There’s not sufficient.” These timeless words, attributed to Mick Jagger and the 18th-century playwright Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, could just as quickly come directly from the mouths of the owners of This Manhattan townhouse. Behind the 1920 building’s plain façade, patterns play with patterns, cocktails, and a smoky atmosphere reign, and the dining area appears to be a Matisse collage that has come to life. Interior designers frequently praise their customers as being “fearless” and “risky,” however, according to Danielle Colding, her client, the usual client-designer relationship was turned upside down. “They pushed me to go bolder than I would have on my own,” she says admiringly. “That’s rare.”
The table surrounds chairs designed by Mario Milana with a black marble top within the living room. Artemest makes the console, Ochre makes the chandelier, the curtains are made from fabric by Brunschwig & Fils, and Fromental makes the custom wallpaper. This artwork (left) is by Julia Rivera, and Michel Lanos created the sculpture (between windows).
It was springtime in 2019 when Elle Decor A-List designer, was hired by the couple, an attorney and a writer with two dogs no c, children, and a talent for entertaining. The goal was to transform the five-story structure into a home with personality. Structurally, the newly remodeled facility was in good condition and featured sun-soaked entrances and three outdoor spaces with elaborately crafted moldings on the parlor floor. However, the interiors were heavily dominated by what Colding calls “outdated espresso-mocha colors,” and the house lacked style. Famous for her diverse and global fashion, Colding agreed there was plenty of room for improvement. “To me, the ultimate insult is to say something looks like a showroom,” she explains. “I always prefer wonky, quirky, and even slightly ugly to boring.”
GO INSIDE THIS TOWNHOUSE THAT’S “MAGIC AT NIGHT”
Colding discovered just how daring her clients were willing to be very early on while she was working on the foyer. She had already put black and white tiles with graphic designs on the floor, arranging the tiles to communicate chaos. The designer also chose the Roman shade’s black-and-white graffiti Pierre Frey fabric. With all that was happening within the area (including artwork), she had a plan for the wall to be neutral. However, the client “cried de coeur: “No white walls!”
“So I added this funky wallpaper,” she adds with a nod to the black and white rectangular-shaped Kelly Wearstler paper. The result? An op-art hyper-layered entranceway that proclaims: “Get ready. This house is sure to be a blast.”
Visitors soon discover that the excitement has just started. The small landing is converted into a large enough bar, one floor higher than the entrance level (which also houses the kitchen, which is a stunning yellow sunflower). “In most townhouses, this area is wasted space, a seating area that nobody ever sits in,” said Colding. The bar is outfitted with custom cabinets, a vintage Italian mirror, and a midnight-blue palm-print wallpaper. The dimly lit bar is reminiscent of a cozy private club or a glamorously chic hotel.
The living room or “salon,” as Colding refers to it. “I envisioned a Truman Capote-type of party with lots of martinis,” she describes the room with white grass-cloth walls and a dazzling curtain of graffiti hanging from the 12-foot ceiling. A set of Art Deco chairs and a sleek custom sofa in electric blue adorn a wall placed above a fireplace made of marble. Contemporary art, such as an abstract canvas created by Mirielle Jefferson, breaks up the wall’s opacity. “In college, I had a black dorm room wall, but I think this is the first time I’ve designed a living room with black walls,” Colding states. “It’s magical at night.”