Transitions aren’t easy. New jobs, new babies, new homes can all be a daunting task, so when Michelle Sabin’s clients with two young children bought a tired Queen Anne in Irvington, NY, the thought of renovating the large home’s oversized rooms felt a daunting task to the new homeowners. But with an expert eye and some design know-how, Sabin transitioned the rooms from dated and daunting to fresh and luxurious.
“The house has very traditional, heavy bones and I love that about it, but it’s nice to have a contrast to that when you are decorating,” says Sabin, co-founder and partner at Sabin Viehland Interior Design in Bethlehem, CT. Her clients loved Scandinavian design and wanted a soothing color palette, so Sabin started by removing dated floral wallpapers and painting walls and trim in clean neutral shades of white, off-white and blue/gray. They removed heavy valances and drapes and chose lighter white linen drapes on a simple brass rod. “I was creating a sort of shell,” says Sabin of her color and drape choices. “It allows the curtains to sort of fade into the walls and allows you to do something bolder on the furniture.” Throughout the home, Sabin wove a palette laden with blues and greens and sprinkled with pops of pink and red for a color scheme that was fresh, playful and relaxed.
The family had inherited some furniture pieces from the previous owners and brought in a few family heirlooms of their own, which Sabin weaved in seamlessly and, where needed, refreshed with custom upholstery, like an antique wooden bench for which she had a French ticking stripe cushion made, and the living room side chair she had upholstered in a striking Christopher Farr floral. In the three-season room, the bamboo seating came with the house, but Sabin reupholstered it in a blue and green leaf print from Christopher Farr. “It’s a Scandinavian, exuberant floral pattern that goes with the other things we picked for the house,” says Sabin.
In the adjacent living room and dining room, blue, green and ruby tones come together with ease. The second-hand dining table has a historic feel that suits the Queen Anne home, but Sabin had it stained darker and had it retrofitted with custom brass inlay that give it a trendy yet timeless BDDW vibe. She paired it with Scandinavian modern chairs from Gubi and modern art set on plexiglass. The navy Serena & Lily rug underfoot gives the effect of Hennah or embroidery, tying old and new together.
Floral wallpapers are having a moment right now and seem well-suited for a historic Queen Anne, so once the home’s color scheme was lightened and brightened, Sabin added back in a few floral moments with a more intentional, modern perspective. “If the overall palette of the ceilings and walls is neutral, you can get away with pattern in the furniture and use heavy or bright patterns in smaller spaces,” says Sabin. The entry vestibule was one such moment. The small pass-through to the large entry hall welcomes you with a graphic Wallpaper Varlockor in a Jospef Frank floral from Svensk Tenn. In the hallway, Sabin preserved the glass and brass ceiling lanterns and paired them with an octagonal pedestal table from Scholten Baijing and a selection of textured white vases from Cym Warkov. Over the antique hall bench, Sabin juxtaposed custom artwork set on plexiglass, which she commissioned by a local artist. On the walls of the grand staircase and winding upstairs hall, Sabin selected the Schumacher Blommen wallpaper set on a creamy white that looks like a hand-drawn sketch rather than a stodgy antique print. “The more graphic black and white pattern is kind of joyful and made the hallway brighter,” says Sabin of the strange upstairs hall with funky corners and turns. She paired the neutral print with vintage Turkish rugs found on Etsy. “They just work really well together,” she adds. “It’s got a lot of personality.”
The homeowners loved references to nature, so Sabin created a soothing primary bedroom for the couple by color-washing the room in a warm white, selecting soft natural fabrics like linen shades, cotton sheets and chunky knitted throw pillows, and adding details all referencing nature: a black and white forest photograph hangs above the bed, a large jar is filled with branches and the one touch of color in the room is a side chair from Josef Frank upholstered in a bright and graphic fern leaf print.
Floral details are trending, but Sabin advises using florals sparingly and with purpose to keep your design modern. “A lot of traditional floral motifs are not what people want these days,” says Sabin, who recalls the more traditional approach of choosing one period to decorate with, for example French Provencial or Georgian, and doing the whole house with matching patterns and heavy wallpapers. “Lots of the paint colors we chose I would say are even Nordic-inspired,” says Sabin. “The house is clean and has enough new elements to balance the traditional moldings and details.”
