A Brooklyn Townhouse Is Seamlessly Transformed With European Oak
Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design collaborate to craft a home that celebrates the natural beauty of wood.
Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design collaborate to craft a home that celebrates the natural beauty of wood.
Renovating a home is an opportunity to imbue an existing space with an entirely new character, one that reflects the lives of those who inhabit it. For a young family in Brooklyn, New York, it was also a chance to expand their home to accommodate their growing family. Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design collaborated on the project, transforming the original townhouse into a crafted home that is defined by sweeping planes of seamless wood, finely detailed battens, and immaculate custom millwork.
A new cantilevered stair behind a batten screen was key to a more open, light-filled interior—and it offered a consistent design element that cut through the section of the home. "The wood elements really envelope you and define the space," says architect Ian Starling.
Photo: Eric Petschek
"The original house was quite spare and the layout was very chopped up," recalls Ian Starling, principal of Starling Architecture. "It was mostly white gypsum, without any design features. We were looking for a way to elevate the space, create a feeling of warmth throughout the house, and develop a design language that would tie all of the spaces together."
The solution was found in a palette defined by elegant, light European oak, which was supplied by Madera, who designs and fabricates seamless wood design solutions.
The bespoke timber dining bench allows generous seating and integrated storage. The upholstered back cushions are made from a yellow Rogers & Goffigon fabric with an irregular twisted weave that complements the natural veining in the oak timber. The impressive, tapered dining table is crafted from one slab of walnut by maker Rowan Shaw-Jones and adds an element of drama to the primarily light space.
Photo: Eric Petschek
The clients—a couple in their mid-thirties with three young children—had been living in a two-family townhouse in Brooklyn, New York, for some time, occupying the main house and renting out the garden apartment. The original brief was to combine the house and apartment into a 3,700-square-foot, four-bedroom single-family home and to add a mudroom, work-from-home spaces, and a dining room to accommodate the entire family and guests.
The project took five months to design and was in construction for 10 months, with the interiors developed alongside the architectural scope. "Projects are more successful when conversations around use, function, flow, and shaping spaces are integrated early into materials, millwork, lighting, and furnishings," says interior designer Emily Lindberg on the collaborative process.
Photo: Eric Petschek
See the full story on Dwell.com: A Brooklyn Townhouse Is Seamlessly Transformed With European Oak
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