Caryn Schacht and her husband instantly fell in love with this striking space in the historic Studio Building on the Upper West Side. Designed in 1904 and later occupied by famed architect Charles A. Platt, the apartments – with double-height ceilings and tall windows – were tailored for the artists who would live there, allowing for ample light.
As the noted principal of her mother’s eponymous custom furniture showroom Lorin Marsh, Schacht was the perfect occupant to tackle a redesign. The duplex hadn’t been reconditioned in over 30 years, and Schacht knew to turn to designer Michael Rosenberg. “We have been friends for decades,” she notes. “We’ve always seen eye to eye.”
With Rosenberg and architect Stephen Wang on board, the team changed the layout of the space: retiring the outdated library on the first floor and the cloak room on the second floor, building a cozy eat-in family kitchen, and reconfiguring the space to make a third bedroom upstairs.
HIGH AND MIGHTY | Redoing the living room with its mile-high ceilings proved to be a top challenge from the get-go.
“I got the lighting fixture from a Miami antique dealer,” explains the designer. “It came from a cathedral in Italy. I had to re-electrify it, but it was just right. There’s nothing worse than under scaling in a room this large.” On another note, the original mantel was replaced with an impressive limestone fireplace.
Rosenberg points out another striking detail: “The living room ceiling is beamed, and between those beams are old, restored gold-leaf paintings. I mean, it’s almost like the Sistine Chapel, with Michelangelo lying on his back to paint it.”
COLOR ME CALM | Schacht wanted calm and comfort in that spacious room.
“I love the big, plush sofas with down cushions and deep seats,” she notes. She was also drawn to soothing “paper bag” neutrals: earthy, warm browns, beiges, tans and camels.
“We did very heavy braided hemp on the walls because the room is so large and Caryn likes textures,” adds Rosenberg.
Photography Courtesy of Joshua Mchugh.
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