New York apartment combines elegance, comfort

March 17, 2000
Web posted at: 1:29 p.m. EST (1829 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A balance between formal elegance and informal comfort punctuates Barbara Hauben Ross' New York apartment. The designer says she created a warm environment equally suited for entertaining and relaxing, a place at ease with black tie or bunny slippers.

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CNN's Elsa Klensch shows the home of interior designer Barbara Ross. Windows Media 28K 80K

The living room, says Ross, is proof.

"The starting point for the living room was comfort," she says. "After comfort, I think the next (consideration) is style, elegance and useability. You need to make sure that it functions."

Light colors helped Ross reach her balance. She painted the living room walls a grey taupe, then highlighted her kitchen in champagne and cream colors. Soft tones wrap around the bedroom.

"Color is very important to me," she says. "I take color as seriously as you can take any aspect of design, and I believe that color has to be a background element in your life."

CNN Style Correspondent Elsa Klensch toured Ross' apartment.

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