How a Clever Renovation Turned a One-Bedroom Co-op Into a Home for 4

All they needed was the right contractor.

Photo: Courtesy of Sweeten
Photo: Courtesy of Sweeten

A couple with two sons turned a cramped Clinton Hill one-bedroom into an airy apartment.

Designer Kumar Atre and his wife, artist-designer Casey Leigh Miller Atre, purchased their first apartment in Clinton Hill last May. They decided on this 800-square-foot one-bedroom in the Clinton Hill Co-ops, as they loved the neighborhood, the great natural light and views, and the fact that the apartment was in need of a renovation — which was reflected in the price. They quickly figured out a plan for the redesign: Open it up, create another bedroom, and bring the kitchen up to speed. All they needed was the right contractor. So they turned to Sweeten, a New York start-up that matches clients to contractors, and after interviewing two, settled on Kris Famurat from Famurat Builders. Here, pre-renovation, Kumar and their son River, 4, taped up areas where work would take place.
“We closed May 7, and we moved in at the end of July,” Kumar says. The renovation included installing a Murphy bed surrounded by storage space within the living room, creating an area that could be privatized with sliding doors. Kumar and Casey, pictured here with River and Luc, 2, also stripped and sanded the original wood floors. Photo: SWEETEN
The ergonomically balanced Murphy bed from their contractor Kris Famurat practically moves by itself it is so easy to pull down. Photo: SWEETEN
The fully extended glass-paneled doors create a private bedroom for Kumar and Casey, who have the full run of the living room and open kitchen after the boys are put to bed in the quiet bedroom down the hall. Photo: SWEETEN
The southern exposure and great views are maximized by the large windows. The co-op was originally built in the 1940s as housing for the workers in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The furniture is from Casey’s fourth-generation family business, Penn Furniture, located in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Photo: SWEETEN
The blue tape on the right is where a wall came down to open up the wonderful views and light from the corner windows, one of which you can see on the far right.
A view of the living room, after all had been said and done. “Renovations can present surprises,” Kumar says. “So we wanted a general contractor familiar with the building’s particular eccentricities. Famurat had completed four or five similar-scale projects in our building, so we appreciated his ability to solve issues and work with the existing conditions.” Photo: SWEETEN
If you step back, the open kitchen has full access to the living room and dining area, not shown here. The refrigerator fits into the only existing piece of the wall left standing. Photo: SWEETEN
It’s a smart, economical design, allowing for a full fridge with a freezer. Photo: SWEETEN
The existing kitchen was charmingly dated, but Kumar and Casey quickly realized that taking out the wall that enclosed this area would open up the space to the living room and the adjacent corner, where they put the dining table.
Kumar and Casey’s kitchen now feels like an extension of the living room with the removal of all upper cabinets, the addition of the M. Teixeira Soapstone counter and backsplash, as well as Casey’s framed photographs. The wood table is an antique they found at Penn Furniture that gracefully integrates with the wood stools and dining chairs by Cherner from Design Within Reach. The partially seen Saarinen dining table is from Knoll. Photo: SWEETEN
The custom-designed kitchen includes a wall dedicated to storage. The fridge and stove are Miele and the dishwasher is Bosch. Photo: SWEETEN
A combination of open shelving and pull-out drawers makes storage easy and organized. Photo: SWEETEN
How a One-Bedroom Co-op Turned Into a Home for 4