styles, but I wanted them to say, "It's very Ron Marvin." And they did. Success.
Biggest Embarrassment: It's not really an embarrassment, but I found it a bit humorous, that when I selected the paint colors for my apartment, I had, unknowingly, selected the EXACT same color as the public hallways! Benjamin Moore's "Gentleman's Gray." What are the chances of that?? Not a similar color, the EXACT same color. Luckily, no one else noticed it, but me. (and the painters!)
Proudest DIY: Proudest DIY:
It's a toss up between the upholstered headboard, and painting all of the paintings in the apartment myself.
Biggest Indulgence: The entry piece. I put the money in the budget for it and refused to touch it. I kept reworking the rest of the budget to allow for me to do that piece. In the end, it didn't cost as much as I had anticipated, but I wouldn't touch that budget until I had the final cost.
Best Advice: Use unexpected resources. With this budget the easiest thing to do would be to go to West Elm, IKEA and CB2. But I wanted to be different. So, every weekend I scoured the flea markets. I painted furniture, I reupholstered chairs, I found lamps, tables, and several accessories that no other apartment had, setting mine apartment.
Dream Sources: Flair, Ralph Lauren, 1st Dibs, AERO Studios, flea markets.
Resources of Note:
PAINT & COLORS
- • Entry: Behr, Cracked Pepper UL260-1
• Bathroom: Behr: Espresso Bean UL160-23
• Living Room: Behr, Classic Silver UL260-18
• Bedroom: Behr, Restless Sea UL230-23
ENTRY
- • Carved Chair: Flea market, (reupholstered by me.)
• Photo: Commissioned and art directed myself. Framed by Sky Frame.
LIVING ROOM
- • Cocktail Table: Flea Market
• Sofa: West Elm
• Console Table: CB2
KITCHEN
- • Restaurant Table: Rogers and Sons
BEDROOM
- • Dresser - Salvation Army
• Side Tables - Flea Market
• Headboard - IKEA Dining table tops/Grey Flannel
BATHROOM
- • Shower curtain: West Elm
Thanks, Ron!
Images: Patrick J. Hamilton
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Very sophisticated palette. Love the blues.
Very nice. I love the chinese chair and also the coffeetable & dresser.
Beautiful. I agree the DIY headboard was a stroke of genius.
I must know more about the easel on the window sill! Where did it come from? How can I get one?
After that "design allergy" thread, my eye immediately goes to all the things mentioned there (accessories on stacks of books, Ikat pillow, random photo propping, the orchid). I do love the colors used here. The exclamation point of the yellow lamp is sweet.
Five stars for the photo over the toilet.
These model apartment designs always have a boutique hotel feel, though.
Stunning.
I've long been a fan of Ron Marvin and his work and this place is no exception! I should therefore explain that the following criticism is meant as comedy and is in no way my genuine opinion of Mr. Marvins work. That being said, if I were the Mrs. Smith in question I might not be too thrilled with the choice of entry way art:)!
Gorgeous! But perhaps I'm biased as I have been his love slave ever since I first saw his work. Favorite Ron Marvin quote, "I make my bed every day because I deserve it."
I think this is beautiful. Never been a fan of the lucite side table, but it looks awesome here flanked by those eight prints. The view out the windows is a little jarring, but the sophisticated-bachelor feel of this place sort of makes it okay, somehow.
But, AT, this tour is maybe a little long? And couldja stop trying to make "FiDi" happen?
I'm still reading the interview, but I wanted to say this is my favorite FiDi apartment dummy so far. I love the palette, being drawn to blues, greens and grays myself, and i love how it's masculine but can incorporate feminine touches seamlessly. (Pardon the stereotypes.) Great inspiration. I've have to look up his other work now.
Mr. Smith works on Wall Street and Mrs. Smith comes to the city? Is this the 50s?
I found the palette way too dark.
@TheCubby, it's my favorite too. I love the gray hues.
I find it beautiful, but very "square".
