Quick Take: Skyscraper Inspiration for a Statement Fireplace
Homeowners liven up a white living room with an inventive installation on a two-story fireplace
The style: The family brought on Worth Interiors while their home was in the early stages of construction, and designer Eddy Doumas gave the home a relaxed but refined style, featuring his firm’s signature monochromatic palette. Soft, restrained neutrals are enlivened with texture and accented with refined, well-crafted details, such as the art piece on the fireplace.
The furnishings: The homeowners wanted the seating plan to accommodate traffic flow on all four sides of the room, while providing access to (and views of) the outdoors. Doumas and his team started with a sectional, then added a chaise as well as an ottoman that pulls up for extra guests during cocktail parties. The leather armchair works for reading or can swivel to take in the view. The seating anchors the double-height room, appropriate in scale for conversation while allowing the view to take center stage.
The driftwood candelabrum on the coffee table was made by a local artist, while the homeowners found the deeply textured throw draping the ottoman in Morocco. A thickly woven sea grass rug adds further definition to the seating area and softens the oak floor.
All seating and coffee table: Minotti; sea grass rug: Fibreworks
The driftwood candelabrum on the coffee table was made by a local artist, while the homeowners found the deeply textured throw draping the ottoman in Morocco. A thickly woven sea grass rug adds further definition to the seating area and softens the oak floor.
All seating and coffee table: Minotti; sea grass rug: Fibreworks
The window treatments: Plate-glass curtain walls give this sun-drenched room its open, modern character. But even the best daylighting needs to be controlled. A valance forms a ribbon around the room at the intersection of the first and second stories, hiding roller shades that control natural light when needed. Sheer panels add another layer of filtering and privacy.
In the evening, matching white sconces evenly spaced across the valance add a soft background glow to balance the focused downlighting from the chandelier.
The overall result is an urbane and polished but relaxed and peaceful stage for the family to enjoy together, from sunrise to sunset.
White sconces: Tango Lighting
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In the evening, matching white sconces evenly spaced across the valance add a soft background glow to balance the focused downlighting from the chandelier.
The overall result is an urbane and polished but relaxed and peaceful stage for the family to enjoy together, from sunrise to sunset.
White sconces: Tango Lighting
More
Decorating 101: How to Start a Decorating Project
So Your Style Is: Contemporary
Modern or Contemporary Architecture? The Interiors Edition
Who lives here: A family with two young boys
Location: Water Mill, New York
Size: 1,600 square feet (148.6 square meters)
Designer: Eddy Doumas of Worth Interiors
The backstory: For a couple that had relocated from London back to the U.S., a move to New York City wasn’t complete without a weekend haven. The tranquil site they selected, just half a block from the beach in Water Mill, New York, is where the family plans to stay during summer breaks from school. They use this room to relax together and hang out with guests, while a sitting room located away from the main core of activity is for watching TV.
The showstopper: The open-plan living room’s centerpiece is the simple and striking two-story fireplace. Finished in white Silestone, the fireplace contains a minimal, modernist insert set above a small hearth that holds a curvy X-shaped candelabrum.
To elevate the simple fireplace design, artist Carolina Sardi fashioned a delicate pattern of painted metal dots, each forged with a nailhead at the back for installation. Climbing the front of the substantial chimney, the metal dots are designed to recall the windowed facade of a New York City skyscraper. Sardi spent the better part of a week meticulously positioning and mounting each piece.
The lighting: A monumental chandelier with a 6-foot diameter brings an intimacy to the room’s seating area. Finished in deep bronze and cast opal white glass, this was a custom piece for these clients, but the lighting company has since added it to their portfolio of designs.
The core of the room is finished in neutral cream and white. Accents of blue and red, including the floor lamp, pick up colors from the adjacent kitchen and dining room.
Fireplace insert: Spark Modern Fires; candelabrum: Michael Aram; chandelier: McEwen Lighting Studio; floor lamp: Twiggy by Foscarini; artwork by Carolina Sardi, represented by Kimberly Gould Art Advisory