ABOUT THIS TOUR
HOME TYPE: Studio Apartment
LOCATION: Upper East Side, Manhattan, New York
STYLE: Colorful, Maximalist, Traditional
BEDROOMS: 0
SQUARE FEET: 300
Barbara Campbell is NOT a white-wall kind of person. As a decorator in New York City, she loves “updating and enhancing a space,” preferring instead to be “surrounded by uplifting, welcoming color.” When decorating her home, which is a 300-square-foot studio apartment on the Upper East Side that she’s owned for eight months and spent $550,000 to purchase, she followed what she calls “the 3 Cs: Colorful, Comfortable, and Curated.”
She explains that the studio was a plain white box without color or architectural interest. And so she “renovated just about every inch of this small studio,” she begins. “It needed architecture, so I had picture-frame molding installed throughout. I also used wallpaper from several of my favorite companies: GP & J Baker, Thibaut, Quadrille, and Galbraith & Paul (who made custom wallpaper for the kitchen).”
Because Barbara was coming from a larger apartment, she says she was able to choose the things she “loved the most for this small space. The budget was just what it needed to be … I wanted each inch to be just right, so although it’s small, it’s comfortable,” she describes, explaining that she was able to renovate pretty quickly due to the changes being mostly cosmetic. She says the renovation took about two months.
“The biggest challenge was in the small kitchen: Adding a full-size refrigerator (there was a mini-fridge), a dishwasher (there wasn’t one!), and a recycling unit (also missing). Anyone who’s renovated in NYC knows that it’s an arduous process … beginning with securing Board approval. In my case, the Board was prompt, and the building staff — especially the all-important Super — was beyond helpful.”
That’s not all she accomplished in the kitchen. “The kitchen floor had a whitewash on it, so I had it painted in Benjamin Moore’s “Simply White” and then added a checkerboard pattern in the Sherwin-Williams’s “Organic Green” from the living room walls — plus three coats of polyurethane. The Shade Store had a recent collaboration with Sheila Bridges, so I chose one of her great designs to give the motorized shades some pattern. (“Porringer” in Spring colorway),” she describes.
Barbara says that she had a lot of help with renovating her home. “I was fortunate as a decorator to have an incredible team to help me transform this space,” she writes. “Beginning with my general contractor and all the other tradespeople, this was a very collaborative effort.”
Of course, there are some things that only a decorator and stylish homeowner can do themselves, and in this case, that was choosing the green paint color for the walls. “I pulled together a ton of samples, mixed paints myself, and I finally landed on the color that was in my head.”
Shop this home!
PAINT & COLORS
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Living room & bedroom — Sherwin Williams “Emerald Green”
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Ceilings & trim — Benjamin Moore “Simply White”
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Bathroom — Benjamin Moore “Black”
ENTRY
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Thibaut wallpaper — “Fretwork” in pink
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Dresser — Vintage
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Refined Decor in Chicago (who painted the piece in lacquered coral)
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Mirror — Ballard Design
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Caitlin Wilson lamp with shade — Pooky Lighting
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Green tray from Gleaming Renditions — Etsy
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Watercolor of my dog — Emma Wills, an exquisite and affordable British artist on Instagram
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Original drawing of peonies — Paper Pear in Australia
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Black-lacquered bamboo side chair — Chairish
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Custom pillow & seat cover — LyndsayRebeccaShop on Etsy (affordable, well-made & custom)
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Ceiling light — Circa
LIVING ROOM
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Black velvet chesterfield sofa — One King’s Lane
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(2) Club Chairs — Kravet upholstered in Brunschwig “Les Pivoines” chintz
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Custom area rug — CarpetsBazaar on Etsy
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Dresser — The Resplendent Crow on Etsy who painted it in black lacquer
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Black & white striped side chair — Chairish, reupholstered in Clarke & Clarke
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“Marlowe” fabric Charcoal — Kravet
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(2) Penny Morrison red spool table lamps with Fermoie shades in charcoal “Wicker”
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Custom tufted ottoman — Upholstered in GP & J Baker “Tilly” fabric in Green colorway
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Wallpaper on back wall of bookshelves — “Tilly” from GP & J Baker in Green colorway
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Glass and gilt — Side tables from OKA
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Phileas cordless table lamp & shade — Pooky Lighting
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Tall black table lamp & shade — Pooky Lighting
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Floor lamp and red shade — Pooky Lighting
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Black lacquered cabinet — The Resplendent Crow on Etsy
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Abstract oil painting — Alexa Lessow, NYC
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Installed Carrera marble countertop below windows
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Sofa cushions — Celerie Kemble “Betwixt”
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Black & white pillows custom — LyndsayRebeccaShop on Etsy
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Brunschwig “Les Pivoines” pillows on club chairs and sofa custom —LyndsayRebeccaShop on Etsy
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Green & white club chair and ottoman — Kravet with Lee Jofa fabric “Pomeroy” in Green/Oyster
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Barclay Butera round side table
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Motorized shades — The Shade Store, NYC, Sheila Bridges pattern “Porringer” in Spring colorway
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Kravet Couture viscose fabric for drape between entry & living room (Portiere) in Andrew Martin “Mossop” in Coral colorway.
KITCHEN
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Cafe appliances — GE
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Pure white quartz countertop
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Brass racks — Vintage Fixtures, Etsy
BEDROOM
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Serena & Lily custom Broderick bed in green chenille — Kravet
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Canopy in Brunschwig — “Les Pivoines” chintz
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Canopy trim — Samuel & Sons “Labyrinth Border” in Cilantro
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Shams — Matou
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Sheets — Peacock Alley
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“Marseille” floor lamp — Serena & Lily
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Shade on Pooky table lamp — Alice Palmer
BATHROOM
Thanks, Barbara!
This tour’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.
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