For the discerning New Yorker, a home is more than just a place to live; it’s a reflection of identity, a sanctuary, and a space crafted to suit a unique lifestyle perfectly. In a city renowned for its iconic architecture and demanding standards of luxury, generic design doesn’t suffice. This mentality is especially true for the quintessential New York City loft, a grand canvas with potential for extraordinary transformation.
Luxury homes are built to the highest standard of quality and use the finest materials, but the one thing that truly separates a luxury home is its bespoke nature. A luxury home should be custom-designed and custom-built specifically to suit the needs and preferences of its inhabitants.
I am Jorge Fontan, an architect in New York and the owner of Fontan Architecture, a Manhattan-based architecture and design firm. At our office, we work on various project types, including all forms of residential remodeling and, of course, loft renovations. Let’s explore a fully custom renovated loft that we designed. This loft apartment was originally two smaller lofts, which we combined and fully gutted to create a four-thousand-square-foot luxury apartment.
Building a “Great Room”
The most notable architectural feature of lofts is that they were originally commercial and industrial buildings, which is why they have high ceilings and a great deal of open space. The size and ceiling height are the primary reasons lofts became such a coveted typology in New York City real estate. The worst thing you can do when purchasing a loft is make it feel small. You want to maintain an open atmosphere and create a grand feel to emphasize the greatness of the space.
In home design, the term “Great Room” refers to a large, open living room space that often includes the kitchen and dining area. Creating a great room at the entrance of a loft can really help elevate the space by adding a grand scale. The key to designing a loft lies in embracing this openness and fostering a sense of grandeur, allowing the impressive scale of the space to truly shine. By strategically eliminating partitions and embracing a free-flowing open plan layout, we can maximize the impact of the loft’s inherent spaciousness.
In this apartment, we created a forty-foot by forty-foot square open plan living room with an open kitchen. This ample space has multiple advantages, one of which is that it provides plenty of room for entertaining and living while also giving a great sense of openness with a grand scale. Entering a large open space has a wow factor that you cannot achieve in smaller spaces. Stepping into the home, you can take it all in with a wonderful, inspiring moment.
Loft With Great Room
Accentuate Existing Features
New York City loft apartments, with their industrial origins, offer a unique opportunity to express yourself while embracing the space’s inherent character. There are many architectural features that are common to lofts that you can incorporate into the design, such as columns and beams.
We want to take advantage of the high ceilings and open space within lofts. These features not only provide a signature loft aesthetic but also help create a grand experience within the home.
This loft has eleven-foot and six-inch high ceilings with exposed columns and beams. We made sure to keep the high ceilings, maintaining the grand feeling of the space. We used specialty finishes on the columns and beams to create an industrial accent within the space.
We have another article you can read to learn more about classic New York City Lofts: “Architectural Characteristics of Lofts in NYC”
NYC Loft with Columns
Custom Design
A truly exceptional home is meticulously designed around its occupants’ unique lifestyles and needs. This loft perfectly embodies that philosophy, with a unique example of bespoke design: a custom kitchen island designed and crafted specifically for its owners.
The owner of this loft didn’t want a formal dining table. They wanted all the dining incorporated into the kitchen island. The owners desired an informal, integrated dining solution. Therefore, we created a unique, multi-functional kitchen island, divided into three distinct zones:
- Elevated Serving Area: A beautiful marble slab forms an elevated counter-height serving space.
- Integrated Dining Table: We used a lower, dark finished oak section to function as the primary dining area.
- Granite Bar Seating: A granite counter at bar stool height provides a stylish and convenient spot for casual meals and entertaining.
This bespoke kitchen island maximizes space and enhances the user experience, transforming the kitchen into a versatile and inviting central hub for both cooking and social gatherings. It’s a testament to the power of custom design to elevate daily living and create a truly personalized space. This kitchen island is a truly unique feature that we designed specifically for the owners of this home.
Bespoke NYC Loft Design
High-End and Natural Materials
In luxury home design, particularly for the unique aesthetic of NYC loft apartments, the selection of materials is of the utmost importance. Choosing naturally beautiful materials is a great starting point for a truly distinguished loft interior. Natural materials possess an inherent richness and authenticity that synthetics or imitations cannot replicate. Natural materials appropriately used create an inviting and sophisticated ambiance. Ultimately, materials with exceptional intrinsic beauty ensure a timeless design that not only exudes elegance but also offers lasting value and distinguished appeal.
In this loft, we created a stunning bathroom using Travertine slabs. Travertine is a beautiful natural stone that has been used in some of the greatest works of modern and historic architecture. We used it for its natural beauty and richness. The inherent beauty and unique variations of natural stone like Travertine elevate a space with timeless elegance.
We used large travertine slabs for the floor and walls to create a seamless aesthetic and high-end feel. We then incorporated the same material for the sink, shower, niches, and tub surround, further enhancing the design’s cohesion and luxury.
High-End and Natural Materials
Sprezzatura for Residential Design
Sprezzatura is a concept where one achieves elegance through thoughtful planning without appearing to have put in a great deal of effort. This term basically means don’t look like you are trying too hard. Sprezzatura is the opposite of a gaudy design that is overdone. Our design goals for this loft renovation were to make it feel effortlessly graceful.
In this loft, we implemented the ideology of Sprezzatura throughout the apartment. The home office is a great example that illustrates this mentality. We used straightforward black metal and glass doors to enter the space, keeping the proportions relevant to the overall design. The materials are subtle and elegant, with one special feature being the burnished metal doors for the cabinets. This metal has a subtle yet striking appeal.
The materials, design, and accessories all come together seamlessly to create a meticulously planned space that seems natural and easy.
Home Office with Black Metal and Glass Doors in NYC Loft
Details are Everything
When it comes to luxury home design, the details are what separate nice from spectacular. Every aspect of the design must be thought out to create harmony with the other elements and achieve an elevated design.
In the photo below, you can see a fully travertine floating shelf and floating sink, which appear unsupported and floating effortlessly.
Custom Floating Stone Sink and Shelf
Luxury Loft Design in NYC
Creating a luxury loft starts with the loft itself, a blank canvas with endless possibilities. The next step is creating a cohesive and bespoke design specially made for the owners. If you want to renovate an apartment or build a new luxury home, you need to begin with an understanding of what makes a home luxurious and hold the space, design, and construction to the highest standards.
If you want to learn about some of the logistical challenges in renovating a New York City loft, please see our article on the: NYC Loft Renovation Process.
Architect Jorge Fontan in a Loft Designed by Fontan Architecture
Thank You for Reading Our Article on this Luxury Loft Renovation in New York.
I hope this was helpful. If you want to speak with an architect about a potential project, you can contact us at Fontan Architecture directly.
Contact Fontan Architecture
This post was written by Jorge Fontan AIA a Registered Architect and owner of New York City architecture firm Fontan Architecture. Jorge Fontan has earned 3 degrees in the study of architecture including two degrees from the City University of New York and a Masters Degree in Advanced Architectural Design from Columbia University. Jorge has a background in construction and has been practicing architecture for 20 years where he has designed renovations and new developments of various building types.
