Park Slope Brownstone Renovation
This Park Slope Brownstone was carefully renovated to maintain certain existing design features and expand the programmatic capabilities of this home built in 1884. The exterior updates included replacing all the windows and making them green, which required extensive approval from the Landmarks Committee.
When the property was purchased, it had been well maintained and was in relatively good condition, which required us to figure out what we hoped to keep from the existing space after construction. However, there was also much room for improvement throughout, so we crafted a strategy to highlight the existing bones while interjecting inventive new design elements to fit the aesthetic interests of our clients.
Fireplace mantles, wood floors, and unusually shaped arches were kept, and provide clues to how the original home used to look and operate. Contemporary light fixtures add subtle yet significant modernizing elements to spaces. Tiles from Clè Tile and paint were carefully selected to add thoughtfully considered coloration or tones to different environments throughout public and private areas of the residence.
Another existing quirk was that the primary bedroom was not equipped with a full bathroom, and the single sink was located in the bedroom area. Rather than expand the bathroom, we updated it with new fixtures and finishes, installed a new shower unit, and kept the sink outside, aiming to reflect the original footprint while modernizing certain plumbing elements.
Behind walls and ceilings, immense energy went into bringing the home up to code, updating electric systems, and installing HVAC. Acoustic performance was also a priority, as one of the owners is a sound engineer, so we installed the necessary tech to enable the client to work effectively from home.
Published in Dwell Magazine
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