Julianna Margulies's Serene New York Apartment
The Emmy-winning star of The Good Wife, finds bliss in a family-friendly Manhattan home with modern-meets-Asian interiors conceived by designer Vicente Wolf
When an actor plays a character as convincingly—and for as
long—as Julianna Margulies has played Alicia Florrick on the celebrated
CBS television series The Good Wife, it’s easy to conflate the
two. But their sharp differences register instantly in Margulies’s
presence: The actress is as warm and relaxed as Florrick is coiled and
controlled. The bright, airy New York apartment Margulies calls home
underscores the point. Purchased a decade ago while the building was
still under construction in the SoHo district, the loftlike
2,200-square-foot dwelling was created by combining two then-available
units—a studio apartment and a two-bedroom.
"I bought it thinking I’d flip it," says Margulies, who was bouncing between coasts and acting projects at the time. Her plans shifted, however, once she actually experienced the space, with its ten-foot-plus ceilings and its rooms filled with light streaming through the amply proportioned windows—double paned to soften the city’s clamor. "There’s just this sense of calm here," she says. "I didn’t realize what a smart buy it was." Or how perfectly it would serve her needs as a single woman with a demanding career.
But in 2007, life took an unexpected turn when Margulies married Keith Lieberthal (the global director for a financial research company). Shortly after that, Margulies became a mother (their son, Kieran, is now six), then landed the role on The Good Wife that would win her an Emmy in 2011. "Suddenly I had a husband, a baby, and this hectic, crazy life," Margulies says. Were that scenario part of a made-for-TV movie, the family would have pulled up stakes and relocated to a larger home, a story line Margulies and Lieberthal were actually ready to embrace. A two-year search for new digs, however, failed to turn up anything the couple liked better. So instead of moving they opted to freshen up their existing residence.
The actress had always done her own decorating, but having a young child and a work schedule that routinely calls for 14-hour days meant handing off some responsibilities. Enter designer Vicente Wolf. "I’m obsessed with design magazines," Margulies confesses. "And every time I’d get to a room I loved, it was Vicente’s. He has this way of making spaces not just beautiful but homey, modern, and useful." To achieve this delicate balance for his latest clients, Wolf focused on a handful of architectural and cosmetic changes, while also rethinking the furnishings—wherever possible incorporating items of personal significance to the couple. "For Julianna and Keith, my job was to ensure that the apartment felt entirely new," the designer says.
Margulies and Lieberthal entertain frequently, so at the top of the priority list was the creation of a distinct dining area in the principal living space—a challenge in any open-plan apartment. Wolf solved the problem by rounding one corner of the room to accommodate a banquette and an elliptical dining table. The living area is then delineated by a circular vignette that features an overscale crescent-shaped sofa, a cocktail table, and a lounge chair. "When you’re sitting on the sofa, it’s like you’re in a room within the space," Wolf says. And to enhance the apartment’s airiness, he painted the brown woodwork white, selected upholstery in taupes, charcoals, and honeyed neutrals, and bleached the maple floors an ethereal shade of gray.
As for the furniture, with the exception of a few key pieces collected by Margulies over the years (among them the master bedroom’s Fortuny light fixture and 19th-century campaign chest), most were either sourced by Wolf or custom made at his direction, including the walnut-and-steel partners desk that anchors the study. Add to this the slab of polished steel that he propped against one wall of the living room, and the result is Wolf’s signature blend of old and new—a comfortably bohemian, eminently inviting dwelling where an ornate Indian desk is juxtaposed with the modern lines of a Saarinen Womb chair. Says Wolf, "That mixture is what makes a home great years after it’s done."
The art and accessories—many of them linked to Margulies’s friends and family—are similarly eclectic, ranging from Portuguese Colonial candlesticks in the living area to the sunny painting by London artist Daisy Cook in the entrance hall. A particular favorite is the light fixture above the dining table; composed of 60 handcrafted glass magnolia blossoms, it was made by artist Elizabeth Lyons, a longtime friend of the actress’s. Treasures like these define the apartment, which is largely devoid of totems to Margulies’s high-profile career. As she says, "When I’m home, it’s about being a mom, a wife, and a friend."
"I bought it thinking I’d flip it," says Margulies, who was bouncing between coasts and acting projects at the time. Her plans shifted, however, once she actually experienced the space, with its ten-foot-plus ceilings and its rooms filled with light streaming through the amply proportioned windows—double paned to soften the city’s clamor. "There’s just this sense of calm here," she says. "I didn’t realize what a smart buy it was." Or how perfectly it would serve her needs as a single woman with a demanding career.
But in 2007, life took an unexpected turn when Margulies married Keith Lieberthal (the global director for a financial research company). Shortly after that, Margulies became a mother (their son, Kieran, is now six), then landed the role on The Good Wife that would win her an Emmy in 2011. "Suddenly I had a husband, a baby, and this hectic, crazy life," Margulies says. Were that scenario part of a made-for-TV movie, the family would have pulled up stakes and relocated to a larger home, a story line Margulies and Lieberthal were actually ready to embrace. A two-year search for new digs, however, failed to turn up anything the couple liked better. So instead of moving they opted to freshen up their existing residence.
The actress had always done her own decorating, but having a young child and a work schedule that routinely calls for 14-hour days meant handing off some responsibilities. Enter designer Vicente Wolf. "I’m obsessed with design magazines," Margulies confesses. "And every time I’d get to a room I loved, it was Vicente’s. He has this way of making spaces not just beautiful but homey, modern, and useful." To achieve this delicate balance for his latest clients, Wolf focused on a handful of architectural and cosmetic changes, while also rethinking the furnishings—wherever possible incorporating items of personal significance to the couple. "For Julianna and Keith, my job was to ensure that the apartment felt entirely new," the designer says.
Margulies and Lieberthal entertain frequently, so at the top of the priority list was the creation of a distinct dining area in the principal living space—a challenge in any open-plan apartment. Wolf solved the problem by rounding one corner of the room to accommodate a banquette and an elliptical dining table. The living area is then delineated by a circular vignette that features an overscale crescent-shaped sofa, a cocktail table, and a lounge chair. "When you’re sitting on the sofa, it’s like you’re in a room within the space," Wolf says. And to enhance the apartment’s airiness, he painted the brown woodwork white, selected upholstery in taupes, charcoals, and honeyed neutrals, and bleached the maple floors an ethereal shade of gray.
As for the furniture, with the exception of a few key pieces collected by Margulies over the years (among them the master bedroom’s Fortuny light fixture and 19th-century campaign chest), most were either sourced by Wolf or custom made at his direction, including the walnut-and-steel partners desk that anchors the study. Add to this the slab of polished steel that he propped against one wall of the living room, and the result is Wolf’s signature blend of old and new—a comfortably bohemian, eminently inviting dwelling where an ornate Indian desk is juxtaposed with the modern lines of a Saarinen Womb chair. Says Wolf, "That mixture is what makes a home great years after it’s done."
The art and accessories—many of them linked to Margulies’s friends and family—are similarly eclectic, ranging from Portuguese Colonial candlesticks in the living area to the sunny painting by London artist Daisy Cook in the entrance hall. A particular favorite is the light fixture above the dining table; composed of 60 handcrafted glass magnolia blossoms, it was made by artist Elizabeth Lyons, a longtime friend of the actress’s. Treasures like these define the apartment, which is largely devoid of totems to Margulies’s high-profile career. As she says, "When I’m home, it’s about being a mom, a wife, and a friend."
View a slideshow of Julianna Margulies's Asian-influenced Manhattan apartment.
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