As hordes of New Yorkers fled to the suburbs in spring 2020, Meredith Winfrey decided to put down roots in the city. The beauty publicist and her husband purchased the bare-bones second floor of a once-industrial condo building in Red Hook, Brooklyn, with the goal of transforming it into a cozy family home. “We wanted to be here for the long haul,” she avows.
The couple fell in love with the natural light, high ceilings, and exposed brick in the corner unit, but it was lacking a key element: Walls. Aside from a few temporary dividers, the 1,000-square-foot apartment was completely open. “It had a really good feel to it, but it was not functional,” Meredith remembers. “There wasn’t a single closet.”
Luckily, Meredith had a vision for a layout that would maximize the space and include as much storage as possible. She consulted with Aria Jahanshahi from Opa, who confirmed her instincts, made tweaks to the plan, and drew up blueprints. “He helped me with the technical side, which is not something I knew about because I have no professional experience,” she explains.
Meredith also learned that the existing timber floors were actually subfloors, so she added a sound barrier and a new layer of pine on top. She then painted the wood a warm, chalky hue, and sheathed the walls in a creamy tone. “I like a lot of colors and patterns, so I wanted there to be something very neutral,” she says. “I didn’t want it to all be so bright and crazy. The white floors and walls felt like a good way to balance it out.”
The fun starts in the entry, where Robert Kime’s Sunburst Terracotta wallpaper welcomes anyone who sets foot in the place. The playful orange and navy motif is complemented by a series of Dutch blue doors that lead to two bedrooms and a clever closet that hides the water heater, coats, shoes, and more.
The strong shade of blue carries into the kitchen, which is helmed by a custom-crafted pantry and cabinets adorned with minimal brass hardware from DeVol. Meredith sourced the six Bum dining chairs from the British maker, too. “They’re so beautiful and very, very simple,” she says. “I think that’s the hardest thing to find, simple things that are done really well.”
In the adjacent living room, an L-shaped sofa upholstered in brown-and-ivory gingham fabric steals the show. The piece was once two separate couches that Meredith bought at the ABC Carpet & Home outlet and then had combined by an artisan named Juvenal Sanchez, who’s known for his furniture wizardry. He also built the accompanying ottoman, which features a contrasting striped and paisley print.
The home’s only bathroom packs a punch, as well, with Carrara marble, paneled walls, and seafoam green Heath Ceramics tiles that Meredith skillfully snagged at an online sample sale. “It felt like a risk and kind of unusual to put it on the floor, but it’s one of my favorite things about the apartment,” she shares.
With vintage rugs peppered throughout, there’s no shortage of visual intrigue. “It’s pretty eclectic, comfortable, lived-in, and a bit weird,” Meredith says. “I like having a couple ugly things around to keep it feeling a little interesting and real.” Ugly? No way. Interesting? Most definitely.
