home
WHEN THE
DESIGNER IS
THE CLIENT
Nureed Saeed created the perfect
space for her family of five
WRITTEN BY CINDY SCHWEICH HANDLER
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF AIMEE HERRING RYAN
N
ureed Saeed, owner of Nu
Interiors in South Orange,
understood exactly what her
clients wanted in their new
home. The clients were her
family.
After having twins and becoming pregnant
six months later, she and her husband sold their Brooklyn
home, then rented it back from the new owners for a few
months so Saeed could redesign the house they’d bought
in South Orange. They moved in when the twins were
13 months old. “This house is like my fourth baby,” she
says. Recently, she sold it to new owners; her husband
accepted a job offer in Berkeley, Calif., and the couple and
their kids, now 6 and 5, moved to the west coast. Saeed
still owns her business in South Orange, and bunks with
friends and relatives when she’s back in New Jersey. As far
as her family’s former home goes, “The people who live in
it now are very happy,” she says.
A MAD MEN AESTHETIC
The sunken living room put Saeed in mind of the Mad Men era of
the late ‘50s-early ‘60s. “It reminded me of a house designed by Eero
Saarinen that I saw in Columbus, Indiana,” she says. The floor-to-ceiling
original windows allow sunlight to flow in from the east; Saeed height-
ened the clean, bright look with white walls and contrasting charcoal
trim. The walnut finish on the original floors, which just needed a
little re-sanding and staining, would have been used when the home
was built in 1954. The layered rugs from her husband’s family in India
complement the “groovy vibe” provided by the mid-century chair, gold
tables and chrome-based metals. The antique jail key resting on the
book, she says, was part of her wedding ceremony. “Instead of using
ribbon that says ‘groom’s’ and ‘bride’s’ on the chairs, we put a lock on
his chair and the key on mine,” says Saeed.
MILLBURN & SHORT HILLS MAGAZINE FALL 2019
19