CLOCKWISE FROM RIGHT: The nursery
features a white lacquered crib and changing table from The New Traditionalits and a custom glider upholstered in playful orange and gray stripes. The made-over office includes a Kravet sectional sheathed in faux leather and a Hickory side chair upholstered in velvet for an elegant feel.
ment as a place for the couple to share and brought a consistency to the space, easing people through the living room, dining area, master bedroom, halls, and bathrooms,” Lovejoy Russell explains. The designer strove for a chic look that called for minimizing clutter. “We did a lot of editing of the furniture,” she says. The pool table, for example, had to go, but the couple held on to Michael’s cherished poker table, adding a removable mahogany top so it could double as the dining table. Lucite and lacquered pieces make the space feel brighter, and Lovejoy Russell employed antique-mirror and polished- and brushed-nickel finishes and fixtures that bounce light around the home. Each room has expansive window walls that offer amazing views of Boston Common, and it was important to the Sperlingas that the furniture layout offer ample opportunity to appreciate that feature. The dining area’s tufted sectional banquette,
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sheathed with durable faux ostrich and fitted with multiple drawers, has become the couple’s favorite perch to absorb the landscape. “All of the furniture is very low. Nothing is higher than the windowsill, so pieces don’t block the view of the outdoors,” notes Lovejoy Russell. In the living area, a backless sofa tucks neatly under the windows. Directly across from it sits a low-backed chair with decorative nail-head trim. While the room’s furnishings are all upholstered in similar cream tones, Lovejoy Russell used different textures for subtle contrast, covering the sofas in cotton velvet and the chair in chenille. The designer scaled back Michael’s abundance of animal prints, but recognizing his penchant for them, she outfitted two stools in a chic zebra fabric. A wool rug features a grid of octagons—just one instance of several geometric patterns Lovejoy Russell sprinkled throughout the home to add dimension and visual interest. Also custom-made is the dark wood cabinet fabricated by South Boston’s Art Application to store the couple’s wedding china, serving pieces, and vases. “The front is made of interlocking wood circles against an antique silver background,” says Lovejoy Russell. Other furniture pieces were discovered by happenstance and seemed ideal for the space, like the Hollywood Regency–
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