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furniture pieces and, most notably, the
bright red Chinese lantern hanging from
the ceiling in the far corner of the room — a
gift from her brother and sister-in-law who
got married in China.
This section of her apartment is railroad
style: the living room connects to a
middle room, which connects to her bedroom.
The next room over has a warmer
tone to it and functions almost like a cozy
den. A futon at the center is covered in
patterned pillows from around the world,
and a collage of framed artwork hangs
above it. Amidst the photograph of the
Flatiron building, the Queens map and
the Shepard Fairey portrait of Debbie
Harry is a framed piece of metallic green
butterfly wallpaper.
“My great uncle passed away a few years
ago. We used to go to his house a lot in the
Adirondacks, and this is the wall paper in
his bathroom,” explained Usher. “I used to
love it as a kid. His kids sold the house, so
we went in one last time and they had a roll
of the wallpaper, so I took it.”
On the opposite wall is the majority of
the seashell collection, and it’s striking.
They mainly come from Sanibel Island,
Florida. There are three cases full of shells
and one large frame in which Usher has
arranged the shells in a kaleidoscope pattern.
INTERIOR DESIGN