When Anik Pearson Architect was approached by their client to walk through their newly purchased unaltered Sponsor apartment on the Upper West Side, it was clear that the apartment was a diamond in the rough. Contrasting borders to the parquet floors may have been worn paper-thin, and a 1912-issue porcelain laundry sink drain may have been propped with an upturned enamel washpot for nearly a half-century, but original oversized moldings and ornamental plasterwork were still in place, peeking out from underneath thick layers of peeling cracked paint. Any surface decayed from decades of neglect was replaced; plumbing and electrical infrastructure were completely updated; bedrooms were reconfigured to modern standards with plentiful closets; original moldings were meticulously reconstructed and restored. To enable the young parents to prep for meals while taking part in their children’s activities in the adjacent rooms, Anik Pearson Architect replaced a warren of meandering hallways and small pantries cluttered with doors, with a spacious kitchen, all the while opening generous views into the living and dining rooms beyond. Near the end of the renovation, when the primer on the original paneling was not yet dry, the clients handed their interior designer a paint deck; he did not hesitate to enliven the dining room woodwork with Tropical Teal, pairing up the paneling with the chinoiserie wallpaper frieze, and turning up the volume on this renovated Upper West Side gem.