Home Design with Kevin Sharkey

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There's being out in New York City and then there's going out in Manhattan.

The later can be a lot of fun (re: late night) and quite exhausting (re: late night) but also awe-inspiring. So it was no surprise that I had a lot of fun the other night at the Boom Boom Room, the penthouse bar of Andre Balasz¹s Standard Hotel, and decided on a little 70s decadence for my apartment in homage to this new hotspot. I mean, anyone who is anyone was there and I hate to namedrop.

Aside from the jaw-dropping 360-degree views out of the floor-to-ceiling windows (in the bathroom, too, which takes some getting used to), the Boom Boom Room interior feels like a mix between Studio 54 and the Towering Inferno (love that movie). The cream-colored leather banquettes are the exact shade I'd like to use for my living room upholstery and maybe even my dining room chairs (remember to ask someone at the hotel about cleaning white leather in such a high traffic area). While I love the look and feel of the space, I may not opt for a hot tub in the middle of the room (yes, the club boasts one) but I do wish for a set of the bar's champagne coups...divine.

I have been making my staff crazy trying to find an image of the private dining room at Chanel in Paris that I saw months ago in a German magazine.

It is so rare that I don't immediately file inspiring images but this one must have fallen through the cracks. Finally, Eric Pike, MSL's Editorial and Creative Director, found the original tear sheet in his inspiration folder and it is as gorgeous as I remembered.

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Shot by Francois Baudot, the space, designed by Karl Lagerfeld, reminds me of a take on Chanel's famous mirrored staircase. There is no doubt that this idea will find its way into my final apartment design. I am thinking of stacking thin, bronze-framed mirrors above the console in the living room to reflect the view and add some glamour. Thank you, Karl.  And thank you, Eric Pike, who first brought the idea to my attention a few years ago and found it after all this time.

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1 A narrow end cabinet, located above a prep area and near my cook top, is the perfect spot for my cookbook collection. A bookstand lets me to prop open a cookbook and follow the recipe as I cook.

2 The cabinet above the cook top houses a fan and vent that creates small cubbies perfect for storing cooking oils, spices, wraps, storage bags and other small kitchen tools.

3 On both sides of the kitchen, there are the deep narrow corner cabinets. Martha and I thought they were perfect for storing my stemware.

4 A pull out pantry holds all of my staples. It's fully stocked with everything I need thanks to Martha.

5 This idea did run in the article but I thought I would give you a more detailed view. The cabinet above my refrigerator is the perfect place for my flower arranging supplies.

6 My absolute favorite feature! A drawer, installed in the toe kick under my sink cabinet, holds a folding step stool from Polder (polder.com). I pull it out when needed and when I'm finished, it goes back into the drawer.

Hope you had an opportunity to see my kitchen renovation in the November issue of Martha Stewart Living and also in my previous blog posts. There are many great ideas that I'm sure will inspire you.  Many times, as is the case with my kitchen, we are not able to show everything in the magazine due to a limited amount of space.  So, I thought it would be fun to share with you some of the ideas that were not featured in the article and give you a little behind the scenes peek.