Montclair Home Renovation

For the first time in his 20-year career, Suvalsky decided to bring his signature approach to a project of a most personal nature: his family home in Montclair, New Jersey. And as with everything Suvalsky touches, the transformation of a single-story house, originally built in 1952, into something updated, cozy and playful — replete with rich decor to reflect his “modern meets vintage” aesthetic — would be anything but predictable.

He took his main inspiration from the property’s mid-century modern aesthetic of clean, neat lines and simplicity, but there all similarities to the 1950s end.

The dining room, for example – one of the most intimate and perhaps dramatic moments of the house – has a large photograph of Steve McQueen and Jacqueline Bisset set against a rich botanical wallpaper. The room is intense with an antique touch, but also feels modern thanks to the intriguing, unexpected color palettes of cyan, yellow and dark green.

Other rooms are equally playful and daring, like the living room with its deeply infused shades of French blue mixed with bold yellows and different motifs such as the fireside chairs with black and white houndstooth check upholstery. There is also the foyer that leads to the kitchen, where a dramatically veined floor in black and gold seamlessly flows between the two rooms. Reinforcing the feeling created by the floor, a monumental but intimate photograph of Matera, Italy greets people immediately upon entering the home.

Suvalsky completed the project in late 2021, after a two-year labor of love. He, his two young children and husband are now enjoying their dream home that tells *their* story.