Great tour. Proves that even in smaller places you can make bold rich dark colours work if chosen properly! I am a bit confused by the entry picture though. So this client has a wife who is not always there yet it is profile photo of the designers friend? 0_o Beautiful picture but I would be a bit put off by that if it were my home. I'd rather have a beautiful photo of my loved one i'd probably be missing. :)
How do you know that is not Mr. and Mrs. Smith's daughter featured in the foyer? Anyhow, not sure the "who" is the "why" of that photo.
Please, God, let me win the Lotto so that I can hire Rom Marvin.
Okay, this is the kind of tour that hooked me to apartment therapy years ago, but lost me somewhere when I failed to found inspiration in some of the lackluster places I had to see. Not the kind of person who will ever criticize any home tour, I just stopped visiting AT. Today, I feel like I am meeting a long lost friend. Thanks AT. Ron Marvin, please design my space. I am a woman who loves the sophisticated palette of a man's tuxedo, with a whimsical side that makes my man stand apart. I wish you offered online consulting.
beautiful! love the richness and textures.
So only men are allowed to work on Wall Street now?
This would have been in style 50 years ago and probably will be in another 50. So pleased to make the acquaintance of Ron Marvin.
I thought the same thing as RocketScientist - I am tired of the fictional Wall Street person being male. Even the spaces being decorated for a couple or a family are decidedly masculine looking.
No knock against Ron Marvin - I'm just thinking this entire series feels a bit misogynistic.
Even the ones by female designers, @Andrea Jane?
Okay misogynistic was a bit dramatic but it does seem very masculine. I don't have any objection with each design individually but collectively is just seems like mostly men live and work in this neighborhood.
I think my objection is more with the perception that only men work in the financial world.
I am looking for a mirror like the one one in the bedroom (Chinoiserie/Chippendale/Hollywood Regency). Where is it from? Where can I find one?
I'm a woman and I would LOVE to live in this space! Beautiful colors and elegant design!
I love the wall color and the photo in the entry hall. So striking!
RON not Rom! Arghhh.
Gorgeous, love the dark walls. I expected more lighting though.
Ron, you've done it again! This place is simply awesome!
I don't think the suite is too masculine (anyway, alone the thought of masculine and femine design feels a bit dated, doesn't it?), but I agree that the fictional story is quite stupid. I would mind it less, if it would say, Mrs Smith Job is in another city, so they have a long distance-relationsship, but as it was formulated, it really sounded 50's cliché. But the apartment is lovely.
beautiful.
I've loved Ron Marvin's work any time I've had the pleasure of seeing it. I always think his choices are beautiful but most importantly he can get more actual living space out of a tiny apartment than anyone I've ever seen. Not to mention, I'm sort of a lamp junkie and he never fails to use drool-worthy specimens.
Due to the type of work I do, I live on the tightest of budgets. But if I ever miraculously come into enough cash to have my apartment "done," I would call Ron Marvin first — and, no, I've never met the man.
@Thorndale: Read the following article and then tell me you still think Ron lacks tact and diplomacy. Had I dealt with this situation, a homicide would have ensued:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/garden/22cheap.html?_r=1
The headboard seems to be made out of office cubicle panels, one of mankind's most dehumanizing inventions.
I assume dogs, kitty cats, and kids are not allowed.
It's a pleasure to look at in some ways, but speaking only for myself, I find it deadening---
Bravo! 5 stars! To paraphrase Cole Porter, It's the top. And it looks like a place where Cole Porter would be invited to parties...
I don't like it. It has the same cheap, faux-international feeling as stores like Z-Gallerie. Lots of "Oriental"-inspired pieces, but nothing that actually looks found abroad. Everything about it screams "fake" to me.
Great tour - loved so much of it. Especially the dogs in boots above the bed. Haha! Think I will steal the headboard idea. I've been looking for a simple DIY that takes up a lot of wall space behind the bed and this fits the bill!
@Auma-- Why the no-pets assumption?
Ooooohhh...sexy!
Elegant and dignified. I particularly love the bedroom--the colors, the treatment of the nightstands and the scale of the photographs--just perfect.
