Designer-Done Aerie in New York’s Pierre Hotel Offers Sumptuous Elegance

The Pierre Hotel has been a byword for elegance and luxury ever since 1930, when it was built by the illustrious Charles Pierre at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 61st Street. Alas, right after the cataclysmic stock market crashed was a bad time to open a luxury hotel. The Pierre went into bankruptcy in 1932 and in 1938, J. Paul Getty, then the richest man in the world, bought it for about $2.5 million.

In 1959, 75 apartments were sold as cooperative apartments, while Getty retained control of the hotel’s services and guest rooms. Ever since then, the Pierre’s private apartments have been home to an international bevy of high-profile people, including Elizabeth Taylor, Aristotle Onassis, Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone, Harrods owner Mohamed al-Fayed, and fashion icon Yves Saint-Laurent.

One of the 525-foot-tall tower’s supremely elegant units, a two-bedroom and two-and-a-half-bath spread of about 2,000 square feet, has come available asking a princely $11.25 million. Maintenance charges for the 27th-floor unit total an eye-watering $15,000 a month.

Listed by Nic Bottero and Erin Boisson Aries at Douglas Elliman, the rarefied residence features amazing high-style design by English designer Anouska Hemphill, while the stunning woodwork was done by noble-born and world-famous furniture maker David Linley, the only son of late Princess Margaret. Linley installed parquet floors, closets, bookshelves, doors, paneling, boiserie, and crown molding with inlaid ebony that was then buffed with black polish. With three exposures (north, south and west) The exquisite dark wood is offset with plenty of natural light that flows through large windows.

The elegant L-shaped entrance gallery leads to the almost 30-foot-long great room, which offers a wood-burning fireplace as well as fantastic head-on park views. Other spaces include a well-proportioned dining room filled with gorgeous Linley-designed display cabinets, a small home office and a powder room. The kitchen is diminutive, but why cook if your immensely rich and and live in a five-star hotel that offers residents room service from the hotel’s restaurants? As long as there’s a wee spot to pop corks and cut up limes for cocktails, it’s all good!

Both bedrooms are en-suite, of course. The smaller bedroom’s black-and-white striped wall paper is mirrored in the black-and-white striped rug, while the larger corner master suite offers park and skyline views, along with a velvet-cushioned window seat to enjoy them. There’s also an incredible mirrored dressing room with copious wardrobe space, and an amazing (if somewhat dizzying) Art Deco-style black-and-white marble bathroom. Comfort for each room is assured through individually controlled air conditioning, heating and lighting systems.

In addition to the room service, owners enjoy full access to all hotel services, including 24-hour concierge, twice-daily maid service, a spa and fitness center, a conference room and business center, and a beauty salon.