"When you said that it really clicked," remarked Tim, poster boy for overqualified interns everywhere (or rather differently-qualified ones, meaning he could direct a Broadway musical blindfolded but didn't know his fringes from his gimps).
Of course I was just parroting Miles, who probably had it ingrained by his mentor and recent SCAD Style Étoile honoree
Mrs. Bunny Williams, but the adage rings true: decorators, while creative folk, are in a service business. The business of making everyday life prettier, easier and more comfortable for their clients.
So I figure now's a good time to fill you all in on my doings since leaving the nest back in January. I decorated an office for a zingy, mid-size public relations firm, started helping a client-friend on her gorgeous house upstate, and just began the whirlwind process of staging model units for new condominiums. All the while I've kept chugging along with some fab consultation clients. See, I'm hearing over and over how there's a market for people who have a sense of their style, own a few solid pieces, some leftover Ikea from college (or last week's trip to Big Blue), but just need help pulling it all together. That's where I come in. I'll show up, push your furniture around, answer your questions, make recommendations, and talk sources that fit your style and budget. If you want me to draw up a complete furniture plan and lay it all out for you in a scheme board, from rugs to paint colors to window blinds -- or even execute the whole shebang -- I can do that too. However I will NOT insult your prized collections or make that
Henri face at your sofa. You must remember the designer from
Troop Beverly Hills who replies
"Besides burn it?!?" when Phyllis Nefler asks what he can do with her Wilderness Girls uniform. I also won't insist you lacquer every surface of your rental apartment.
Speaking of, I'm genuinely bowled over by the response to my little
Diana Vreeland-on-steroids moment. Merci beaucoup!! I knew from the get-go she wouldn't appeal to everyone, but I look at it thusly: the legendary
Patricia Field's
store windows always cater to an alien tranny stripper clientele, yet as a costume designer she's helmed the more socially normative
Hope & Faith and
Spin City, in addition to
Ugly Betty and
The Scourge of Manhattan. Pat's flamboyantly creative, and I imagine her personal aesthetic lies somewhere in between the two poles, but she's providing a service and really does right by her clients. As a decorator if I achieve a tenth of her range, I'll be happy.
And if you're interested in my services -- remember, "Prettier and Easier" -- please don't hesitate to email (see above right). I e-decorate too, which is great for me because then I don't have to miss
Idol. Still no TiVo here. Anyway, thanks again for all the kudos!
Just a little heads up that I'm thrilled to be a part of SCAD Style this year, chatting on a panel with my esteemed blogrades (that's "blogger comrades") Rita Konig, Eddie Ross and Jaithan Kochar! We're doing our shtick -- From Magazine to Monitor: The Rise of the Blog -- in Atlanta AND Savannah, this Thursday and Friday, respectively. I've never visited "The Hostess City of the South" and can't wait to see its gorgeous architecture, meet with SCAD students and get inspired by all their talent. Also just found out that Michelle Adams, Lonny and Rubie Greene's wunderkind/mini-mogul, will be moderating!! She'll keep us on track lest I digress into Dixie Carter eulogies. Now if I can just find a way to meet the Lady Chablis ...
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