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BUYER’S TABLES Custom Designed by LIFE.STYLE. RUG Calypso St. Barth FLOOR LAMP Douglas & Bec BAR CART West Elm
text by SHANI SILVER photography by NICK ARELLANO
The best before & afters are the complete overhauls. The blank canvasses crafted into spaces typically reserved for dreams. Shannon Wollack & Brittany Zwickl, of LIFE.STYLE., recently completed their first commercial project, a showroom and workspace for Socialite Clothing. Taking on the (admirable) challenge of bringing California-cool to NYC, the team created a space entirely unrecognizable from the “before” shots. Bright and welcoming, the showroom serves as the perfect meeting place for clients to connect with and understand a brand. Relaxed, but still polished and professional, this space is everything an of-the-moment office needs to be. The images say more than we ever could, explore below!
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WHAT INSPIRED THIS REDESIGN? Our client acquired a new showroom space for her brand in the Garment District in New York City and it needed some sprucing. The space is very white heavy so we wanted to make sure we kept things clean, but also added some color and interest points that wouldn’t take away from the freshness of it all.
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WHERE DO YOU BEGIN WITH A PROJECT LIKE THIS? After a long-standing relationship with the client, we were excited to do our first commercial project with her. We always start our projects with client meetings to see what the client would like to achieve with the design. From there we started to curate inspiration to create moodboards to send to the client. Once a “look” was approved, we began our research for the perfect furniture pieces and accessories to style the space. But for this we wanted to get an understanding of our client’s brand to make sure the space reflected the aesthetic and personality of the brand.
PENDANT DOUGLAS & BEC CHAIRS A+R ART/PHOTOGRAPHY Tappan Collective TABLE Custom Designed by LIFE.STYLE.
WHAT OVERALL AESTHETIC WERE YOU TRYING TO ACHIEVE? Having both our firm and client based in California, we wanted to bring the West Coast environment to the East. We wanted to create an elevated space, yet maintain a “California Cool” vibe to it all. White-washed oak and brass accents were our main elements and from there we added touches of pink, natural and blush leathers, and other upscale-boho pieces.
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WHAT WERE THE PRIMARY NEEDS OF THE SPACE, OR YOUR DESIGN GOALS? The space is primarily for buyers during market so we wanted to make sure the space would make a great first impression to anyone who walked inside, thus a lounge-style entry with amazing art pieces to admire. Comfort was also a huge factor to keep in mind with all the seating in the showroom, since often buyer meetings can last for hours on end. We also wanted to create a “warm” environment, aka a nice escape from the cold winters in New York, even if only visually.
COFFEE TABLECustom Designed by LIFE.STYLE. MIRROR Restoration Hardware ALL FURNITURE Fenton & Fenton PENDANT Cedar & Moss ART Slim Aarons from Photographer’s Gallery MURAL Bleeding Hearts by James Goldcrown
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE? One of the biggest challenges we faced with this project was actually before the install began. Being in California, we were constantly working on a New York schedule. We had to coordinate with different vendors to make sure a product we ordered would arrive in time for install, all without being in the same state, or timezone, as the shipping address.
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WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE REACTION TO THIS SPACE SO FAR? Our client’s of course! At the end of the day, we’re here to make the client happy with our work. She and her team were all so thrilled to see the space and start working! We couldn’t be happier with the final product!