Bachelor Pad
by habituallychic
05 . 06 . 08
My friend finally asked me to help him decorate his apartment recently and I couldn’t be more excited! I’ve been mentally redecorating his place since I first saw it a few years ago so it’s not going to be that hard since I already have a plan in my head! I had to show him some concepts though since he can’t read my mind so I pulled some of my favorite masculine apartments from some of my favorite male designers.
I love the apartment that Todd Romano designed for Robert Burke so that was first up. I’m looking for paint colors now and I recently read that Romano likes Donald Kaufman DKC-7 a putty color for living rooms and I wonder if it’s the color he used here. It looks perfect.
I’ve already been on the look out for interesting chairs since I told my friend that I wanted his place to look like he inherited pieces from his family or picked them up on his travels.
I’m also planning to add a console to his entry that leads directly into his living room. He needs a place to drop keys and bags but it still has to look inviting when you enter. I love Todd Romanos console and chairs above but I’m thinking about a more streamlined piece.
My friend’s step mother is a pretty famous photographer and I’m going to talk to her soon about including some of her black and white photos in the apartment. He also got very excited when I mentioned that he needed a bar. David Jimenez has a small one in his room above but I think my friend needs something a little bigger.
David Netto always gets the mix of modern and traditional perfect and I’d like to incorporate some of his ideas into my plan since my friend has a dark mid-century leather sofa and glass coffee table that we are keeping. I don’t think you need to have a blank slate for good design and I don’t mind working them into the scheme. 
I’m on the fence though about the current rectangular dining table though. The living room is huge and sort of L-shaped so you see everything. I’m trying to work with it but I keep toying with the idea of finding a round table. There are already a lot of angles in the space.
I love Frederic Malle‘s modern round table and antique chairs. I am also looking for a console for the bar that will be in the dining area but I also like the bookshelves idea. We’ll see.
I love this antique chair and interesting stool in an apartment designed by Robert Passal.
He also designed this room in the same apartment with gorgeous dark walls and artwork. I wish my friend had a study that I could paint really dark but since it’s all open that’s not an option.
Antony Todd is a style genius and I love the color of the walls in his entry hall. This is one of the colors I’m also leaning toward. He also likes Asian art so I’m definitely going to take him to my favorite hidden source for great vintage statues and accessories.
My friend has a long entrance hall similar to this which is calling out for a console and chairs.
I’ve already sourced some great vintage furniture but I can’t wait to start buying up accessories to create “tablescapes” and vingettes. I also wonder if proping up art against the walls would work. After we buy some of course.
I was thinking about adding the task style lamps from my previous post beside the bed but I then I saw these glass lamps in Antony Todd’s room. They might be a good option to lighten things up.
I think we are going to keep my friend’s wooden bed so it’s too bad we can’t hang striped wallpaper like Todd Romano did in Robert Burke’s bedroom. I think a man’s apartment is a great first solo project since I hate overly girly things and dispise pink!
My friend has five closets in his apartment and I am terribly jealous of this fact! Right now they are a bit of a mess and in need of a little TLC. I’m not sure if they will ever look this perfect but it’s worth a shot to try. I’m not even sure he has enough clothes for all them so I may have to look into renting space in some of them!
Needless to say, I am very excited to help my friend turn his bachelor pad into a sophisticated grown up apartment especially since he just started his own company and deserves a nice place to come home to after a stressful day. And I look forward to taking you all along for the ride!
25 Comments
it’s going to be fabulous! your friend is lucky to have you designing it seems like you’ve already done quite a bit of work!
very exciting, can’t wait to see what you do!
Congratulations on the new assignment! Very exciting. I wish someone would ask me to decorate their apartment!
Suzy, I can’t wait until I have photos to post. You will die when you see what it looks like now!
Maison21, You have no idea how much woek I’ve been doing! It could be done soon if we could ever make sit down and make some paint decisions! I’ll keep you posted.
An Aethete’s Lament, it’s fun but then they think they can get away without paying you which is a bummer.
Great inspiration pix. Love them all, and such a sophisticated look. Cannot wait to see the end results. Your friend is one lucky guy.
Jane
Your blog is great. You really do have something unique to offer, an insiders perspective, and do more than just copy magazine articles. I love the rooms you chose to write about in this post. Nice job.
T8
awesome post! these are some of my all time favorite tear sheets. loved seeing them as a collection!
Sounds challenging, but fun! Great inspiration here too…
your blog is such a source of inspiration!
Oooh, this is fabulous! Congratulations on the assignment and I can’t wait to see all the photos as this develops!
PS – Love the mini bar. So so cute and so glam!
Your inspirations will certainly translate to a spectacular space. Looking forward to reading and seeing more!
Sounds like a great assignment. I was looking at the long hallway and was thinking it might be a great place to showcase some of his mother’s photography – like a gallery.
I can’t wait to see the finished product.
ok… so given that we get to live through you on this great assignement… what’s the budget???? 🙂 I’ve just found your site and live in New Zealand so enjoy checking out what’s happening in the US… ciao
so many amazing ideas and inspirations…it’s hard to pick which i love the best, but i’m definitely drawn to robert passal’s interiors–such a classic feel with a modern (and very manly) twist.
Thanks for all the great comments everyone! It’s so hard for me to reply indivually lately since work is so crazy but I wanted to tell you all how much I appreciate the positive feedback.
To answer the question about budget, we’re looking at working with about $30,000 right now. He rents so there won’t be any construction. We’re also trying to work with a few of his existing pieces. I do want to try to replace a few ceiling fixtures but there might be things that can wait until his business takes off 😉
I love the glass lamps! Do you have a source where I could get something like this?
HC – quick question: where is the rug from in first picture. It is fabulous and just what I’ve been looking for. Love your blog!!
It will be wonderful, guaranteed.
On the subject of a bar, don’t underestimate the bar cart. It will give good service. Of course, Mrs. E. and I have some sort of bar in almost every room. But while we were apartment bound, the bar cart was a perfect solution. For the larger places we paired it with a bar cabinet in a different room and handled parties of 70+. It’s rare that we haul out more equipment than a shaker and ice bucket, though.
Would love to know what paint colors you are considering!
Merry, I actually saw nice glass lamps at Crate and Barrel.
Racehl, I will try to check the resources from the article for the rug and get back to you.
Easy and Elegant, I think I might do a console with bar accessories on top near the kitchen and dining table.
Anonymous, I am going to post a painting update soon. I think I have finalized the colors and am meeting with the painter next week! We are finally making progress!