This Brooklyn Brownstone Embraces a Contentious Color Pairing for a Home "That Leaves No One Indifferent"

Both in their mid-30s, Lauren and Will had lived in the Big Apple for nearly a decade when they decided the time was right to move out of their Manhattan apartment in search of more space for their growing family. Leaving their beloved city, however, was out of the question.

In the end, it took them eight months to find this house, which dates back to 1901, and occupies a typical brownstone in Brooklyn’s quaint South Slope neighborhood. Lauren and Will fell in love with their new home’s historic details, such as its stained glass windows, plaster moldings, and paneling, but they needed to make some changes in order for the house to work for their needs.

This led them to launch a renovation with the help of Appel Architecture and it was the architects that recommended Crystal Sinclair for the interior design of the spaces inside the modern home.

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"When designing a brownstone, you have to be careful and respectful of the lighting," says Crystal Sinclair. "That said, we leaned into the dimly-lit rooms and worked with some mid-tones rather than bright ones. We also had to be careful about the size of the long, narrow rooms and be extra cautious about our measurements and sizing of furniture."

This meant the team at Crystal Sinclair Designs had to get creative to optimize the spaces. Among their solutions was the installation of the metal and glass wall to both separate and connect the main bedroom and the ensuite bathroom. "We were careful to preserve some of the architectural details and worked with an existing arch," Crystal tells us.

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For the overall decor, Lauren and Will didn’t want anything too neutral and Crystal knew exactly how to satisfy them. "We needed to create a fun, yet family-friendly, functional home," she says. "Lauren and Will were extremely sweet, open minded and we loved the aesthetic they wanted, which was midcentury modern with a tie into the brownstone itself."

Crystal created depth by carefully introducing warm colors in all the spaces, but without them being too overbearing. For example, the dark entryway leads to the living room, which is much lighter and brighter. Here, the vintage floor lamp was the starting point for choosing the rest of the furnishings and accessories and the organically curvaceous furniture invites the family to sit comfortably and enjoy time together. In the kitchen, by contrast, the palette is blue and green: a trending color scheme also seen in the bedroom, which, while potentially divisive, creates a sense of calm, while the couple and designer settled on striking blue and lilac marble for the bathroom.

As a result, the atmosphere seems to embrace both the dwellers and their guests at every turn. Textures, such as velvet, marble and bouclé (among others), were added to create a more sensual and cozy home, fulfilling Crystal’s goal of creating a feeling of ease for anyone who steps inside.

Several contemporary artworks were chosen to complement the daring palette and the overall mood perfectly corresponds to the young family who lives here. It’s safe to say the house now has a unique vibe that leaves no one indifferent.

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