The New Bohemian: Stephen and Jane Lerer’s Warrington Penthouse Blends Bright Light and Antiques
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Though they’ve been living in their 23rd-floor penthouse at The Warrington only six months, it didn’t take Stephen and Jane Lerer too long to realize that they were totally and completely in love with their immense, luxurious, and freshly renovated unit inside this Turtle Creek highrise.
“I really loved the structure of it, the design,” said Jane. “Light comes in from three directions — north, east, and west — and we get the sunrise and sunset, and every room has these floor-to-ceiling windows.”
She’s so smitten that she’s opening her three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath, 4,100-square-foot home to the Turtle Creek Tour of Homes on April 12. The tour, which benefits the Turtle Creek Association, will feature a beautiful historic Tudor at 4011 Turtle Creek and five more luxurious units at some of the most sought-after buildings in the neighborhood. The tour runs from 1 to 5 p.m., with an invitation-only afterparty from 6 to 8. Tickets are $50 for Turtle Creek Association members, and $60 for non-members. You can purchase tickets on the website, or you can stay tuned to CandysDirt.com for your chance to win a pair of passes.
The Warrington is located at 3831 Turtle Creek Boulevard.
The Lerer’s penthouse is one of the more exceptional stops, as its position inside the 1981-built Warrington building is undeniably special. Designed by Henry Hwang and Harwood K. Smith & Partners (HKS), the build achieves a certain presence in the area, with its linear facade and rectangular proportions. That design allows the building to have large terraces and over-sized units.
“There is a very substantial feel to it,” Jane said. “It very much feels like a European apartment.”
The Lerers consulted interior designer Geoffrey Woodrum of Cadwallader Design for the remodel and installation of their antique treasures. “He really understood what we wanted. We travel quite a bit, and we wanted our home to reflect that,” Jane said of Woodrum. “He really just understood us.”
With a diverse collection of antiques from Brazil, Eastern Europe, Panama, South Africa, Antarctica, China, and Iran and an almost overwhelming collection of first-edition literature, the Lerers wanted their home to feel vibrant and full, almost bohemian, but not crowded. The large leaded-glass windows help achieve that affect, as does the copious built-ins throught the home.
“The living room has a very Shanghai-type feel, very old world,” Jane said. “The light and the openness of the floor plan keeps the antiques from weighing the rooms down. There is such a fantastic, great energy in this home. ”
Tourgoers should pay special attention to the collection of 22 color lithographs by Ben Shahn that illustrate a passage from The Notebooks of Malte Lavrids Brigge by Rainer Maria Rilke entitled “For the Sake of a Single Verse.” You’ll also find gorgeous hand-laid parquet floors throughout the home, as well as hand-painted wallpaper in the dining room, limestone countertops, and glass-backed cabinets in the kitchen that filter but don’t obstruct the view.
“We have several antique carpets that were collected from all over the world. There’s a Turkish silk and cotton carpet in our den,” Jane added. “The hardware throughout the home is hand-tooled pewter. It’s unique and beautiful.”
The Lerers also love the neighborhood and the convenience it affords them. They are close to Turtle Creek, Uptown, the Katy Trail, and many fabulous amenities. “It’s very urban and very walkable, and it’s close to downtown without actually being in downtown,” Jane adds. “It’s the perfect location for us.”
But what does it feel like to open your home to hundreds of people?
“The house really shows who we are, and we’re very comfortable with that,” Jane said. “It will be a good experience for us to open our home, because I think they’ll leave knowing a bit more about us.”
