A Brooklyn Fashion Designer's Home Offers Major Style Inspo

Nana Yaa Asare-Boadu is a citizen of the world. The British-born Ghanaian fashion designer had spent time living in the Netherlands, France and Italy before finding the unassuming Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn duplex that she currently calls home. Unassuming, that is, from the outside. Inside, the home is a visual feast of global influences, touching personal moments and individual style, presented with all of the understated minimalism of a luxury apartment with a view of Sacré Cœur or overlooking the Champs-Élysées.

Just a few steps through the front door, the space opens up into an expansive dining room. Part of the effortless charm of this home comes from original details such as historic moldings. The cool white of the walls and the warm wood tone of the floor create a stark backdrop that give the room's other colors and elements ample room to shine. The dining room is a mix of rustic and industrial elements. To add some color to the mix, a large red print, left by the home's previous tenant adds a pop of color to the neutral decor.

Across from her bicycle, sits another vignette featuring one of Nana Yaa's favorite decorating accessories: books. While the vase of flowers does a lovely job of echoing the color of the bike, the real star of this area is clearly the walls themselves. The architectural details stretch from floor to ceiling, bringing a sense of character to the entire home.

The living room epitomizes the style of this home. Strong architectural details are complemented, not covered, by tastefully understated gallery walls. And once again the white walls and wood floors are the perfect backdrop for the home’s boldest color statement—an inviting velvet sofa in a soft, pink blush. Though small accessories, sculptures and pieces of art accent the room throughout, the biggest pattern statement in the room is made by the wood floor, the repeating diamond geometric blends seamlessly into the room while creating visual interest from the floor up.