Home tour: Leigh Keno's New York townhouse

You can blend many styles

In this room, you can see how it's possible to mix and match lots of different looks and styles.

When I redid the room, the fireplace mantel was missing so I had one made, which is very minimal and intentionally shallow so that items couldn't be put on it.

To the left of the fireplace is a William and Mary figured birchwood chest of drawers, Rhode Island, 1720. To the right is an Asmat wood shield from New Guinea, likely circa late 19th or early 20th century, which I mounted on a custom metal base.

The painting above the mantel is "Frankenstein" by William L. Hawkins, an "outsider" artist (1983).

Keep great original details

This fireplace in the lobby is the only place where I didn't really change much, and I wanted to keep with the period of the townhouse. The 1918 renovation left the original 1872 late-Victorian marble fireplace mantel with a brass surround and, of course, so did we.

This is a gas fireplace, and there are four in the building that still work.

Above the fireplace, I placed a circa-1860s mirror with log patterns.

Mantel detail

This is a detail of a cluster of fruit carved into the marble mantel. This was a popular design during the Victorian period.

Antique elevator

This A.B. See elevator was installed during the 1918 renovation.

When I bought the townhouse, the elevator was covered in 20 coats of paint. I scraped and scraped and scraped to get it all off. And now it looks like an old English pub. It has all the wear marks and it really works, even though it may be the slowest elevator in the world.

Inside the elevator

Here you can see the details of the elevator's interior. It carries riders to five floors in the townhouse.

Deli sign = fantastic art find!

Here is another example of how objects from different periods and of different styles can go well together. The deli sign here, circa 1980, is one of my favorite finds.

I spent years when I lived on the Lower East Side trying to buy this sign from this deli owner. I’d ask, "Will you take $300? Will you take $400? Will you take $500?" And he'd respond, "I can't sell that. It's my deli sign."

One day, I walked by and they were destroying the deli. And I walked up to a guy who was taking debris out, and I asked, "Can I buy that deli sign?" And he said, “If you can carry it, buddy, you can have it." And it's about 200 pounds of slate! So I got my brother to help bring it home with me.

Below the sign, I've placed a William and Mary blanket chest, New York, from 1740. On it are a Zuni Indian storage jar, 1890; a wrought-iron door handle, New York, mid 18th century; and a Northeastern ash burl covered bowl, 1780-1800.

In the foreground is an oval burl bowl (1780-1800) and an Italian stone pear from the early 20th century.

Turn everyday things into art

Here's an example of how you can take everyday objects from the past and display them as art. These are three wrought-iron door latches from around New York, circa 18th to early 19th century. The one at left is circa 1740 from the Dutch Reformed Church in Coxsackie, N.Y. The handle at far right is late 18th century from Suffield, Conn.

I created the display area for these handles by covering up a radiator along the wall.

The painting is "Number 13" by James D. Brooks.

A light touch

These windows upstairs have 1918 colonial revival moldings, and I left those alone. I did install some minimal blinds that also let some light into the room.

The light hanging from the ceiling is a PH Artichoke Lamp, 1958, by Poul Henningsen, who was the quintessential 1950s lamp designer.

Mix textures and materials

In this room, I installed mahogany floors in 2006. In the center is a Fontana Arte coffee table from the 1950s made of glass, red mirrored glass and steel.

I've mixed it with a Marc Newson wicker chair, Japan, circa 1990; a 1998 leather sofa by Ralph Lauren; and a coffee table by Carlo Mollino, Italy, 1950, upon which rests a painted paper promenade dragon dated June 11, 1964, by Carlo Mollino.

Be alert for bargains

One word of advice is to keep things simple. You don't have to display a lot of objects, nor do you need to spend a lot of money. The street art fork sculpture in the foreground was only $25 in 2005. I've placed it next to an oval burl bowl, 1780-1800. And in the background is a Khmer torso, Baphuon style, from Cambodia that dates to the 11th century.

If you're ready to start adding a touch of your personal style to your home, online and local auctions are a great place to find things.

One excellent online resource to find and purchase decorative arts is 1stdibs.com. On this site, you can browse items that dealers are offering and then negotiate a price.