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Livingetc has published a retrospective of eight New York brownstone homes, focusing on renovations that combine period architecture with contemporary interiors. The report identifies several designers, neighborhoods and design choices, but the supplied material gives detailed descriptions for only six of the eight homes.
The homes range from a 1901 South Slope brownstone designed by Crystal Sinclair to a Victorian residence in Park Slope where Studio Nato retained bright-white crown molding. In Fort Greene, Home Studios reworked a brownstone whose many past renovations had left few original features, creating a more open, light-filled family home. The feature also visits designer Athena Calderone’s early-1900s Cobble Hill home, where historic forms are set against modern furnishings and carefully chosen color.
In Bedford-Stuyvesant, Jordan Slocum and Barry Bordelon, known as The Brownstone Boys, renovated a three-story family home. They kept walls and ceilings white to draw attention to the property’s original details, while using furniture and decor to add color and texture. Another project described is a 3,500-square-foot brownstone in Fort Greene’s historic district, designed by architecture studio BarlisWedlick for a growing family. The team opened up confined spaces and sought to bring more light into the home while retaining its historic character.
The supplied report excerpt names eight homes, but provides substantive descriptions for only six. It gives no complete list of the remaining properties or full details of their design work. The article’s examples nevertheless show different renovation conditions: some homes retain prominent original features, while others had already been substantially altered.
Historic Details Meet Family Living
The feature offers readers concrete examples of how owners and designers adapt older urban homes for contemporary use. The projects described range from retaining crown molding and fireplaces to changing floor plans, illustrating that renovation choices depend partly on how much of a home’s original fabric survives.
That distinction matters to homeowners, design professionals and readers considering historic properties: preservation is not a single approach. In one case, Studio Nato used white walls to keep elaborate molding prominent; in another, Home Studios had room to substantially rework a house after earlier renovations had removed many original features. The report presents these as project-specific decisions, not as a universal renovation formula.
Brownstones also carry a broader architectural and housing history. The source describes brownstone as a sandstone used as a more affordable alternative to marble and limestone, and notes that these homes later became sought-after properties. The renovations therefore speak both to changing domestic needs and to the continued value placed on the city’s historic housing stock.
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From Sandstone Facades to Renovations
Brownstone is a type of brown sandstone used on building façades. According to the Livingetc feature, builders turned to it in the late 18th and early 19th centuries as a less expensive alternative to marble and limestone. The material became widely used in New York homes, many of which are associated today with details such as arched windows and carved ornament.
The feature says brownstones lost favor during the 20th century as architectural tastes changed, before becoming highly prized again. Its focus is not on a new building policy or a market report, but on eight interior and renovation projects drawn from Livingetc’s archives. The described examples include homes dating from the 19th century and the early 1900s, with designers working within a range of preservation conditions.
““We let the architecture and original features of this house speak for themselves with a nice, clean white paint on the walls and ceilings. It emphasizes the richness of the original details.””
— Jordan Slocum and Barry Bordelon, The Brownstone Boys
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Two Homes Lack Full Descriptions
The supplied source material does not identify or describe two of the eight homes in enough detail to report their designers, locations or renovation choices. It also does not specify the feature’s publication date, the budgets for the projects, or whether the work involved formal historic-preservation approvals.
The account is a design feature, not an independent assessment of construction quality, costs, property values or the long-term effects of the renovations. Its characterizations of the homes as beautiful, luxurious or sought-after reflect the publication’s framing; the material provided includes no market data to quantify those descriptions.
decorative fireplace mantel for historic home
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The Full Eight-Home Feature
Readers seeking the complete list and additional photographs can consult Livingetc’s original feature, which links to individual home tours. The supplied excerpt does not state whether further projects or follow-up reporting are planned. No policy decision, sale or construction milestone is presented as an upcoming development.
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Key Questions
What did Livingetc publish?
Livingetc published a feature showcasing eight New York brownstones and describing how designers combine historic architecture with contemporary interiors. The source material supplied here gives detailed accounts of six homes.
Which neighborhoods are included in the descriptions?
The described projects are in South Slope, Park Slope, Fort Greene, Cobble Hill and Bedford-Stuyvesant, all in Brooklyn.
Which original features do the designers preserve?
Examples include crown molding, arched doorways, window frames, staircases and fireplaces. The approach varies by home, and one Fort Greene property reportedly had few original features left after earlier renovations.
Who designed the homes highlighted in the source material?
The names and firms provided include Crystal Sinclair, Studio Nato, Home Studios, Athena Calderone, The Brownstone Boys and BarlisWedlick.
Are all eight homes described in the supplied report?
No. The source excerpt provides substantial details about six projects but does not give full descriptions of the other two.
Source: rss
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