@jukesgrrl, I read that article and I agree the woman was a piece of work (as ungracious as it sounds, I thought to myself, when reading, no wonder she is single). However, I thought the end result in that redesign was mediocre and felt jumbled. I have a hard time believing the blue on the canvas would have worked on every wall, so in that respect I am with the "client". What blew me away, though, was the stated monetary worth of the project. Six thousand for that?
No TV? Not even a tiny one in the bathroom? Hmmmm.....
It's a model apartment...
...and actually Ron had a few framed signs around the space indicating where a TV could go... I took them down for the shoot.
model homes designed by pros. is that a shark jumping I see? I understand being on trend but so much of this looks more like set designing than home design. Also regardless of budget anyone can make things not look cheap, it's a cop-out to complain about having to use budget furniture especially when finishes can make anything look more luxe.
@Rural and rueful: I had to agree with you re. your reaction to the makeover in the NYT that @Jukesgrrl linked to. I preferred the 'before', it seemed warmer and more characterful. The blue canvas looks tacky, and Ron should have just dropped that idea if the client wasn't happy with the colour. I guess it is much harder designing for an 'opinionated' client on a tight budget than if you are given a blank canvas and free reign! Still, I do like the ambience Ron has created here - the blues are warm and inviting.
Patrick (the Other One)---Oh, it just seems to me that the look is realized through a bit too much exactitude (a look my Irish Wolfhound's tail would transform throughout in 5 minutes). . . . A quadriplegic Mexican hairless might work. Children would be limited to crib-bound or post grad.
I feel mean---I said that I can perceive its loveliness---it is lovely, but no look's for everyone.
"No look's for everyone" is vastly different than "not suiitable for pets." I know a LOT of fastidious pet owners. And seriously, what Manhattan apartment stands up to "Irish Wolfhound"? That's kind of an extreme example, as is the opposite you propose.
And since it's a one bedroom (and not a huge one at that), I doubt this would be child-rearing suitable, even empty.
It would be nice if these places (and all Tours, for that matter) were judged on the intended resident (real or imagined) and not by one's one current lot in life.
As for the NY Times piece, you are given a client who is NOT paying your fee, and you know your finished work will be posted in the NY Times with your name on it. What would YOU do? Roll over and have an indecisive client who still wants change call the shots?
Those pesky clients!
By the way, I've been thinking this past day about how lazy it was for me to say this place was "masculine" or could include "feminine" touches. Perhaps i was prompted to this kind of formulaic thinking by the description of the he-works-she-shops couple occupying this supposed home, but I ought to see the home not in gendered terms, but structured vs. soft, warm vs. cold palettes, traditional vs. modern vs. international, etc.
As for the NY Times piece, I wouldn't have thought it great press for the designer to work with a fussy customer with questionable taste and a tight budget (though she exceeded it herself), but he probably did impress potential clients with his patience and at least he's moved on to better assignments like this one.
And Patrick (the Other One) is right. You can't ask where the dog/baby/mother-in-law would go if this place was designed as a couple's pied-a-terre. It is a description that raises discomfort with me (due to my own circumstances), but it does fit with the neighborhood. That's why I felt so out of place in the Financial District when I lived there.
I'm a woman, and a fairly feminine one at that, and I love this apartment. That photo in the entry is stunning, and I love the deep, rich colours and the textures used. Also, Mrs Smith could simply be working in a different city :-)
Ron appears to have achieved what he set out to create - a non-primary, inner city residence for a young professional couple with no children. That type of design wouldn't work in other scenarios (such as my suburban, cottage-style, small family home), but for what it is it looks pretty perfect to me!
@THE CUBBY: love that you were able to question you own choice of words! I know, sometimes it is just so much more convenient to use something like "feminine" or "girly" or "masculine" (I also struggle with not using "ethnic") but its time to let go of those clichés, even if it means an adjustiment period, where we struggle to find replacement words.
