Step Inside the Stollar Fearins Welch-Designed “Apartment” at The Gallery at 200 Lex

Ward and I had so much fun thinking about the apartment space and pulled a vision together based on something we both love: memorable movies and telling a story through design.  The 1972 (first episode ever) of Tales from the Crypt featured Joan Collins (!!) in a vaguely horror/holiday short film set in a very 70’s minimal home. And All Through the House is one that has stuck with Ward, though he always wanted to redecorate the set.  Creating a better backdrop for Joan (character name Joanne) has become the muse on which our reimagined festive holiday room design is based.

A very conscious choice we made was to think about color blocking with red and green, much like is done sometimes subtly, sometimes not, in classic holiday movies.  Home Alone is a good example where if you watch it while thinking about this kind of color use, you’ll realize almost everything is a shade of red or green from set decoration to clothing.

If Ward and I shared this festive apartment, I know it would end up being the lively backdrop for a prime-time sitcom style cast of characters that would wander in and out for game nights, cocktails, and movies.  We both love all of these things individually, so I’m sure it would be amped up to 11 around the holidays in a space that we shared.

The selection available in The Gallery at 200 Lex is truly incredible, which makes our job easier.  We leaned into styles and periods from mid-century modern, to Italian, German, and French vintage mixed with some colonial revival styles that would have been right at home together in our early 70’s scene.  We deliberately put things together in a way that feels a bit collected over time rather than all being from one specific style or era.  That lived-in, comfortable and collected quality is something we love to bring to all of our work.

Whatever you do, make it your own.  We love using vintage decorations that we had or remember when we were kids.  The most fun of decorating a Christmas tree is pulling out all the tangled wads of lights and ornaments wrapped in tissue, remembering the story behind each one.  Holiday decorating is not about everything being perfect, it’s about creating a warm thoughtful environment that will become part of your guest’s story when they think back on Christmases past that were special to them.