Reimagining a Narrow Parlor Floor

When our clients came to us to renovate their Queen Anne brownstone in Cobble Hill, improving the flow of the parlor level was a major priority for the proposed design.

We worked with Cameron Stewart Interior Design to select furnishings that felt comfortable, collected, and deeply personal to the clients, and with Taffera Fine Building & Finishes to reimagine the space.

The original kitchen was located at the rear of the parlor floor, with the dining room in the middle. This is a common configuration for typical townhouses, which only have windows on the front and rear façades. Locating the kitchen at the rear in these homes ensures that it receives ample natural light throughout the day.

Although this house is narrower than most townhouses, measuring only about eleven and a half feet in width at the rear, it has the luxury of windows on one of the side façades. These windows allowed us to flip the standard configuration, moving the kitchen into the middle of the floor and the dining room to the rear.

The cellar stair was located at the rear of the house, separate from the main stair up at the front. This location is the narrowest part of the house, originally tucked in beside the cramped kitchen. Moving the kitchen into the center of the home and orienting the dining table along the cellar stair opened up the flow of spaces and provided a proper, functional, eat-in kitchen.

The house is widest at the front, before giving way to an areaway that allows natural light to enter the rear of the house through side windows. Cabinetry under the front staircase provides much needed storage space without sacrificing floor area in the entryway.

A powder room with a custom carved Nero Marquina marble sink and paneling along the walls and ceiling is also tucked underneath the staircase. A small leaded glass window provides both privacy and natural light, taking advantage of the building's L-shaped footprint.