Construction is complete and The Emerald is welcoming onsite and virtual tours of its eight new model homes in downtown Seattle, six of which have been delightfully decorated by ASH Staging, a division of ASH NYC. The New York and California-based company is known for combining historically compatible disciplines under one roof—including design, development, hotels, staging and products—and The Emerald marks the company’s debut in Seattle!
This collection of six luxury residences is located on the 24th floor of The Emerald’s 40-story tower featuring unrivaled views and access to an array of amenities, all within walking distance of Pike Place Market and the Seattle waterfront.
Often described as the “Rolls-Royce” of the staging industry, ASH’s residential staging projects include model apartments, sales or leasing offices in new developments, and private residences for sale or rent. In addition to furnishing these homes for sale, ASH Staging also designs and installs fully furnished homes for discerning clientele in need of a move-in ready space on a temporary basis.
“The inhabitants of The Emerald are expected to be multifaceted, like the eponymous gemstone itself,” said Andrew Bowen, Partner and Head of Staging for ASH NYC. “To that end, we crafted an array of model residences that captures this varied spirit, celebrating the diversity of personalities in Seattle that will be lucky to call this exceptional address home.”
We caught up with the design team to give readers a behind-the-scenes look at the design philosophy, some sage style advice, and a sneak peek into the personalities you’ll find in the model residences at The Emerald:
What is your philosophy when it comes to interior design?
When it comes to our model residence work, we ultimately believe in letting our imaginations run unabated in pursuit of an authentic human connection. Unlike traditional residential interior designers, the end-users are not our clients. So, it’s our job to bring an imaginary person’s home to life, filling it with various elements that tell a cohesive and interesting story. In doing so, we yearn to connect with the prospective buyers who will tour our work once it is complete and help them realize why this property is perfect for them. To do this, we’ve broken away the staging mantras of neutrality and instead believe in always creating something new, site-specific, and carefully layered — ensuring that no two models are ever exactly alike. In fact, the team at ASH has personified the model homes to line up with characters such as Adam Driver, Alia Shawkat, Idris Elba, Janelle Monae, Kris Jenner and Carrie Brownstein.
When touring 2402, think Adam Driver. To play off Model Residence 2402’s sharp angles, ASH opted to ground the living room with a round rug and curved sofa paired with a Robert Parry Lotus Chair carved in African walnut.
ASH imagined the northeast corner Model Residence 2401 for a seasoned bachelor with an appreciation for architecture and the energy of city life. The living room features a more monochromatic scheme replete with crisp whites and blacks, energized by notes of orange, rust and raw woods. While Model Residence 2404 features bursts of energy and color. Blue and yellow hues rendezvous with furniture by Marcel Breuer and art inspired by Basquiat, bringing to life the vision of a home for a spirited and youthful bon vivant.
In what ways was creating the ultimate space in Seattle different than Los Angeles or other West Coast locations you’ve staged properties?
Los Angeles is well known as the center for the entertainment industry and that spirit often makes its way into our work in the form of bold, eye-catching, sumptuous pieces. Most of our projects tend to be in single family homes, some with views of a vast, low-rise urban infinity, but many simply of the planted trees surrounding the properties. The tones of the landscape tend to be quite warm, and so we draw inspiration from desert and savannah palettes in our work there. Much of the same, with some variation, occurs in other areas we specialize in such as Orange County and Santa Barbara.
Here in Seattle, there’s a significant tech community, so a lot of our design speaks to a notably sleek, contemporary and almost futuristic lifestyle. We are in the beating downtown heart of the city, with floor-to-ceiling windows and views of the Puget Sound, so there’s an interesting tension of celebrating this fascinating human-made / natural world dichotomy. In our color choice, for many of the homes, we echoed the deep blue water, dark green foliage, and soft white clouds that make the Pacific Northwest so romantic.
Do you have any suggestions for new homeowners looking to add their own personal touch, where to start?
I would say start by keeping close your non-negotiables, and then building a story around those items to ensure they have a proper place in your new home. Perhaps there’s a family heirloom that has been passed down generations, or a handmade memento created at an earlier stage in life; by incorporating and proudly displaying these items, we connect both ourselves and our visitors to the broader spectrum of our genuine selves. So it’s best to not leave them as an afterthought, as they then might not make it into the completed picture.
Are you seeing any décor trends as we move into unchartered territory?
We are certainly seeing the heyday of the home office nowadays. But rather than just being functional or beautiful as before, it now absolutely needs to be both. To that end, you’ll notice a variety of work-from-home spaces throughout the model residence collection at The Emerald.
Three must-follow Instagram accounts you’d recommend for design inspo?
For high-style and practical design tips, be sure to add @ashstaging to your list for design inspiration!
