{"id":249625,"date":"2026-05-31T14:50:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T14:50:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/249625\/"},"modified":"2026-05-31T14:50:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T14:50:17","slug":"a-brooklyn-brownstone-lovingly-restored-whispers-instead-of-shouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/249625\/","title":{"rendered":"A Brooklyn Brownstone, Lovingly Restored, Whispers Instead of Shouts"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated3 min read<\/p>\n

When the couple first hired ELLE Decor A-list designer Mark Cunningham<\/a>, it was to decorate their loft in Manhattan\u2019s Noho neighborhood. Cunningham liked them immediately and they collaborated easily, though the wife told him they wouldn\u2019t be living in the apartment for long. When their family expanded, they were going to move to a brownstone in Brooklyn. \u201cShe had a plan of exactly how she wanted her life to go,\u201d Cunningham says. \u201cThat\u2019s just the kind of person that she is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sure enough, a few years ago, the wife called up Cunningham and his firm\u2019s longtime design director, Alex Gaston, and told them she had found a house, an 1840s brownstone in Cobble Hill. She asked if they would they come see it with her.<\/p>\n

\"BrightMax Burkhalter<\/p>\n

In the entryway, a lantern from Jamb hangs over an Irish Slim table by Howe.<\/p>\n

The house, they all agreed, was special, rife with original details. But to be the home she and her husband envisioned for their family of five, it would need a substantial update. \u201cShe realized quickly that it was a bigger project than she had thought it would be,\u201d says Gaston. \u201cAnd at the same time she wanted to respect the character and the history of what was there, a lot of which was good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cunningham recommended that they bring on architect Gil Schafer,<\/a> another ELLE Decor A-Lister, who is known for residential design that is deeply rooted in history. Schafer was immediately enamored with the house. \u201cIt was kind of amazing\u2014there was some federal there and maybe some colonial revival details,\u201d he says of seeing it for the first time. \u201cThe parlor floor was just perfect. It was sort of a dream to see all the original millwork.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ModernMax Burkhalter<\/p>\n

In the library, the Alta brass dome light is by Lawson-Fenning. The antique clerk\u2019s cabinet was acquired by Cunningham for the clients\u2019 Manhattan loft, their first collaboration.<\/p>\n

Cunningham and Schafer had not worked together before, but they fell into an easy partnership. Known for rooms that have a hushed, unfussy elegance (he honed his casual-luxury approach during 15 years with Ralph Lauren), Cunningham\u2019s style was well suited to Schafer\u2019s classicism. The architect\u2019s plans called for expanding the back of the first floor to accommodate a larger kitchen and upgrading the mechanicals, windows, flooring, and bathrooms, but doing little else that would change the footprint or feel of the house. Schafer calls his approach \u201cstrategic restoration.\u201d<\/p>\n

The client\u2019s directive to the team was all about simplicity. \u201cShe didn’t want to trick out anything,\u201d says Schafer. \u201cNot a lot of bells and whistles, no overdoing anything.\u201d It was refreshing, agrees Gaston, to work with someone who had no interest in extra features. \u201cThere are all these people who need 17 fridges and 800 televisions,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s just gotten so out of control. She just wanted to enjoy the space for what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe didn’t want to trick out anything,\u201d says architect Gil Schafer. \u201cNot a lot of bells and whistles, no overdoing anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pared-back approach included a prohibition against window treatments (\u201cShe doesn\u2019t like them,\u201d says Cunningham). They restored the shutters, original to the house, for light control and privacy. The rugs they chose\u2014mostly jute and sisal, something of a Cunningham signature\u2014provided a neutral base. As for furniture, Cunningham repurposed sofas and tables from the Noho loft and filled in gaps with a few strategic pieces. The clients\u2019 art collection was central to their plans. It was more contemporary than the furniture, and neutral walls offset the paintings, prints, and photographs.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe said she didn’t want it to feel decorated\u2014she didn’t want it to feel so done or dyed to match,\u201d says Gaston.<\/p>\n

The parlor floor\u2019s living room, dining room, and kitchen flow into each other but were preserved as distinct spaces, their high ceilings and molding doing the work of adding drama. The team didn\u2019t add overhead lights (that would have been an anachronism), instead choosing sconces and lamps. The dining room\u2019s formality is softened by comfortable seating in the corners and a creamy, yellow-toned wallpaper. \u201cShe wanted the kids to do their homework there and hang out there and she didn’t want it to feel stuffy,\u201d says Gaston.<\/p>\n

\"ElegantMax Burkhalter<\/p>\n

The dining room wallcovering is Peony by TylerGraphic. The antique Venetian mirror is from Demiurge New York. The table was already in the clients\u2019 collection.<\/p>\n

Upstairs are a library and bedrooms, which the clients wanted simple and serene. \u201cWe talked about how we grew up in a world where kids didn\u2019t have walk-in closets or ensuite bathrooms,\u201d laughs Gaston. \u201cShe had no problem with them having an old painted dresser and the 30-inch wide closet that was already there.\u201d<\/p>\n

On a recent visit, Gaston noticed that the kids had put stickers on a painted Swedish dresser. \u201cShe\u2019s like, \u2018Do it. You\u2019re kids, it\u2019s cool, you can live here.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Take a Tour of a Greek Revival Brooklyn Townhouse\"AOpen Gallery\"\"\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Elizabeth Angell is a journalist and editor who writes about style, travel, parenting, and the British Royal Family. She has written for The New York Times and Town & Country and was most recently the Editor in Chief of Romper. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her family.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"3 min read When the couple first hired ELLE Decor A-list designer Mark Cunningham, it was to decorate…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":249626,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,1380,97477,569,83931,568,9,24,63,67524,97476,50637],"class_list":["post-249625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-content-type-feature","tag-contentid-9f9d8d0f-5db2-4d4e-a472-9075084041d0","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-issyndicated-false","tag-locale-us","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-read_time-6","tag-shorttitle-inside-a-lovingly-restored-brooklyn-brownstone","tag-subsection-house-tours"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/249626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}