Step inside this Upper East Side jewel box apartment

Traditionally, the Upper East Side has been an old society stomping ground; the moniker conjures images of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Bloomingdales, Rockefellers and Roosevelts. But, for the first time in some time (let’s not forget that this was the home of Andy Warhol’s Factory, a hotbed for artists, musicians and celebrities in the 1960s), the monied youth are moving in. After years of being considered the preserve of bankers and barons, the Upper East Side is experiencing a vibe shift.

One new recruit to the neighbourhood is Annie, whose Lexington Avenue apartment was dressed by her interior designer brother, Charlie Ferrer, and his eponymous studio. ‘She relayed to me what she wanted, and we amassed a library of reference images that served as the ‘vision board’ for the project,’ says Ferrer. ‘When we were in motion, she deferred to and trusted me, knowing my team and I would bring her into decisions.’

A world of colour

The apartment bursts with colour, but doesn’t feel loud. Palettes are meticulous and deliberate: every shade in the Arthur Laidlaw painting hung in the living room, for instance, is picked up in a vintage rug, silk pillows, an enormous bunch of hydrangeas... The ZAK+FOX wallpaper and plaster ceiling are different shades of blue, just to add an extra layer of interest.

‘We used a lot of colour, but none of it is random,’ says Ferrer. ‘I thought about the colour as being reflective of Annie’s easygoing personality – using happy hues and warm tones throughout – and made sure each room’s palette married with adjacent spaces. The result is a home that’s harmonious and cheerful without being overwhelming.’

The hallway is a continuation of the ruby and sapphire living room, with the floral wallpaper pairing with a bright red Carlo di Carli cabinet. As you retreat to the bedroom, the brilliant palette softens to pastel, with wall coverings of the palest green and a floral Loro Piana blanket draped across the bed.

The bathroom gleams amethyst, both in the cabinetry and the mauve veins of the honed stone. The kitchen is a rare haven of neutrals, warmed by pink polished stone splashbacks, while the entryway is all autumnal browns and pinks. ‘Even though I abhorred colour early in my career, I’ve come to realise my aversion to it was rooted in fear and steering clear of something I didn’t understand,’ says Ferrer. ‘Now that I am more practiced, I feel confident in using colour.’

Layering up

There seems to be no limit to the number of disparate patterns, shapes and elements that Ferrer will apply to one space, but there’s method in the madness. ‘I allowed myself to be playful without compromising the timelessness I desired to capture,’ he says. ‘I wouldn’t say [the apartment] is definitionally maximalist, but it does dabble in maximalism’s reflection of reality as at-times chaotic, but rhythmic and beautiful in its disarray.’

In the office space, floral wallpaper is paired, somewhat improbably, with a desk chair reupholstered in leopard print fabric (with an 18th-century painting hung on the wall for good measure). Similarly, in the entryway, one might think that an embellished ceiling and walls might lay the foundations for pared-back lighting and decor, but not in Ferrer’s playbook: ornate wall lights and a stool custom-upholstered by his studio join the fray.

‘When designing Annie’s apartment, I found myself thinking of [furniture designer] Miles Redd, an inspiration to me as someone who embeds his approach to life in the rooms he creates, with surprising yet organic juxtapositions of patterns, colours and broader styles,’ says Ferrer. ‘I tried to embrace the apartment with a similar lightness.’

A sense of time and place

The profusion of objects in the apartment are sourced from all over the world and from various different time periods. ‘My sister wanted the apartment to feel inviting and cosy, somewhere she’d want to nest. My interpretation of her request was to lean into layering – not just in applying patterns, color and texture, but also in widening the mix of historical references to include the French, Italian and Dutch, along with the English,’ says Ferrer.

The vintage rug in the living room hails from East Turkestan; the vase lamp from the Persian Safavid Dynasty (1501–1736), and the vintage glass chandelier from Italy. In the hallway, a magnificent antique mirror is flanked by vintage Italian sconces, and in the entryway, a 1930s/40s French stool sits on a rug from Western Turkey.

This is a space that’s not afraid to lean on the trusted tenets of classical design, while never straying into ‘fusty’ territory. It’s a clever play on the vintage Upper East Side apartments of yesteryear, and the perfect metaphor for the neighbourhood’s rising profile.

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