Part 1: When One Door Opens…

Written by Jaqui Lividini

To my eye the most unsightly item in my new apartment (apart from the black marble bathrooms) were the lower level landing closets.  The ceiling in the stairwell is quite high so the doors are an impressive 10ft. floor to ceiling. When you walk down the stairs it’s the first focal point.  I understand the look the original designer was going for —  a modern mid-century look (note: these were designed before mid-century was a thing!), with 6 frameless doors.   When in a closed position the eye was fooled into seeing a complete wall. However, after years of painting, repainting, cracks and chips, this very modern look was more dull than daring and the eye was not fooled at all. What to do? It would be quite an investment to replace the doors, but ultimately it had to be put on the “to-do” list if I was ever going to use the lower level.  

Lesson #1 - If you can’t live with it, find a solution, you’ll never be happy in the space until you do. My “door” epiphany came when searching for wallpaper for our 2 bedrooms.  Charles Riley, my friend and designer, found a fabulous paper (at Anthropology, a great resource for decorative items BTW) that happened to come in vertical sheets the same size as the doors .  The paper was a perfect and very economical solution, and it was not a compromise at all, the best type of solution for sure. 

Lesson #2 - Always search for the lowest cost solution possible that still fits into your aesthetic. 

So we were all set! The paper was purchased, the wallpaper hanger was scheduled and then — the water came! 

I’m not going to go into detail about the 1st flood in my apartment on this post, but needless to say it completely disrupted my entire renovation.

Lesson #3 - Never get too attached to a design idea, the minute you do, the GODS will laugh…