From his childhood on a farm in Kansas to designing luxury homes in New York and London via L.A. and Mexico, designer Andrew Torrey has come a long way—especially since founding his eponymous firm, B.A. Torrey, in 2013. When he first moved to New York at 21, Torrey knew he was ready to take on the bright lights and big city. However, following a stint in the music industry and years of high-level real estate deals, he ultimately realized none of it was his passion. “From real estate to designing, it was an organic move," says Torrey, who was helping his clients stage their apartments before listing them. "I am self-taught—bought every book on design I could afford—until a friend of mine encouraged me to start my own business, to take a chance on myself.”

Torrey's first client after he opened the company had a budget of $5,000, including the designer's fee. "I went from having assistants and a driver to sitting on the floor with a screwdriver, putting together a bookshelf I had bought and transported myself," he says, looking back. "But I was as happy as could be, and this is when I knew it was what I wanted to do.” Eventually Torrey met the person he calls his “breakout client." They asked him to work on the apartment of their daughter, a student at Parsons, which led to top-down renovations of the family's homes in London, L.A., East Hampton, and another apartment in New York.

For his own home, Torrey chose a modern condo in West Chelsea. “This is me," he says of the apartment, where he's lived for about two years. "I like a very full space, and to be surrounded by all the things I love; I’ve tried to minimize, but it never works.” In contrast to his signature sublimely cool, clean, and modern approach for clients, his personal space is full of bits and bobs from traveling and art collected from all over, including flea markets. “I have cowboy boots from my younger days [in Kansas] and a few bars set up—I want people to come in and want to pour themselves a drink and relax," he says. "I don’t smoke, but I have ashtrays everywhere."

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“I wish I could spend more time here, but travel all the time," comments Torrey. In addition to his NYC projects, he's currently working on homes in Beverly Hills; Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Southampton, New York; and at the Yellowstone Club in Montana. He also has a line of carpets with Stark, which just launched. Asked where he wants to be in five years, the designer answers thoughtfully. “I want to be a better version of myself—all of this takes time and I know that.”