The hustle is real. Rise and grind, rise and grind. It’s exhilarating, break your back work, that comes with incredible highs and lows. The executive life isn’t always an easy one, but it can be an incredibly rewarding one. Gym, coffee, work, cocktails, work, more coffee, all while snippets of conversations surround you in fifteen minute increments and the ‘real world’ swallows you whole…that is, until you step in the front door.
The minute your key turns that deadbolt and your briefcase drops you should feel an instant calm. There should be a transitional moment where you enter your own version of Alice’s Looking Glass. That’s what home is. Not just an apartment, not just a place to hang your hat and lay your head. The soothing effects of creating a cozy and inviting space that feels just right to you—it’s a priceless way to live.
We’ve curated the best pieces we could find to create a timeless elegant escape in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. Everything has been evaluated via our Tried & True Policy—and yes, that means we had to sleep in the $16,000 Duxiana Bed to make sure it’s worth the price tag (and no, it’s not filled with gold). Here are a few of our favorite things for the ultimate oasis.
Living Room
Where the living happens. This is your first impression space, and where all of the entertaining magic happens. Colleagues, friends, family, you want it to be inviting and warm but not so casual that it’s a throwback to the college dorm. We focused on a few really beautiful pieces of furniture that act as functional pieces of art—as well as being surprisingly comfortable.
The big element here is the Gallery Wall. Yes, Pinterest has instigated this Gallery Wall craze, but do not be fooled by the DIYers. This is a project for the pros—SoHo Picture Framing & Hanging experts are super friendly and incredibly professional if you’re anywhere in the Tri-State Area. iLevel also has a great installation team, and can help design if you’re looking for an extra eye. The alignment, spacing, and leveling are all part of creating the perfect focal wall.
When conceptualizing, don’t forget to leave room for one very important thing: empty space. Filling every square inch of your walls and flooring with decorative baubles and extra frames leaves the space feeling cluttered and cramped. With floor to ceiling windows, let one wall be your visual centerpiece and the Manhattan skyline be the rest.
Our collection is an eclectic mix of a Ralph Steadman/William S. Burroughs collaboration, a George Washington Crossing the Delaware reproduction with our CEO’s likeness in the back of the boat, and a few family heirloom paintings.
1. Massoud McQueen Leather Sofa
This handcrafted beauty from Massoud is more than just a spot to rest your tired behind. We chose this particular sofa because, as the largest item in the living room, it needed to really work with the space and be showcased for its own artistry. Don’t settle for some microfiber Ikea sectional. That’s not what adulting is about. This is the kind of thing that will be handed down to the next generation, because the quality and craftsmanship is just that upstanding. Hardwood frame, leather upholstery, it’s super comfortable for Netflixing and for the occasional sleepover guest who’s had just a bit too much champagne. MSRP $5,999
2. Antique Turkish Oushak Rugs
Nothing says ‘Come on in’ quite like a cozy rug, but there are a crazy amount of cookie cutter options out there. For something truly unique and really beautiful we went for an Oushak Turkish rug. They are celebrated for their understated elegance, distinctive compositions and use of graceful warm hues. Exquisite Rug’s antique weave reproductions are hand knotted by master weavers capturing the spirit of the Oushaks. Spun from 100% New Zealand wool, each rug allows a texture that is super soft and luxurious, setting a standard of excellence to outlast the whims of fashion and become tomorrow’s antiques. MSRP $3,700
3. Scenario Home Table Lamp
What good is a beautiful room if you can’t see anything? We fell in love with these Modern Glam table lamps from Scenario Home that add functional lighting, and a bit of mystery with their drum shade shadows. The brand specializes in highly-curated, luxury home décor shopping experiences, featuring only products and brands that reflect an extraordinary sense of style & refined taste. So, whether you’re working with an interior designer or not, you have access to the most exquisite home décor available, and are empowered to create dramatic spaces that everyone will enjoy. MSRP $213.40
4. Butterfly Console Table
Tables need to be more than just a surface to throw other items on. They should be the focus in themselves, and this particular console table from furniture makers Jonathan Charles is a conversation starter. Gorgeously crafted with impeccable attention to detail, it’s a campaign style piece with a strong masculine design aesthetic, from the walnut stand base on bun feet to the black lacquered finish…but look a little closer and you’ll see the whimsical butterflies flitting across from drawer to drawer, willing you to be a bit more fanciful and impulsive in your day to day. MSRP $3,663
5. Matt Williams Canopy Chair
A home without a throne isn’t a home at all. This ‘throne chair’, as we’ve so dubbed it, is a stunning steampunk sort of eighteenth century elegance for the 21st century.
Designed by Matthew Williams and sold through the luxury curators Scenario Home, it’s a gorgeous statement piece that works just as well to curl up and read in as it does to rule Westeros in.
Hand-carved wood construction with a slightly distressed black finish, it’s got that ‘poised but not overdone’ concept down pat.
