Los Angeles decor guru Kelly Wearstler is something of a rock star in the world of interior design. Author, blogger, outré fashion plate, branding virtuoso (from sheets to jewelry), decorator and muse of the Viceroy and Tides hotels. With a showroom on Melrose Avenue in the heart of trendy West Hollywood and A-list clientele clamoring for her services, it’s no wonder she once again found herself named to the Architectural Digest AD100 for 2020, joining only the most elite names in the industry.
Her style
Interior design powerhouse Kelly Wearstler is all about balance. It’s the philosophy behind her eclectic, sophisticated interiors — which mix edgy pieces with vintage treasures. “I love historic design, I love things that are vintage, I love antiques; but, I also love super cool emerging art and sculpture,” she says. “When I design, there is always something old and something new, and that’s also how I dress.” Her style consists of large, oversized shapes and maximalist silhouettes. She bravely matches colors together and creates unique color pallets, together with her unique lighting choices, this has made her an icon in the interior design world for the cinema and music industries. As such her clients also include many famous Hollywood celebrities.
Her influence
As an interior designer, Kelly Wearstler finds influence in Modernism and old Hollywood glamour as created by Dorothy Draper and William Haines, and the work of architect Aldo Rossi. Her style has been described as “Hollywood Regency” and “Maximalism”. She is credited, alongside Jonathan Adler and Miles Redd as bringing “the florid and the decorative back to interior design”, mixing modern and historical designs, such as a Rococo mirror, against a turquoise painted wall, accented by a shag rug. Wearstler visits auction houses to collect furniture and decor items for projects. In 2008 she was deemed a “mega decorator” by Domino, being described as reaching out to “the hip design public”, in the many hotel interiors she has designed. Wearstler believes clutter to be the biggest faux pas in home decor.
Her studio
Founded in 1995 as an interior design studio, the Los Angeles-based company has evolved into an interdisciplinary global lifestyle brand that is leading the contemporary design conversation with experiential residential, hospitality, commercial and retail destinations and an expansive portfolio of home product designs and brand collaborations.
Her advice
Wearstler‘s advice to aspiring interior designers would be to travel. You have to see and study other cultures. If you have an opportunity in school to study abroad or to do any type of traveling, take every moment you can. And if you can’t or don’t have the means to travel out of your country, then take a road trip and explore another town you’ve never seen. Being an interior designer is all about discovery and adventure.
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