Downtown Brooklyn

Accessories Designer Creates Suave DIY Haven in Downtown Brooklyn

Photo by Yunhee Kim for Lonny Mid-century touches and a warm minimalist aesthetic come together in this designer’s home. Owen Wright began renting the Downtown Brooklyn loft more than a decade ago. Within the first two years, he completely redesigned the layout — building two partial-height walls to separate the kitchen from the living area, and the living…

by Barbara Eldredge

10/26/2015 3

Photo by Yunhee Kim for Lonny

Mid-century touches and a warm minimalist aesthetic come together in this designer’s home.

Owen Wright began renting the Downtown Brooklyn loft more than a decade ago. Within the first two years, he completely redesigned the layout — building two partial-height walls to separate the kitchen from the living area, and the living area from the bedroom.

But the space didn’t reach its current level of elegance until Wright’s boyfriend, Adam Davidson — accessories designer and creator of minimalist accessories store AANDD — moved in. Together, the duo created a warm and dapper apartment where every object has a story.

Both the red 1960s fireplace and the dining room’s Renzo Rutili-designed credenza were found on Craigslist. The enormous George Nelson pendant light above the table was salvaged from a shuttering architecture firm. The coffee table was handmade by Wright.

“It’s our natural inclination to make something rather than buy it,” Wright told Lonny.

The vintage furniture and warm grey palette of the 1,000-square-foot space give it hint of retro-chic — like the lingering scent of pipe tobacco.

Wright painted the portrait of Karl Lagerfeld as a gift for Davidson. They found the dresser at Goodwill and got the gorgeous bent wood chair from a friend.

Davidson created his work table from a laminated door sitting atop IKEA table legs.

The dining set was another thrift store find. The gouache ink painting on the credenza is by Wright.

The kitchen cabinets and sink are from IKEA.

This area — where the living room meets the kitchen — illustrates the loft’s core color palette: the warmth of terra cotta and wood combined with medium grey and white.