Fireplace

The tiled bench extends in front of the fireplace and down toward the entryway, creating a satisfying tie between the multiple different distinct areas of the open living space.

The two major architectural interventions happened in the living room, where the architect vaulted the ceiling, replaced the preexisting clunky skylight with three slim ones, and relocated the staircase to the basement. The wall tile outside the powder room is by Fireclay—the homeowner specifically requested all rectangular tile be laid horizontally.

Upstairs, the living room fireplace surround extends to the ceiling with Fireclay’s Thin Brick tile. A trio of rectangular skylights replaced the oddly large square that previously capped the room, and a new built-in desk and shelving add a cozy finish to formerly wasted space.

Ogawa Green Tile by Heath Ceramics covers the walls and floors. When the couple's existing tile stash wasn't enough coverage, the team was able to special order more to match.

The ceiling was "sculpted to angle up to the skylight,

Textured travertine limestone slabs from ABC Stone run under the custom white oak vanity, and are also used on the walls.

Slatted wood was used for the living room entertainment center in order to conceal an air conditioning unit while letting air pass through. The wood pattern continues in the rest of the piece for consistency.

All the new built-in cabinetry floats a few inches off the ground and below the ceiling, adding light and shadow, so as not to make the 715-square-foot apartment feel confining.

In the living room, Klara’s collection includes pieces by Leisa Rich, Leslie Barlow, and Israel Broytman. Her extensive collection of design and art books are also a big part of her daily life. “Every day I look at one art book because my job is difficult and art really lifts my spirits,” says Klara.

This painting was just intended to be a placeholder in the mock up, but the homeowners loved it so much they commissioned an identical one.

The primary bedroom was too sprawling and open, so SHED reconfigured its entrance to be a large walk-in closet. It shares a two-way fireplace with the living room.

The new den's rebuilt fireplace is clad with the same Heath Ceramics tile as the kitchen island. Avove it is a Christopher Wrobleski rope hanging. A vintage Hans Wegner chair with Maharam leather cushions was paired with a Lawson Fenning San Rafael Paolo coffee table.

“I walked in and thought, this room wants to be low,” says Kirsten. Friends in Amsterdam had the same sofa. “The kids would jump all over it, and I love that kind of feeling. I wanted to bring that to our house.”

“There was no way out to the backyard from the main living space” before, says Boyer, who swapped out the windows for a large sliding glass door.

Before: The fireplace wall was gently reworked.

The green plaster, a color inspired by the palette of architect Luis Barragán, now covers the stone fireplace and hearth, extending the column up to the ceiling so there’s no longer a line chopping up the wall. “It made such an incredible difference that it goes all the way to the ceiling. It draws your eye up,” says Brooke. The new built-ins are white oak, and evoke the style of what was there before.

The fireplace now has a tile-covered hearth—the tile is La Pietra Compattata Cromie Bianco—that people can sit on.