Are there challenges peculiar to designing second homes?
Part of what makes a house a home is the pieces people bring with them—photographs, personal treasures, collections. People don’t bring much into second homes. I try to find objects to create the sense that they’ve brought a collection. I like to use found objects and organic wood pieces to give that “texture” of home, if you will. Do you have those clients shop with you? No. Most clients come to me because they don’t want to shop. But I do need to incorporate their personality, so it’s a matter of mind reading in a way. How do you read their minds? I’ll ask people to pull images from magazines and show them pictures of my work. I’ll ask them about favorite clothes in their closet. I’m a pretty good interviewer and judge of people. I can tell a lot by the way people dress—particularly by their jewelry. If I were wearing gold bangles halfway up my arm, a gold band of Italian filigree on my middle finger, and largish gold hoops, what would you surmise about my taste in home décor? You’d
