It was the sky-lit double-height living space that clinched the deal and convinced architecture firm Khanna Schultz‘s clients to buy the three-level Brooklyn apartment sight unseen (the pair were out of state and had to rely on real estate listing images)—this despite the home’s small, “Hobbit-like” attic and an unusual upside-down layout: “In the 1980s the townhouse was divided into two large apartments. Our clients’ apartment, occupying three floors at the top of the building, had been modified to include a double-height space taking over part of the old attic. This space is unexpected and bright, especially after the trip up two flights of stairs. It also has access to a rear terrace, so it made the most sense to put the public spaces there, with bedrooms below,” explains the architects.
While the couple kept the inverted floor plan (along with the original marble fireplaces), they gutted nearly everything else. “The clients wanted to completely overhaul all the finishes, fixtures, and appliances, all of which were badly in need of an upgrade, rethink the millwork to maximize storage, upgrade the glazing, and make something of the deck area.” Follow along as the architects give us a tour—starting from the top.
Photography by Julian Wass and styling by Carin Scheve, courtesy of Khanna Schultz, unless otherwise noted.
Attic
![\2\20;our favorite moment is the walnut wood box hovering above the doub 17](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-top-floor-733x1099.jpg)
Third Floor
![the walnut wood walls in the attic wrap around and turn into a walnut wood ceil 18](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-3rd-floor-733x1099.jpg)
![no detail was too small. khanna schultz redesigned all the built ins, the stair 19](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-living-733x1099.jpg)
![garden place brooklyn townhouse khanna schultz deck](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-deck-733x489.jpg)
![looking from the living space to the dining area, to the right of which is the 21](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-3rd-floor2-733x489.jpg)
![\2\20;materials were carefully selected to be both earthy and modern.&am 22](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-3rd-floor-dining-733x1035.jpg)
![the lower cabinets in the kitchen are painted benjamin moore westcott navy. the 23](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-kitchen-733x1099.jpg)
Second Floor
![\2\20;careful thought was given to tie the spaces materially and visuall 24](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-navajeet-khatri-2nd-floor-733x1099.jpg)
![a bedroom with built in closets with rattan doors. 25](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-bedroom-733x508.jpg)
![a closeup of the marble fireplace in the bedroom. 26](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-fireplace-733x1099.jpg)
![the team designed storage built ins to surround the windows in the main bedroom 27](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-bedroom2-733x1158.jpg)
First Floor
![garden place brooklyn townhouse khanna schultz navajeet khatri](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/garden-place-brooklyn-townhouse-khanna-schultz-navajeet-khatri-733x1105.jpg)
Aside from the team at Khanna Schultz, the couple worked with:
- General Contractor: REDOnyc
- Landscape Design: XS Space
- Structural Engineering: Ross Dalland, P.E.
- Mechanical Engineering: On Point Engineering
- Loose furnishings: Mims Design Co
- Selective artworks: by Nancy Hubbard and Alex Strada via 3walls
For another project designed by Khanna Schultz, see The Architect Is In: A Brooklyn Townhouse Grows Around a Roof Garden.
For another landscape project designed by XS Space, see Landscape Designer Visit: A Small Brooklyn Backyard Where ‘Every Detail, Every Inch’ Is Important.
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