1. This looks like a model west elm apartment.
2. There is beauty in imperfection and there is nothing here that strikes me as particularly beautiful.
3. There is way too much clutter in the living room.
4. I would never hang picture frames above a bed. And that headboard has way too much head.
5. Is the point of having the mirror set at that height to obscure whatever one places on that lucite 'table'?
Ok, I think I'm alone here on this: I find this apartment Ugly!! I would call this Bad Taste even. sorry guys. Not a single room I like here. I don't see where the fine taste is, the colors are yuk, the pieces and layout lack any fine taste for me. way too crowded and noisy.
@Min-imal: If you live in NYC, I'd love to shoot your own house so you can show us all how it's done.
PS: Décor is far too subjective to ever call anything "Ugly."
Good (and bad) design - or "décor" - can have objective elements.
I don't disagree with that at all, @deepdish (even though I think maybe you meant "subjective," unless I totally misunderstood your comment.) But some of your objections are actually just personal preference ("I would never hang picture frames over a bed.").
And a lot of "constructive criticism" around here of late is just badly hidden snark. Which is just badly hidden negativity. From the comfort of anonymity.
But "ugly" is an ugly word. (I know you were not the one to use it.)
What’s not to like: dark walls, the greens, the blues, lucite table, statuesque lamps, interesting art, that hallway chair…I’m a woman, feminine one, and I could move in right away, altogether with my 2 kitty cats. Fabulous place: sophisticated and sexy.
I am a woman and I would LOVE to live here. We don't all want to live in a pink world of girly boho/shabby chic.
I find it 'cheap' and cheap to me is ugly. I would have a different reaction, and different choice of words had this been a humble apartment of someone I know, I would just think of it as 'not my style at all, not beautiful in my opinion', but seeing how it is praised here like this and celebrated as something extraordinary, I have to use something as 'strong' as Ugly. Anyway, objective or not, I didn't claim it was universally ugly, or a fact. it is my opinion, which,as I said, I'm probably the only one here to share it. And not only Decor is 'far way too objective', same goes for women, food, cars, even smells. if you were trying to suggest that I can't do it or pull it off with my own space, well, whatever, I just think the above space is..ok.. not beautiful. I like to keep things unpretentious, simple and natural. There are soooo many spaces here that I like and find very inspiring, so I'm not pretending to know better than you guys.
Most of the comments are a statement of personal taste - nothing wrong with that on a decor site. Take away the window dressing, though - do the choice of colours and furniture, the placement of that furniture enhance or detract from the use of the space? Personally, I'm not keen on the 'squiggle' artwork place around the mirrors (subjective), but what I really dislike is the placement of the dresser at the foot of the bed - it looks like there is not enough clearance (objective).
I guess when I look at photos of spaces I've not been in, I give the benefit of the doubt: that a designer has indeed left enough room for function, even in a small room. Since I took these pictures, and have been in this space, I know he did. It's why the flat headboard makes so much sense, for example, within the choices that led to a full-sized dresser in a small room (whose size was beyond his control). If there were no dresser, people would complain "Where's the storage?" and, "What, not even enough room for a dresser???" #nowinning
And it's all about takeaways and context... he made those squiggles to stretch a capped budget. The lesson I take away is that you can add your own art and color when money runs thin.
I have no issue with statements of personal taste, unless they are insulting or come across as judgmental. And I generally prefer constructive criticism when someone feels the need to be negative, in general. I've just never found words like "ugly" to be very constructive.
@Patrick(the other one). If the bedroom measures 9' 6" (or 2.74m), and you have a standard (for Europe) 2m bed there, then that leaves a measly 74cm for the full sized dresser plus Mr or Mrs Smith and the drawer depth when they are rummaging for their socks and underwear. If I were paying $8,000 for this design service, I would be most displeased.
I was in the space. There was room to open the drawers.
And besides, that $8,000 was for purchases... no mark-ups and full access to trade discount, for everything you see that was not already installed. That was not the designer's fee. There was none for this project.
i love your writing, Patrick (The other one)! your writing + Marvin's interiors totally made my morning!