The pre-war apartment of architect and landscape designer Ahmad Sardar-Afkhami is one of those cheerful East Village homes that instantly have you thinking, Why don’t I do that? It is filled with a selection of art by family and friends and items collected during his travels. The daybed was bought from a thrift store and is covered in a Moroccan haik, a woman’s winter blanket. The table against the wall is by Paul McCobb and was found on eBay. “I like to mix contemporary furniture with traditional fabrics and handicrafts,” says Ahmad. “The Charles and Ray Eames house is always an inspiration in that regard.” Photo: Ahmad Sardar-Afkhami
The living room is also furnished with a fifties couch and a painting from Ahmad’s parent’s house in Tehran. The feather headdresses are from the Brazilian Amazon. Photo: Wendy Goodman
The dining table and bookshelves are on the other side of the living room. Photo: Ahmad Sardar-Afkhami
The Paul Frankl dining table is set with candles and illuminated at night by lights on the bookshelves, which were designed and built by Ahmad and his handyman, Juan Jurado. They stripped and stained the floors and painted the walls in Stonington Gray by Benjamin Moore. Photo: Wendy Goodman
A suzani from the Uzbek city of Samarkand is used as a wall covering in the bedroom. These hand-sewn textiles are often made by women as dowry pieces. Photo: Ahmad Sardar-Afkhami
Another night shot (please excuse the lighting!) shows how Ahmad uses this soft wall of fabric to cover his closets and shelf space. It was a smart solution for a room with no closets. Photo: Wendy Goodman
Another simple idea used to great effect: painting different colored borders as a frame for an art piece that belonged to Ahmad’s grandparents. Note that even the light socket is painted. Photo: Wendy Goodman
For kitchen storage, Ahmad perched a butcher block ordered from Ikea on sawhorse legs and then hung a denim curtain to hide the shelving. “Since I am an avid cook, and because I’m inspired by Donald Judd’s home, most of the everyday utensils are left out,” Ahmad says. Photo: Ahmad Sardar-Afkhami
