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    • How Kelly Wearstler fell in love with design
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    How Kelly Wearstler fell in love with design

    Umito Posted on

    In the monthly series of ELLE.com Office hourswe ask people in powerful positions to take us through their first jobs, their worst jobs and everything in between. This month we spoke to Kelly Wearstler, who started working at age 13 and never looked back. Her first restaurant jobs taught her teamwork and management (they also paid for her college education) and led her to work in graphic design, architecture, and interior design. Since founding her studio, Kelly Wearstler Interior Design, in 1995, she has designed hotels and homes for celebrities, like Cameron Diaz and Gwen Stefani, and appeared as a judge on the Bravo show. Superior design, and wrote six pounds. She now collaborates with the Giobagnara brand on a collection of bar and service items and working on the renovated Proper Hotel property in Lake Tahoe, Utah. “My mother always said that nothing worthwhile came easy,” she says of her uninterrupted career. Below she talks about working for a legendary designer Milton Glaser, how hanging out with her mother in vintage stores shaped her sensitivity, and the power of hotels.

    My first job

    I was 13 years old in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and I started working at this beachfront restaurant. I would make milkshakes and eggs, count money, and count it at the end of the day. the day. It’s a lot of work for a 13 year old. I loved it. I remember meeting all kinds of amazing people. I also learned a lot about teamwork, management and multitasking. And about having money.

    My best boss

    When I was in New York, I apprenticed with (famous graphic designer) Milton Glaser. He was really one of those first designers to have multiple hyphens. He did graphic design, marketing, interior design, architecture, sculpture. He was a really great boss, because he really gave a lot of visibility to the team that worked there, and it was super inclusive at all levels of the team.

    How I became interested in design

    My mother always loved going to vintage stores, whether it was fashion or design. She took my sister and me to yard sales and auctions all the time. I have always been surrounded by furniture, art magazines or vintage magazines, everything you can imagine.

    personal note with career advice, work thoughts, morning routine and email signature

    Nick Hudson

    Why lighting is so important in design

    Lighting creates ambiance. This adds depth to the architecture. It can make or break a space. It can also make one person look great and another look not so good. Another reason I love what I do is because I get to work with all these amazing lighting designers and continue to learn amazing strategies for creating the best lighting. It’s fundamental, and it’s a power shift in the general atmosphere of a project.

    My defining moment in my career

    When I moved to Los Angeles, I was going to get a job at an architectural firm. A friend of a friend said, “Oh, my friends bought a house in Venice. They bought this bungalow and need help with the space. They agreed to entrust me with the salon. I did the living room, then ended up finishing the whole house.

    Why living in Los Angeles inspires me

    It’s the best, because it’s so diverse in all forms. The landscape, the architecture, the gastronomy, the culture, the art. I’ve just seen it blossom since I moved. It’s a free-spirited city. New York is rooted in tradition, where Los Angeles is always looking for the next best thing, probably because of Hollywood, but now technology is a big part, which excites me.

    a personal note containing text about open work email tabs and communication preferences

    Nick Hudson

    How I decide to say yes to a project

    You wonder, oh my god, am I going to find another job? It’s really scary. One of the most important things is to make sure you are in sync with your client on the direction and taste of a project. At first, I would take a project, and maybe they wanted something really vanilla, something that maybe I wasn’t crazy about, and it wasn’t the ideal fit.

    I also like having different types of projects in the office. We do architecture, interior design, different types of installations, whether for a museum or a gallery. I like this diversity, because we learn from each type of project, which makes the others better.

    Why designing a hotel is different from designing a house

    You design a house for a residential client and, sure, friends come to see it, but you have no visibility into how anyone likes it. I can walk into a hotel at any time and see the same people coming back, having brunch one day and coming back for dinner. There are guests that stay there that I get amazing DMs and notes from. It’s so enriching.

    This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

    Letter

    Adrienne Gaffney is an editor at SHE and previously worked at WSJ Magazine And Vanity Fair.

    Umito
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