If this city condo needed character, the designers in Groundswell Design Group traveled to the country stylewise. The condo, a clean-lined contemporary penthouse in Philadelphia’s Northern Liberty neighborhood, was too bare, and the detailing was dull. To meet the needs of the proprietor, one builder, one of the 2 bedrooms has been opened up and turned to an office and lounge. The specialization, reclaiming and repurposing of Groundswell, came to play on the walls and through the furnishings. Here’s a closer look at how the group combined compact contemporary style with these more rustic and industrial salvaged pieces.
Job in a
Location: Philadelphia
Cost of reclaimed barnwood wall, 12 by 20 ft:$13 per square foot; $3,120 total
Cost of galvanized tin wall, 11 by 18 ft: $7.50 per square foot; $1,485 overall
That is intriguing: The development of the building was financed by rapper Jay-Z.
Groundswell Design Group
“We wanted to balance out the compact contemporary style with some rural/industrial components,” says designer David Fierabend. “Our very first question as we approach a job is obviously, What can we reuse?” In the main living area, galvanized metal from a chicken coop roof provides horizontal rings, rusty patina along with an industrial advantage to one end of this condo.
Rug: Bo Concept; basket: West Elm; lamp: Gilt
Groundswell Design Group
The horizontal lines of the painting on the window wall inspired the layout across the home, as did the horizontal motion of the Delaware river outside. Look closely out the chimney and you’ll realize that the Ben Franklin bridge; look closely at the baseboards and you will see that they are reclaimed hemlock planks.
Groundswell Design Group, LLC
Upon entering the unit, we get a hint out of the pub and live-edge shelves which some serious reclaiming is going on. Fierabend knocked down the wall separating what was the second bedroom in the foyer, opening the whole space up as a workplace and lounge.
Groundswell Design Group
The live-edge shelves above it along with the pub are retrieved poplar wood. The bars between the shelves are supports from school locker room benches. (Remember how those benches were bolted to the ground, or am I simply eons older than you are?)
The group composed the knee wall and the other wall with timber reclaimed from barns in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The grey wood is hemlock, along with the wood that is brown is mushroom wood. “The hemlock is superbly aged, along with the mushroom timber is knotty and filled with texture,” Fierabend states. “We played around with the routine; we enjoy things sort of jigsaw-y puzzle-ish but with clean, sharp edges.”
Foldout sofa: Bo Concept
Groundswell Design Group
The group designed the pc desk; it’s made of reclaimed metal and has a glass top. “We used the construction of the Eiffel Tower as inspiration for this particular desk,” Fierabend states.
Groundswell Design Group
The high-top desk functions as a unique conference table for customer meetings. “We did not wish to pay for the walls with artwork; we wanted the furniture to function as art rather,” Fierabend states. The group made the cuts and designed this plywood desk. The color helps it stand out as an artful piece.
Fierabend discovered the vintage B.F. Goodrich sign a while back at one of his favored sourcing areas, Provenance, and knew he would use someday; the workplace was the place.
Groundswell Design Group, LLC
A chair in this table affords a great view of the city. Groundswell also designed the shelves, that are made of metal and reclaimed joists.
Lights: Cluster Glass Pendants, West Elm, with Edison bulbs
Groundswell Design Group, LLC
The reclaimed hemlock and mushroom wood mix includes into the bedroom onto a huge headboard. It is 8 inches in the wall, allowing room for backlighting. “It gives it only a tiny bit of an Austin Powers room vibe,” Fierabend states. So does the tasteful gray shagadelic rug.
Bookshelves: CB2; rug: Shaw; duvet cover: Pintuck in Slate, West Elm
Groundswell Design Group, LLC
Exactly the same reclaimed barn wood frames that the huge mirror on the right side.
Groundswell Design Group, LLC
This part of the story has nothing to do with salvage, however I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t talk about the kitchen mural with you. “I love graffiti and pop art, and also this mural combines the two; it is refined graffiti,” Fierabend states. The company does lots of restaurant design and can be used to thinking big and picture, as well as blurring the lines between town landscapes and interiors. The group designed the mural and had it executed by graffiti expert Sean Gallagher.
“We loved the juxtaposition of this trendy, clean interiors and the reclaimed bits,” Fierabend states.
Have you finished a salvage project lately? If so, please add it to the Comments section.