New Yorkers may be accused of preferring a concrete jungle to actual living flora, but even a cursory glance into Kimberly von Koontz’s airy Financial District abode can dissuade them from that notion.

Of course, one shouldn’t expect any less from Von Koontz, a talented landscape designer who works on everything from large country estates to petite, elegant rooftop spaces in Manhattan. The designer also benefits from a quick commute from home to office: Her greenhouse is actually located in the same building as her apartment, the skyscraper formerly home to Chase Bank. “We're constantly rotating the plants back and forth,” she says of moving décor between her home and office. Unsurprisingly, every room of her apartment is filled with greenery, but one of the most special plants might be the speckled begonia marmaduke next to her bed, “I’ve had that since I moved here in 2012,” she says.

And luckily, Von Koontz’s 1,700-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment, which she shares with her toddler son, didn’t need much work when she moved in seven years ago. Other than staining the floors darker and ripping out under-the-sink cabinetry in the bathroom, she left the apartment untouched. She also chose to highlight one of her favorite features of the space, the views overlooking a plaza and the Federal Reserve below, by leaving most of the windows untreated. “To look onto this elegantly designed classical building is quite special,” she says.

In the master bedroom, different colors and textures of fabric are layered for a cozy feel. “I love the provocation of unexpected textures,” Von Koontz says.

Elegant design is also a hallmark of Von Koontz’s personal style, although when asked how she describes it herself, she replies, “Masculine femininity.” And indeed, the clean black-and-white palette punctuated with vibrant greenery and multicolored textiles does hover neatly between the two. The apartment, which Von Koontz designed herself, is also certainly influenced by the time she spent working and studying abroad: “I mean, it's inseparable. There's no way to divide it [from me],” she says. Before focusing on landscape design full-time, she spent many years working in Italy in fashion store design with outfits like Baciocchi Associati (who created many of Prada’s most memorable store campaigns).

Many pieces of Von Koontz’s art collection also have roots in Italy. One of her most cherished is a 1974 sculpture by Giorgio de Chirico, an artist whose paintings she has long admired. “He's very much connected to architecture and this moment in time when Italy was becoming very modern,” she says. “When I came across these sculptures, I did everything I could to get them.” Other pieces may not be attributed to a specific artist, but remain just as valuable to her. On her dining room wall are four panels featuring a black-and-white landscape that were originally part of an Italian armadio or wardrobe. “I think I bought them on layaway because I couldn't afford them all at the same time,” she recalls of when she purchased them as a student in Milan.

Von Koontz's son's playful and colorful bedroom is anchored by a painting by Santi Moix called “Extreme Egg.”

Between her impressive collection of sculptures and many standing planters on the floors, it’s hard to believe that Von Koontz shares this space with a rambunctious two-year-old, but she’s opted not to overly childproof the apartment. “Every time I put the plastic protectors on, he's pulled him off with his teeth when he had to!” she says with a laugh. “I want him to live with beautiful things. People can't believe I have a two-year-old, but he's completely comfortable.” One of her son's favorite places to roam around is the apartment’s large entry foyer. “It has been good for him to learn to crawl, for him to learn to waddle, and all of those things,” she says, but “we usually do end up on pillows on the floor” in the living room.

One of the most inviting aspects of Von Koontz’s home is that it doesn’t adhere to one design philosophy, which is very much intentional. “I didn’t set out to put some sort of mood or essence together for this particular space, but just to be surrounded by things that I truly love,” she says. “It's a lifetime of collecting. I've always had this belief of never buying anything that I don't intend to own forever.”