Isabella & Jay Take on Inwood

published Jan 20, 2010

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Name: Isabella & Jay
Location: Inwood, New York City
Size: 850 square feet
Years lived in: 1½ years

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

Inspired by a trip to the Mediterranean Sea, Isabella painted the bedroom ceiling a deep azure blue and lined the living room windows in a bright playful yellow. Isabella’s intent was to harness the flood of sunlight that fills the apartment every day and convey the impression of being on vacation all the time!

As the founder of a new interior design firm, Isabella uses her home as a canvas for new ideas. “My husband comes home from work and expects everything to be different,” explains Isabella. Frustrated by a limited budget, Isabella accepts her home as a work in progress. She is intent on maintaining her vision and not making compromises while she waits to be able to afford ‘the perfect piece.’

Having lived in a studio with her husband for a few years, Isabella tries to remain rigorous about not amassing unnecessary stuff. But with this many closets, it’s very very tempting.

Check out Isabella’s kitchen tour on thekitchn.com.

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

Apartment Therapy Survey
Style: Elegant, comfortable, playful, chic. The key is mixing styles, textures, colors, shapes, light and finishes to achieve a harmonious balance.

Inspiration: Travel, Parisian apartments, mid-century and Scandinavian designs, natural materials, city-living, and bold colors in unexpected places.

Favorite Element: The deep blue ceiling in the bedroom and the lemony-limey curtains in the living room make me happy everyday. I love using carefully curated blues and greens together.

Biggest Challenge: Working around things we cannot afford to change such as almost everything in the kitchen, especially the backsplash. The solution: place artwork in the kitchen, which reminds me – every room is worthy of artwork – kitchen, bathroom, hallways – any space with which you will interact deserves the same design considerations as more “lofty” spaces.

What Friends Say: It feels so open and airy, warm and inviting!

Biggest Embarrassment: The backsplash tile in the kitchen.

Proudest DIY: The headboard.

Biggest Indulgence: Copper dining table.

Best Advice: Buy things that you truly love and respond to – don’t just fill a space with things because it needs to be filled. If you have the luxury of time, it is worth it to end up with pieces that you may have for a lifetime.

Dream Source: 1stdibs.com and any artisan re-purposing found materials to create unique and recycled pieces. I love the mix of these two sources.

Resources
Paintings by Lisa Fellerson
Fabric by Amy Butler for curtains
Paul McCobb desk purchased from Scavengers
Art Deco light fixture by Schoolhouse Electric
Contractor, Michael Beltran, 917.783.2866 (Michael has been able to help us with smaller repair jobs, and has done great work. He also worked with the previous owner of this apartment on more substantial projects such as building and moving walls, kitchen, bathroom and electrical repairs).

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

Check out the details of Isabella and Jay’s kitchen in their Kitchen Tour at the Kitchn.

Images: Jill Slater

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