THINK CHEVY CHASE CHRISTMAS VACATION!
LOCK IN YOUR PRICING BY 12/31/18

As soon as Cousins Undercover star Anthony Carrino saw the brick building in Jersey City, NJ, he knew he had to have it. Constructed in 1892 as a telephone switching station, it “was a huge blank canvas,” says Anthony, who owns Brunelleschi Construction with his dad and his cousin, fellow HGTV star John Colaneri. Enamored of the structure’s arched windows and historic location, Anthony wrote the city a 60-page proposal on why he should get to renovate it. “I’ve lived in Jersey City for almost a decade and really respect the area’s history,” he says. “I told them I didn’t want to change the building but would make it an anchor for the neighborhood.”

Anthony won the bid. He gutted the dilapidated interior, then designed two restaurants for the ground floor and 16 apartments above. All the units showcase the original brick walls and steel beams. At 1,200 square feet, the apartment he chose for himself isn’t the biggest, but it has 19-foot ceilings and gets incredible light. To take full advantage, Anthony kept the space open, walling in just two bathrooms and an office. “Even before my boxes were unpacked, this felt like home.”

Although he didn’t want a formal dining room, Anthony did need a designated spot for nice dinners. A Restoration Hardware farm table teamed with Timothy Oulton seats fit the bill. A layered pair of overdyed rugs from Wayfair define the space. “Most people put color on their walls, but here I wanted the energy to come from the ground,” he says.

On rainy days, Anthony holes up in what he calls his “indoor/outdoor cabana,” a shipping container he bought at a shipyard and had painted blue at an auto body shop. Installing it on the roof was an ordeal: “Because it weighs 4,850 pounds, a structural engineer had to verify that the roof could support it,” Anthony says. “I also had to get permission from the zoning commissioner, who laughed at me when I told him my plans.”                 

Inside the container is a Cassina sofa, a wall-mounted desk, and a blown-up photo Anthony took while traveling. The rest of the furniture, including the teak patio set and the planters, are from Wayfair. Anthony enjoys spending time outside with his dad Alfonso, mom Francine, and younger sister Olivia.

The engineered quartz used for the kitchen countertops reappears on the deck as flooring, but in a different color.

QUOTES EXPIRE ON DECEMBER 31ST 

25% INTEREST FREE LAYAWAY PLAN

40% OFF FREESTANDING STOCK SIZES

5% OFF  LOWEST ONLINE  FURNITURE PRICE