Super comfy, the canopy aspect gives you that vibe of when you were a child and would drape sheets into a fort. It envelopes you just enough to feel a touch of escape in your own living room. MSRP $1,515.80
6. Jewelry Security Safe
Your house is your castle, your fortress, and therefore your assets and investments within should be protected. Silver bars, gold coins, a watch collection, and personal jewelry all hold a special place in our hearts and often can’t be replaced – especially rare, one-of-a-kind pieces. Brown Safe has a military background with high-security safes and vaults, and combines their protection with luxurious design so you can have a fantasy jewelry box and safe that doesn’t look ugly or clash with the room. They work directly with you to create something extremely bespoke so the entire interior reflects your needs, whether that’s a watcher winder panel or perfectly measured gold brick rows…or both. MSRP $4,040 – $13,960+
7. Antique Antlers
Love them or loathe them, Antlers make a statement. Gone are the days when antlers were consigned to dusty trophy rooms, now they’re used anywhere from a house in the Hamptons to modern high rises. We love the organic shape they instantly bring to a space, and the evocative way they function as dimensional art. Europeancurios is a little shop that specializes in Black Forest carvings and hunting goods dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. The history in every compression of the wood, in the teeth of a gnarly Grizzly head, in the curve of an antler that belonged to a deer so long ago, it brings in a palpable buzz of energy, a reminder of the natural beasts that we are and nod to our ancestral history. MSRP $59-$1,000+
Bed Room
Okay, so plenty of living happens here as well. The bed room is perhaps the best important space for your emotional well-being—it’s where you rest, recover, restructure yourself. It’s intimate. It should be a cherished space, with attention to detail wherever possible.
You know how you always get the best night’s sleep at a really luxurious hotel? That’s what we aimed for when we created this elegant cocoon. Of course daily life will impact the look and feel—but there are ways to give yourself that sense of release in a space, that deep excited stretch and sigh when you awake surrounded by a fluffy down duvet and crisp, clean lines everywhere. Sleeping on the world’s most expensive bed helps too.
8. Jonathan Charles Gilded Mirror
It’s an age old trick, bringing a mirror into a smaller space to reflect light and open up a room…but it’s not a cliché.
It really works, the key is making sure it’s a mirror that won’t just live on the wall but add to the décor and feel of the room.
Jonathan Charles has taken the hand crafted technique they use in their furniture to create pieces like this Napoleonic style gilded rectangular mirror.
Based on an original piece from 1810, the very finely detailed hand carved decoration throughout, laurel wreath to the top, and lyre-capped columns to the sides, all come together to create a stunning piece of art that happens to show you just how sharp you’re looking that day (or how badly you need to hit the gym. It’s not a magic mirror). MSRP $2,595
9. Duxiana Bed & Mattress
Duxiana is considered the ‘Aston Martin’ of the sleep world. The DUX Bed is the result of advanced sleep research and technology, combined with traditional Swedish craftsmanship. It’s the Quintessential State-of-the-Art Sleep System. Each spring is a mechanical wonder, manufactured to exacting specifications for optimal mattress support. The design is striking in itself—everything about the actual bed, mattress, leather legs, all scream ‘Show me off!’. This isn’t the type of bedroom set you throw a bed skirt and cover up with sheets. The leather piping around the mattress edge is so beautiful you’ll never even want to make the bed. So, is the bed worth the price tag? If you want to feel like goddamn royalty it is. MSRP $11,540+
10. Zena Zebra-Print Accent Chair
Every space needs a ‘Je Ne Sais Quoi’ piece. Something a bit eclectic that is just a bit too far out there but you’ve had some wine and you’ve always like the concept of being zany so you order from Horchow at 3am and in a few weeks this beauty shows up. It’s a lovely juxtaposition, with a super classic and rather detailed mahogany frame with nailhead trim paired with a completely unexpected zebra print. It’s got a bit of a warrior vibe to it, and Massoud once again does not disappoint on the comfort level. They really specialize in truly beautiful furniture that you want to spend time in, and after many many cups of coffee in these, we can say without a doubt that this is the chair to wake up and watch the world go by in. MSRP $3,499
11. Sunpan Miriam Nightstand
To optimize the space and keep furniture from blocking out those incredible windows, we went for a nightstand turned dresser with Sunpan’s super mod and chic Miriam Nightstand. The piece adds character, while giving a juxtaposition of mod meets 17th century beneath the lavish gilded mirror. Having something to hide all the clutter in (and let’s face it, we all have clutter) is essential to at least pretend you have the super crisp clean photoshoot ready bedroom of everyone’s dreams. MSRP $1,028.00
12. Matouk Alpaca Throw
The best way to cozy up in a space is to have something to cozy up with. Matouk specializes in timeless bedding created from ultra-luxe materials—their Cordoba 100% Baby Alpaca blanket is warm and insulating but without that weighted feeling, sort of like cold-weather layering for your body. Or at least a good compromise when the AC is blasting but you want to be under the covers simultaneously. The granite color lends itself to a sophisticated setting beautifully, and helps complete that ‘hotel bedroom’ feel. MSRP $1,150
13. Diane James Silk Flowers
One of the most elegant finishing touches you can put on a home is having fresh cut blooms out. It is the ultimate icing on the cake, the cherry in luxury home living. But the fact that most of us do this rise and grind in a concrete jungle means that it’s not super realistic to always have a perfect-never-wilting bouquet on display. Personally, we’ve never thought that silk flowers could be a solution—images of A.C. Moore’s very mediocre craft sections came to mind. Well, Diane James Home has proved us immensely wrong. They create ultra-luxe blooms you can enjoy the constant beauty of fresh cut buds year round, regardless of season or ‘black thumb’ syndrome. MSRP $320
14. Olivia Riegel Crystal Accents
We don’t really ever need a reason to pop open a bottle of Dom on a Tuesday, but these glasses from Olivia Riegel are a good excuse if you do. The Crystal Sinclair pewter flutes are hand- set with hundreds of sparkling Swarovski® crystals, to make those bubbles look even more delectable. Nothing takes the stress out of a long workday quite like pouring a little celebration into a glass and admiring the vessel as you toast with someone special. A few delicate coordinating frames, hand-set with those same clear Swarovski® crystals, allow for a stunning space to display your affection for your furbabies and gives a touch of sparkle in all the right ways. MSRP $235+
