Since its founding in 2009, New York outfit Home Studios has crafted some of the metropolis’ most enticing and atmospheric eateries. There’s the richly detailed Elsa in Brooklyn and the decade-old watering hole Goat Town, defined by its shimmering vaulted ceiling, to name a few interiors that exemplify the practice’s deft combination of deco and moderne with contemporary restraint. It was these intimate rooms that inspired a pair of design-minded clients to commission the firm — lead by ex-editor Oliver Haslegrave — to helm what would become their inaugural residential project in the city.

At the entrance to the home, Max Lamb’s Woodware chair is nestled near custom wood panelling.

The studio’s first task was to strip the 185-square-metre unit within a historic 1925 structure in Manhattan’s NoHo neighbourhood to its bones, including wiping away a now 40-year-old renovation done in the 1980s. By the time they were finished, all that remained was a section of the original maple floors.

A bespoke walnut and ratan table by Home Studios riffs on the rolled edges of the ceiling features above.

With the new open floor plan — illuminated by street-facing, full-height windows — Haselgrave and his team built-up a three-bedroom, two-bath home that “celebrates a clean and cohesive design language,” according to the studio. Taking cues from Finnish architect Alvar Aalto, the completed residence is replete with subtle flair and elegant material combinations that gracefully knit the space together.

The living room sees a number furnishings by renowned designers join heirloom pieces. The Howard Sofa by Brookyln’s Egg Collective and Sabine Marcelis’ Candy cube are paired with a 1940s French rug and vintage Danish arm chairs. The studio’s own Vespa console anchors the scene.

Alongside curating a host of vintage furnishings, Home Studios also fitted the renovation with a number of custom pieces. In the living room, a “site-specific” rotund oak, steel and copper console dubbed Vesper provides a focal point next to furnishings by local trio Egg Collective and Sabine Marcelis.

Brooklyn-based Fort Standard’s Column table is paired with Danish designer Niels Otto Møller’s Model 08 dining chairs. Home Studio’s industrial Swing Pendant is mounted above.

The nearby dining room also sees a solid walnut table by another hometown studio — Fort Standard — join the firm’s custom blown glass and chromed steel Swing Pendant. 

Rolled edges paired with thin copper and oak frames define the corridor separating the kitchen from the family’s private quarters. A slender pocket door allows the entire portion to be concealed if needed.

Throughout the space, a subtle radius edge is a defining motif – accenting many of the furnishings as well as the home’s eclectic features. Two rounded walls with bowed glass windows frame the corridor leading from the kitchen, which functions to separate public and private spaces. This division is further emphasized by a custom pocket door that allows the family to close off their sleeping quarters entirely.

Light and luminous, the master bedroom’s welcoming quality is thanks in part to Atelier de Troupe’ Jia chair and a vintage French lamp. A painting by New York-based artist Landon Metz hang above the custom bed.

Travertine and copper details (such as the integrated night stand and bedside light) give the wood and rattan bed its bespoke quality.

Here, a travertine-clad alcove divides the children’s bedroom from the master, its contoured edges accompanying additional Home Studio-designed pieces including a walnut, rattan and stone bed recalling Marcel Breuer’s woven Cesca chairs. The walls, too, feature the same rolled language, echoing the overall softened quality of the residence.

The curving form in the hallway provides room for a small nook in the washroom that doubles as towel storage.

Elsewhere, rolled features abound, including a custom white tile vanity and copper-edged mirror.

In the washroom, a darting ceramic datum with arched edges wraps the entire space. This gesture complements the profile of the rotund custom copper mirror and inset sitting nook, among other handsome features in the spartan loo. Similar details define the master ensuite, where a collage-like scheme of a custom concrete finish, handmade mosaic tile and Arabescato Classico marble with slim metal elements add a refined sense of rhythm to the otherwise pared-back space. Even the apartment’s many doors and Farrow & Ball-coated kitchen cabinets boast custom pulls with sinuous edges. 

In the master bathroom, a crisp white soaker is dramatically set off from a custom concrete finish framed by handmade olive tiles.

Like the guest loo, a bespoke vanity and mirror define the residence’s master ensuite. The rich veining of the Arabescato Classico marble vanity finds a graphic counterpoint with matte black faucets by Waterworks.

There’s no storage of charming surprises peppered throughout the seemingly simple renovation. From slender oak segments along the floorboards and doorframes to the chorus of curving elements — coves, ceiling features and more — and the unifying tiles lining much of the space, the design rigorously committed to its streamlined language yet playful in its overall approach. “The final product is a near-ideal extension of [our] values,” the studio concludes, “a place that offers its residents something truly unique.”

Additional copper details, such as a custom hood and pulls, give the airy kitchen an industrial edge. According to the studio, Farrow & Ball’s blue-grey tone “Pigeon” is used on the cabinetry in a nod to “the colourful expression of Parisian courtyard doors.”