Eckstein found the answer in what he calls an obscure reference to unadorned maple plywood wainscoting in Jean-Michel Frank’s 1920s interiors for Marie-Laure and Charles de Noailles’s town house in Paris. The couple had concerns; as they looked through old photos and proposed renderings, they saw a lot of wood—and a lot of plywood to be exact. But they had faith in Eckstein, who persuaded them to run oak plywood as wainscoting throughout the home as well as cladding across the staircase.
It wasn’t without fuss. Plywood is a common and simple material, but every piece stains differently, and initial attempts led to complexions that were too red, too yellow, and too golden (“I lost sleep over that process,” the wife says). Designed with Studio BAD and finished with rounded bullnose trim, the wainscoting took about six months to get right. It is the defining character of the house.
“I couldn't even imagine this home without the wood,” says the wife.
Somerset House added a handmade Cemento Collection zellige tile backsplash to the existing kitchen. Painting the cabinetry in Farrow & Ball’s Minster Green creates a bold color moment for the home (“I don't find that I get bored of it at all,” says Eckstein of the popular kitchen color). In Common With’s Saga Duo Pendant hangs above the island, and Somerset House customized vintage Danish teak counter stools with new iron feet.
That warmth extends to the living room, anchored by a bespoke credenza with vinyl pockets and runs across the wall. There are plenty of valuable designs in the space—like a pair of oak Guillerme et Chambron French armchairs. But it was important to the family, and also Eckstein, that nothing felt too precious.
“Everything here could take life, could take abuse for the most part,” says Eckstein. “I wanted to use every inch of the space as one big conversation, one big hangout.” The open space connects with a dining area, where traces of Somerset House’s DNA are on display. Above a midcentury dining table hang a pair of 1930s “PH3” pendants by Poul Henningsen. This particular copper set came from a home where they had hung for about 90 years.
“Probably the hardest thing in the entire project was that column,” says Eckstein of the supporting feature alongside the staircase, which started as a stubborn piece of black steel. It took about five different attempts to bend plywood—which is prone to cracking—around the column so it would match the surrounding cladding. A rectangular red marble plinth from the 1970s breaks up the beige tones and displays a 2nd-century Roman bust of Harmodios.
