great rooms

A Joyful Brownstone in Bushwick

Attorney and influencer Cynthia Andrew and her husband teamed up with the Brownstone Boys on their first renovation.

Cynthia Andrew in her living room. Photo: Nick Glimenakis
Cynthia Andrew in her living room. Photo: Nick Glimenakis

Cynthia Andrew’s Instagram is full of bright, joyous color, and so, of course, is her and her husband Les Andrew’s brownstone in Bushwick.

The two met 15 years ago at Fordham University. She was in law school; he was in business school. When they got married, Les gave up his apartment in Brooklyn to live with Cynthia in her rent-stabilized apartment in Queens, where they had a lot more room, but they always knew they would look for a house to buy and return to Brooklyn.

Meanwhile, after she started practicing law for a city agency, and would come home feeling the weight of the world, Les encouraged her to take some time and tap into her creative side, so she started a blog about everything that interested her, which turned into her widely followed Instagram. “We would travel, I would take photos, and I would share tips — the food I was eating, the clothes I was wearing. To be honest, in the beginning I was a little embarrassed about doing both because I was very concerned that I wouldn’t be taken seriously in one world if people saw me in the other. But then I just fully embraced it. I reminded myself that we can all be more than just one thing.” After a long search, she and Les found a brownstone in Bushwick in 2019, and felt, as most first homeowners do, that they needed help with the renovation. Cynthia turned to social-media spelunking through hashtags. Eventually she came upon Barry and Jordan, a.k.a. the Brownstone Boys, who’d started their popular blog and website sharing the trials, tribulations, and resources of their own Brooklyn renovation; they were picked up by the website Brownstoner and have gained a steadily growing following, as well as clients, ever since.

Before the renovation (clockwise from left): The entry foyer and view to stairs, the guest powder room, and the kitchen. Courtesy of the Brownstone Boys.
Before the renovation (clockwise from left): The entry foyer and view to stairs, the guest powder room, and the kitchen. Courtesy of the Brownstone Boys.

“I was literally stalking them,” Cynthia says. They met for coffee and decided to work together. The Brownstone Boys would oversee the entire renovation as the project managers and designers, along with Cynthia. The Andrews also happened to be Barry and Jordan’s first client in this role.  “We pretty much faced every struggle and every obstacle with this, our first project, from the lockdown to having to account for the fact that Cynthia became pregnant after we started the renovation, with twins (who are now a year old), and it was also through this project that we were able to quit our day jobs and pursue Brownstone Boys full time,” Jordan says.

“The place had gone through bad previous renovations,” Barry says. They gutted the parlor floor, taking down all the walls for an open floor plan and designed a new staircase that looks original. “We also added in wall and crown molding to bring back some of the original character of the house. Even though it’s new, it looks traditional.” Cynthia knew that she wanted a fresh start with the décor, even though she brought in some of the furniture from their last apartment. She is in what she calls phase one of decorating. “I very much wanted a blank canvas to grow into,” Cynthia says. “I wanted to see how we move in the house before we make other decisions. We want to have a space that exhales.”

Parlor Floor: The Brownstone Boys took down all the walls to open it up. “We made the floor plan as modern as possible,” Barry says. Cynthia did all the interior decorating and found the wallpaper in the entrance on Etsy, the console at CB2, and stair bench at the Inside.

The Kitchen: The back wall of the house off the kitchen was opened up with large, glass-windowed doors that lead out to the terrace. The kitchen barstools are from West Elm. The hanging lights were found on Etsy. The kitchen cabinets are from Semihandmade, the hardware is from Buster + Punch, and the appliances are from Fisher + Paykel.


The Terrace Off the Kitchen: The tiles from Walker Zanger make the outdoor space festive and welcoming. “I always wanted our outdoor deck to be colorful,” Cynthia says. “And every time I walk into the house and see right through these big glass windows, it makes me happy; it takes me away.”

The Living Room: This is in what Cynthia calls its first phase, noting that, although she is known for her love of color and pattern, she wanted to be careful to let the rooms evolve with furnishings and textures. “I wanted something with curves,” she says of the sensual sofa, “because I wanted the space to feel like something that just hugs you.” The sofa, rug, coffee table, and mirror are from Arhaus. Lighting by Kalco Lighting.

The Guest Powder Room: It features more tile work from Walker Zanger.

The Master Bedroom: The bed, rug, and mirror are from Arhaus. The linens are from Brooklinen. “The bed is literally my favorite piece of furniture in the entire house,” she says. “It is the first piece of furniture that I locked in.”

The Master Bathroom: It’s bathed in turquoise tiles from Tilebar.

The Twins’ Room: There are two cribs on either side of the room from Nestig. “I love their philosophy,” Cynthia says. “I love that they are made in a family-owned factory in Brazil and only make a piece once you have put an order in to avoid any waste.” The wall decorations are decals found on Etsy. “They come in all shapes and are super-affordable. They took all of three minutes to put up,” Cynthia says, “and if you hate it, they peel off in three seconds.” The rug is from Ikea.

The Twins’ Bathroom: It’s filled with natural light and tiles from Walker Zanger.

Photographs by Nick Glimenakis

Parlor Floor: The Brownstone Boys took down all the walls to open it up. “We made the floor plan as modern as possible,” Barry says. Cynthia did all the interior decorating and found the wallpaper in the entrance on Etsy, the console at CB2, and stair bench at the Inside.

The Kitchen: The back wall of the house off the kitchen was opened up with large, glass-windowed doors that lead out to the terrace. The kitchen barstools are from West Elm. The hanging lights were found on Etsy. The kitchen cabinets are from Semihandmade, the hardware is from Buster + Punch, and the appliances are from Fisher + Paykel.


The Terrace Off the Kitchen: The tiles from Walker Zanger make the outdoor space festive and welcoming. “I always wanted our outdoor deck to be colorful,” Cynthia says. “And every time I walk into the house and see right through these big glass windows, it makes me happy; it takes me away.”

The Living Room: This is in what Cynthia calls its first phase, noting that, although she is known for her love of color and pattern, she wanted to be careful to let the rooms evolve with furnishings and textures. “I wanted something with curves,” she says of the sensual sofa, “because I wanted the space to feel like something that just hugs you.” The sofa, rug, coffee table, and mirror are from Arhaus. Lighting by Kalco Lighting.

The Guest Powder Room: It features more tile work from Walker Zanger.

The Master Bedroom: The bed, rug, and mirror are from Arhaus. The linens are from Brooklinen. “The bed is literally my favorite piece of furniture in the entire house,” she says. “It is the first piece of furniture that I locked in.”

The Master Bathroom: It’s bathed in turquoise tiles from Tilebar.

The Twins’ Room: There are two cribs on either side of the room from Nestig. “I love their philosophy,” Cynthia says. “I love that they are made in a family-owned factory in Brazil and only make a piece once you have put an order in to avoid any waste.” The wall decorations are decals found on Etsy. “They come in all shapes and are super-affordable. They took all of three minutes to put up,” Cynthia says, “and if you hate it, they peel off in three seconds.” The rug is from Ikea.

The Twins’ Bathroom: It’s filled with natural light and tiles from Walker Zanger.

Photographs by Nick Glimenakis

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A Joyful Brownstone in Bushwick