A soothing neutral color palette, luxurious upholstered furniture, and diverse accessories and art specify the design of Sue De Chiara’s house. This magnificent house is located in Westchester County, New York — a suburb of New York City — where De Chiara resides with her husband and three kids.
De Chiara, a design writer and owner of Zhush, hired designer Lauren Muse of Muse Interiors to redecorate her living area. De Chiara loved the area so much she hired Muse to assist with the pool home, offices, mudroom and master bathroom. “I always say that you can’t design a great space without a great customer, and Sue was fantastic,” Muse says. “She pushed my imagination, and motivated me to greater heights.”
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Remodeling the living area involved tripling the size in addition to decorate the space. The living area and its abundance of space was pretty overwhelming, so De Chiara reached out to Muse to get assistance. “She wanted the new layout to work for large groups when entertaining,” Muse says. “But she wanted it to be more intimate enough for regular use.”
Drapery Fabric: Farm Fresh, Robert Allen
Large Pair of Sofas (Fabric): Skye Linen, Osborne & Little
Big Sofa Pillows: Mirella, Echo by Kravet
Painting above Mantel: Amanda Talley
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“I think the living area has the ideal balance of sophistication and approachability,” says Muse. The color palette was based off a paint color De Chiara had already picked out for the walls. This neutral backdrop inspired all the textile and accent options.
Slipper Chair Fabric: Ikat Diamond, Kravet
Carpet: Dante Strie, Stark
Interior color: Benjamin Moore Cape Hatteras Sand
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Muse began with these great cut-velvet pillows in dusty gray-blue and taupe, and worked on the color scheme from there. “For me, fabrics are usually the springboards to my own layouts,” she says.
Lamb pillow cover: West Elm
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The mudroom off the main entrance hall was carefully crafted to organize the odds and ends the household collects each day.
Many of the rooms in De Chiara’s house were motivated by the protector magazines she reads voraciously, as well as ideas from friends’ houses and resort rooms she enjoys.
Basket Liner Fabric: Continuum, Kravet
Lantern: Sorenson 18 Lantern, Remains
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Clear plastic and chrome stools dress up the more customary poolhouse pub. De Chiara and Muse accented the space with an easy white framed mirror and George Nelson Ball Pendant. “The internet is obviously my first step when searching for home decor projects,” says De Chiara. “I am a Google fanatic.”
Barstools: Vapor Stool, CB2
Mirror: Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams
Roman Shade Fabric: Groundworks by Lee Jofa
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Muse and De Chiara worked closely with each other to create the perfect house for De Chiara and her family. “The colors, the artwork, and the accessories all convey a very lighthearted approach to decor and fashion generally,” De Chiara says. “I don’t take myself too seriously, and I don’t want my home to.”
The master bathroom is a soothing and elegant space. Muse added a little bit of play by covering the walls with a contemporary wallpaper in a neutral colorway. Isn’t the tub almost begging to be full of a bubble bath? It’s the ideal place to unwind after a week.
Wallpaper: Mimosa, Cole & Son
Garden Stool: Lillian August
Embroidered Towels: Leontine Linens
Cabinet: Cartwright Cabinet, Restoration Hardware
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De Chiara’s home office is her favorite room in the home. “It’s little, it’s cozy, and it is the only room that’s really all mine,” she says. Muse made this room more womanly than the rest of the home and played gentle purples and greens to give it a distinctive touch.
Rug: Diamond Sprout, Dash and Albert
Roman Shade Fabric: Ming, Manuel Canovas
Chair Fabric: Petite Zig Zag, China Seas
Negative Table: West Elm Faceted Mirror Side Table
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De Chiara’s husband’s office is a more decorative area, with wood paneled walls that remember the feel of an old-fashioned library. “It’s really a treasure hunt to create and locate the ideal balance of new and found objects,” says Muse.
Sofa: Custom
Sofa Pillows: Dovecote
Roman Shade: Arlon Check in Camel, Hinson
Coffee Table: Noguchi Table
Carpet: Hexagon House II, Stark
Chair Pillows: Madeline Weinrib
Next: More pictures of this home, accepted by Sue De Chiara.
Zhush LLC
One of those matters that De Chiara enjoys most about her house is the flow of the home as you walk from room to room. Before renovating, she and her husband believed moving, but no additional home had the same open flow as this one.
The shot above is of the entryway once you first walk in the home. Silhouettes line the stairwell, and a quirky mix of chinoiserie and zebra cloths accent a little sitting area.
Zhush LLC
This vintage-styled bench sits in the back hallway outside the kitchen. The artwork on the right is by De Chiara’s 11-year-old daughter, and the rest was completed by her grandmother years back.
Zhush LLC
This turquoise and lime green bedroom belongs to De Chiara’s 11-year-old — a job they worked together, and just finished recently.
Zhush LLC
This staircase leads up to a space located over the garage, which holds De Chiara’s home gym along with the Zhush headquarters. The stairs were given a special touch with hand painted amounts along with an easy rope bannister.
Watch more decorated stair risers
Stylist: Karin Lidbeck Brent
Photography: John Bessler and Sue De Chiara
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