Looking at it today, it’s hard to imagine how bland it was apartment of Manhattan. Sure enough, the apartment, located in a 1925 Neo-Renaissance building, had everything you’d expect from a gem of Park Avenue (the fourth most expensive street in the world): views of Central Park, newly renovated windows, state-of-the-art kitchen appliances. Nothing special. Until interior designer Georgia Tapert Howe. “It was really a white box,” says the designer, who got permission from the owners, a couple with two children and a passion for print, to enter the apartment with many wallpaper and paint samples. “There wasn’t a single surface I didn’t touch,” confesses Tapert Howe. The target was to work within the foundation laid a century ago by the original architects Electus D. Litchfield and Rogers. transform the residence with five family rooms in a sophisticated mix of acquired artwork and newly found objects. Something that reflected their personality.
Although the interior designer had her studio in Los Angeles, far from New York, for more than a decade (having worked with Haynes Roberts, Mica Ertegun and Martyn Lawrence Bullard), the owner had known her personally for years and appreciated her talent to combine. theclassic elegance with a touch of modernity, so much so that he decided to take the risk of a remote project. “I’ve always admired Georgia’s style and the joy and fun she brings to spaces,” explains the owner. The designer’s signature tricks (in this case, a clever combination of yellows and greens with bolder patterns and textures) run through the 370 square meter space with softness and soul, shaping a decidedly calm environment. At the entrance, as soon as they exit the elevator, greets guests in bold wallpaper yellow and in front sits a chair with a wavy back beside him mirror fish eye A sky blue lacquered three-legged table, found at 1stDibs, serves as a dynamic counterpoint to the kitchen’s cream-colored interior. “We wanted our house to be warm and welcoming, not too sophisticated because we have small children, but also interesting and elevated,” the owner tells ELLE DECOR.
In the dining room, Tapert Howe had a moment of creativity when he covered the entire back wall with a mural of Ananbo. There green and tropical environment, painted by artisans for the French brand, transports diners to an environment far removed from the cobblestone streets of New York. The living room, with whitewashed walls and a vintage teal terrazzo table, evokes the elegance of classic forms and is a testament to Tapert Howe’s ability to play with pattern. Further, one bookcase clad in wood with different shades of brown and light brown it’s a different tone with a more refined feel. “I’m obsessed with balance,” says Tapert Howe. We pass through a green-on-green powder room, where traditional Twigs Pheasant wallpaper is brought into the 20th century with Future Perfect’s avant-garde Palm lamp, to reach the master bedroom. Here, Caba Company’s sand-colored ivory tile work adds texture to the cream-colored room that’s a walk through ancient Rome, with an ultra-modern twist. “To be welcome, these songs need to be,” adds the designer.
Return journey
The biggest challenge of the project was figure out how to carry a dining room table 2.7 meters up 14 steps in a mid-19th century building. “It was like trying to fit a round screw into a square hole,” recalls Tapert Howe. It could not be done. But Tapert Howe came up with an ingenious way to bring it up without having to use a crane: “We built the dining table right in the apartment“, explains. He booked a flight for Los Angeles furniture maker Jason Pickens, who carried the table up the stairs, table by table, along with his tools, turning the dining room into a makeshift workshop. “Honestly, I have PTSD from the whole situation, it was a nightmare,” he says. “But thanks to an amazing team and talented, creative furniture makers, we were able to make it all work.” The result was positive, as the dining room became one of the customers’ favorite spaces. “Our special moments as a couple and as a family are always around the table,” adds the family. “These are the moments I look forward to every day. And it’s good because Tapert Howe jokes, “that board will never be able to leave the apartment“.
Rachel Silva, Associate Digital Editor at ELLE DECOR, covers design, architecture, trends and all things high fashion. She has previously written for Time, The Wall Street Journal and Citywire.