Color was a big part of the refresh, particularly in the dining room, now covered in Benjamin Moore’s Alligator Alley.
Not every interior design project needs a clean slate. Just ask Ellen Marment, who returned to a client’s home nearly two decades after she first reimagined its rooms for a young family. Marment’s update of her original design was an exercise in restraint and evolution, where the focus shifted from starting fresh to refining the elements that have quietly endured.
“It was truly a pleasure to return to a home I first worked on almost two decades ago,” Marment says. “I am honored when a client invites me back to refresh or expand their spaces. It reflects a level of trust that I deeply value.” That sense of continuity made this project especially personal. The homeowners were not only her very first clients back in 2007, but also close friends of her sister. Over the years, the relationship has never paused. “It’s incredibly gratifying to be invited back time and time again,” she says.
The jumping-off point for the refresh was Tibaut’s Hill Garden floral linen fabric, shown here on chairs in the relaxed living room.
That longstanding relationship is central to how Marment works. After beginning her career in sports marketing with the International Olympic Committee through its exclusive marketing agent, she pivoted to design, earning her associate’s degree from Parsons School of Design while working under a Greenwich-based designer to gain hands-on experience. “I sort of felt I needed to get up to speed pretty quickly because it was my second career,” she says. By 2005, she had launched her own business, building it from her Stamford home through referrals and relationships that, like this one, often span decades.
The scope of original project included updates for the powder room, entry foyer, living room and dining room—spaces that still form the backbone of the home today. Because Marment’s initial design leaned on traditional principles and quality furnishings, much of it held up. So, instead of starting over, she leaned into what was already working. “Our focus was on evolution rather than removal,” she says. “We chose to update fabrics, introduce new wall coverings, and refresh details like lighting, lampshades and pillows to create a lighter, more current feel.”
Even the architecture reflects that philosophy. Built in the mid-1990s as part of a cul-de-sac of similarly styled homes, the house originally lacked much of the character it has today. Early on, Marment introduced high wainscoting in the dining room, added molding to arched doorways and layered in millwork to create a sense of depth. Those foundational decisions remain intact, underscoring the value of getting it right the first time.
The designer kept original investment pieces like the sideboard in the dining room.
The shift in decor is immediately felt in the palette. The earlier mix of gold, red and cream has given way to a softer story of blues, greens and natural materials, such as rattan and jute. The jumping-off point for this color story was a floral linen by Thibaut called Hill Garden. “I suggested the fabric for pillows, but then the client encouraged using it for the living room chairs, which set a playful tone for the entire refresh,” Marment says. That decision opened the door to a more layered, slightly whimsical direction that carries throughout the home.
This refresh was also directed by the lifestyle changes of the family. The owners’ children are now grown, so the living room was reworked to feel more relaxed. That was accomplished with things like a larger, more comfortable sofa that anchors the space.
The dining room was also subtly transformed. Original investment pieces like the table and sideboard remain, but the mood in this space has shifted. Chairs were reupholstered, window treatments were removed to let the space breathe and a heavy chandelier was replaced with some-thing simpler and more streamlined. The walls are now covered with Benjamin Moore’s Alligator Alley, which is paired with a lively Schumacher Tiger Palm wall covering above the existing paneling.
The table in the foyer was painted and paired with updated accessories.
There is a sense of ease in these features. Nothing feels forced or overly precious. For Marment, the heart of the refresh lies in respecting what already exists. “I do believe in embracing pieces that feel lived in or carry a sense of history,” she says. “This refresh was about working with what already had a story rather than starting over.” Many of the original pieces from 2007 remain untouched, proof that investing in well-made furnishings pays off over time.
That perspective extends beyond her residential work. During the pandemic, she took on a commercial project at Third Place, where she was asked to help shape the interiors. “I ended up creating my first moss wall,” she says of the 10-foot by 10-foot installation that still anchors that space. “So not only was I decorating, I was actually creating art.” The project marked a creative expansion for this professional, and still reflects the same instinct to add character and texture rather than start from scratch.
Instead of replacing key pieces in her client’s home, she reimagines how they are styled. “Instead of updating the antiques I like to update the accessories that adorn these pieces. Or I will tweak a finish,” she says. An antique mahogany console—once styled with darker, more formal accents—now feels lighter and more current with a seagrass basket, a tortoise lamp with a lilac shade and a simple arrangement of greenery. In the foyer, a custom table was painted blue and paired with a more organic mix of branches, a natural jute rug and a rattan-wrapped lantern. “Simply updating accessories and rugs has the ability to change the vibe dramatically,” Marment says.
It’s a reminder that impactful transformations can be quiet. In this home, the past has not been erased. It has simply been given room to breathe again.
Photography By Jane Beiles