Posted on: April 1, 2010

The Sweetest Thing

Create space

By Robert Sharoff
CTW Features

There's no formula to what I do," says Celerie Kemble, of Kemble Interiors in New York City and Palm Beach, Fla. "I feel like I'm inventing the wheel every time."

Well, perhaps not totally. Kemble's partner is her mother, noted Palm Beach interior designer Mimi McMakin, who founded the firm in the 1970s. There is no doubt, however, that Kemble, who is in her late 30s, has reenergized and refocused the business with a series of lush, eclectic interiors for New York style-setters like fashion designers Tory Burch and Lela Rose.

"My mother and I have a lot of the same priorities when it comes to quality," she says. "But I think I'm more influenced by fashion."

That she is. Though far from a populist, she casts a wide cultural net. The title of her latest book - "Celerie Kemble: To Your Taste" (Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2008) - says it all.

"In life as in design," she says, "it is not perfection you should be after. There's beauty in the faded and worn, the well-loved and the sentimental. Your home should be like a loosely woven fabric of desires, memories, practical notions and even compromises. Living in it, you mold it to yourself - you are what holds it together and makes it beautiful."

Do you see much of a generational split in terms of design today - do young people want a very different look than older people?

Celerie: Not really. The U.S. in general is a very visual culture. No matter how old we are, we all read the same magazines and watch the same television shows. What I do see, however, is more of an emphasis on personal style. People want to be in on the process today. They're less interested in letting a designer make all the decisions.

What is the dominant style today?

Celerie: American design right now is mainly about the mix of modern and traditional, and high and low price points. I see it in my own house, which is pretty much a collection of a billion different elements. It's incredibly eclectic.

How is the recession affecting design choices?

Celerie: I think there's a sense of vulnerability and the ground shifting at all levels. For that reason, I think design is going to be a little more traditional over the next few years. People are asking themselves, "Just how important is all this stuff to me?" - and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I keep reading that conspicuous consumption is finished - is it?

Celerie: I think there are going to be a lot fewer people seeking to replicate the look of a boutique hotel in their homes - that sense of total controlled chic. People are into design that makes them feel comfortable.

What is the first step when you're designing a space?

Celerie: Understanding the desired effect. Do you want the room to be cozy or formal? Colorful or restful? Those kinds of questions are incredibly important. I look at a client's home as being almost an album of their life and sentiments and fantasies. The more a room has the heartbeat of an actual person, the better I like it.

What are the hardest rooms?

Celerie: I don't really think in those terms. Clients are hard, not rooms. That said, some rooms certainly take longer than others. Kitchens are always a challenge because they're about things like ergonomics and efficiency and ever-evolving technology. You have to understand how long an average person can walk with a hot pan in their hands from the stove to the counter and what kind of countertop can take the heat and still look pretty over time.

What colors are you liking today?

Celerie: Deep blues, plums, apricots and copper tones. Also, I think gray is important. Gray will be for the next decade what brown was for the last one. But it's really all about combinations. There are no ugly colors - only ugly combinations.

If you could give people one piece of advice about decorating, what would it be?

Celerie: I think very often people fall in love with something - maybe an antique or a work of art or maybe just a beautiful lamp or mirror - but then they're afraid to commit to it because it seems too extreme or they don't see how it will fit into the overall decorating scheme. My own feeling is that these are the most important pieces of all because they get the ball rolling. You've got to start somewhere - why not with something you love? I always tell people that the first step is to find something that has all of the colors and mood they want and then go on from there.

Who influences you?

Celerie: That question is a little too broad. I'm an omnivore. Everything influences me. Design is about keeping your eyes open. Right now, I'm loving the work of Tony Duquette, a California designer who did a lot of work for MGM and other film studios in the '30s, '40s and '50s. He styled some of Vincente Minnelli's films. There is a freshness and a theatricality to his work I really like. My admiration is for people who can take what they're given and create a unique persona with it.

Duquette was a major collector of art and idiosyncratic furniture and objects, many of which found their way into his interiors. Do you collect anything?

Celerie: I don't collect - I hoard. Right now, I'm hoarding archaic academic materials - outdated maps and school charts, things that are often a tiny bit off or wrong. They have a sweet charm - kind of like opening a dusty book - as well as a simplicity of line and shadow I find really appealing.

What kind of house did you grow up in?

Celerie: I was lucky enough to grow up in a beautiful house in Palm Beach that was surrounded by other beautiful houses. It's an old shingle-style Episcopal church built on stilts in about 1890. My room was in the steeple - it was shaped like an octagon and had a 20-foot ceiling.

Were you one of those kids who was actively involved in rearranging their rooms from a very early age?

Celerie: Not really. I just kind of sat on my bed and took it all in.

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