Volume Boost

Tapped by Kate Upton and Justin Verlander, hairstylist turned interior designer John Ruggiero adds oomph to a New York City penthouse

- HANNAH MARTIN

KATE UPTON AND JUSTIN VERLANDER WITH THEIR BOXER, NORMAN, IN THE LIVING ROOM; CHAIRS BY LUTECA. SHE WEARS A VICTORIA BECKHAM DRESS. FASHION STYLING BY JOSEPH CASSELL.

You can learn a lot about a person from doing their hair. Just ask celebrity stylist John Ruggiero. After meeting Kate Upton on set more than a decade ago, he and the supermodel developed an easy rapport, working together on magazine covers and ad campaigns-even her 2017 wedding. Conversation often turned to a shared interest: decorating. "I always valued his opinion," recalls Upton, who was naturally eager to book him once he was retiring his scissors to turn to interior design full-time.

1. LIMEWASHED IN PIXIE BY PORTOLA PAINTS, THE LIVING ROOM OPENS ONTO THE SCREENING ROOM; ARTWORK BY DIANA AL-HADID.

The opportunity came in 2023, after her husband, star baseball pitcher Justin Verlander, signed with the Mets, bringing their brood to New York City. Upton immediately called on Ruggiero to make their uptown apartment feel more like home. "You can look out at the city and enjoy the city, but you still feel like you're in your own little world," Verlander explains of the unit, which they chose not only for its park views but its outdoor spaces and accommodating floor plan. What its allwhite rooms lacked, however, was personality. "We travel so much," Upton explains. "I didn't want our home to feel like a hotel room. We're a young family. We have kids and a dog. We wanted it to feel like us."