Designers Replace Developer Aesthetic With Vintage Charm in Boerum Hill Townhouse

Photo by William Jess Laird

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A pair of soon-to-be homeowners reached out to Melissa Lee of Bespoke Only, a multidisciplinary design studio founded in 2012, as soon as they went to contract on a stoop-less, three-story, 19th century brick row house. The building had been recently upgraded and updated by developers — but unfortunately, not to the couple's liking.

The Historic District building's facade was unassuming, but, Lee said, "You walked in and it was a whole other world, a developer's version of what they thought modern should be." The interior was stark, bright, and nearly all-white, with high-gloss finishes."It was forced to be a creature it was not."

The homeowners had no desire to embark on a major remodel. They left the bathrooms and kitchen more or less as they were. Elsewhere, Bespoke Only applied carefully considered paint colors and William Morris wallpapers. Antique opaline glass light fixtures set the stage for an assortment of vintage furnishings that gave the house soul, warmth and a sense of time and place more in keeping with its history.

Lee tweaked moldings and millwork and made other modifications to the envelope, and helped the couple shop for vintage pieces — all with the aim of bringing back the character and charm that had been lost.

The couple had just a few pieces of furniture they wanted to keep. "We bought everything else new," Lee said, mostly a combination of real-life foraging in local and upstate antique shops and purchases from 1stDibs and other online sources.

The house's main entry is on the garden level. The vestibule is now adorned with willow patterned wallpaper from William Morris. The wainscoting and door were painted a very deep navy, just this side of black.

In the pale green dining room on the garden level, a farmhouse table from Restoration Hardware is surrounded by an eclectic group of antique French dining chairs. A pair of new built-in cupboards flanks the simple fireplace, which Bespoke Only stripped back to its original brick. "The room looked like it should have hutches," Lee said.

Other new adds include beadboard on the ceiling and a green wall-hung cabinet with glass doors (top photo) to house the owners’ impressive cookbook collection.

French doors leading to the garden were already in place in the kitchen. Glossy lacquered flat-front cabinets were replaced by Shaker-style paneled door fronts hand-painted in Slipper Satin from Farrow and Ball, a soft cream.

Bespoke Only also switched out faucets, hardware and lighting to impart a mellow, homey feeling to what had been a study in glitz.

On the parlor level, where the stoop had been removed in one of those remuddlings so common in the early 20th century, the house's original front door and entry hall were mysteriously preserved. It's now a door to nowhere on a stair landing, but the classic center table recalls its original usage. Antique milk-glass light fixtures continue a theme found elsewhere in the house.

The living room's furnishings are "kind of random," Lee said. "We wanted it to feel like it wasn't designed and styled, but truly lived in." The millwork on either side of the fireplace is "semi-new," she said. "We changed the top and kept the bottom."

The old leather sofa was an Atlantic Avenue find. Vintage lamps came from Norway and the English countryside, the pair of gold tufted-back armchairs from Hudson, N.Y.

At the rear of the parlor floor, a sunroom/playroom has a custom window seat and floral William Morris wallpaper. There was an existing banquette under the windows but it was too shallow for comfort, Lee said. Bespoke Only made it deeper and fitted it with new cushions.

Three bedrooms on the upper floor were decorated with rich color and texture to compensate for their small size. The primary bedroom is a demure rosy hue against the olive bed linens and teal blue panel door with crystal knobs. A jute rug from Armadillo and George Nelson bubble pendant strike contemporary notes.

Other doors throughout the house were painted similarly, with Oval Room Blue from Farrow & Ball's line of historic colors.

Wallpaper with a playful dinosaur pattern from Sian Zeng is sweet in the children's bedroom.

[Photos by William Jess Laird]

The Insider is Brownstoner's weekly in-depth look at a notable interior design/renovation project, by design journalist Cara Greenberg. Find it here every Thursday morning.

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