I’m so happy to be able to share this interview I did with the husband and wife duo of New York-based interior designers Jesse Carrier and Mara Miller of Carrier and Company. You probably have seen their beautiful and timeless work gracing the pages of Architectural Digest, House Beautiful and Elle Decor, to name a few. They have worked on private and work spaces for the fashion elite including Anna Wintour, EIC of Vogue (US) and fashion designer Jason Wu.
They met 20 years ago in their final year of Interior Design at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in New York. After graduating, they went on to hone their craft individually at well-known design firms – Jesse with Thomas O’Brien and Jeffrey Bilhuber and Mara with Sills Huniford and Sara Bengur to name a few. Once their first child came along, it made sense for them to work together and hence Carrier and Company was launched in 2005.
Their portfolio of work spans a range of styles from the modern to the traditional and everything in between. In fact, their work is categorized into six aesthetics denoted by chapters in their new book, “Carrier and Company: Positively Chic Interiors” – Timelessness, Tailored Refinement, Country Charm, Luxuriously Modern, a Nod to Tradition and Bohemian Glamour. But what all the spaces have in common is the fact that they are warm, livable, edited and personal.
One of my favourite quotes from the book on the art of the mix is: “As our eye gets better and better trained, our understanding of the mix evolves. Our ideal is the perfectly imperfect. In synthesized rooms that are precise to the point of perfection, one wrong note can be incredibly disruptive. The mix is very forgiving. Life does not have to be perfect. Furnishings and possessions do not have to be perfect. But you can still live beautifully.”
(This image isn’t in the book but it’s one of my favourite images of their work that I have shared on the blog previously.)
Jesse and Mara will be speaking at IDS (Interior Design Show) in Toronto this Saturday, January 23rd at 2 pm. If you are in the Toronto area, you really don’t want to miss it. Go here for more info and to purchase tickets.
So without further ado, here are Jesse and Mara in their own words:
1) Who inspires you and why?
Jesse: Bunny Williams inspires me, both professionally and personally. Professionally – I so admire that with 50 years of experience under her belt, her passion for the industry remains unparalleled, and her level of involvement is staggering. While keeping up with the day-to-day at Bunny Williams Inc., she manages to find time to design lines of furniture and accessories, run a shop, publish books and get involved with several design based charitable organizations! That her nick name is “The Energizer Bunny” is no surprise. Her boundless energy and excitement for this industry is an inspiration.
Mara: Honestly, I get inspired by our clients. Maybe we’ve been very lucky, but we tend to work with people who approach, not just the decoration of their homes – but life in a really positive, excited and fair way. And it seems to be the reason for their successes in life. I’m grateful to get to work with them and see their behavior and attitude in action.
2) What would you say are each other’s strengths?
Jesse: I feel that Mara’s greatest strength is planning. Whether it is as straight forward as furniture planning, or planning the entire course of a project, she has an uncanny sense for detail, and leaves no stone unturned.
Mara: Jesse’s strength is his vision (or ability to envision) of a space, in terms of mixing materials, colors and styles to create personality in a room.
“We strive to place objects in unexpected, impactful positions. When arrangements are too well balanced, they may grow flat, even boring. An oddball piece of furniture of an unexpected scale, style or provenance can – and often does – make the overall room more exciting.” ~ Positively Chic Interiors
3) Name one thing about yourself that readers may be surprised to learn.
Jesse: I grew up on a dairy farm in upstate New York.
Mara: I’m attuned in Reiki.
4) In her Foreword to your book, Anna Wintour says that the end result is “a place you will love and which you can live in unselfconsciously.” What a wonderful compliment. What does the latter part of her statement mean to you?
We think it’s about living in a way that is true to yourself, so you are never living with pretense or to standards other than your own. That is what we strive to do for clients, and what I think is her compliment. {Sidenote: Wintour calls Jesse her therapist/counsellor and decorator.}
5) What is the most common mistake people make when decorating?
Jesse: Not adhering to the sage advice of their decorators!
Mara: Fixating on one item or idea. As professionals we (now) understand that there will be lots of good ideas and mild obsessions – but you have to sacrifice, even good things, when they compromise or block the best outcome (I have to tell myself that everyday!)
6) I love that your designs are a mix of high and low. For example, a kitchen with Ikea cabinetry and Gaggenau appliances. In this case, tell me about that decision and why you didn’t go with custom cabinetry and also about the high/low mix and how it plays out in each project.
Jesse: Budgets are a reality, even for the most fortunate clients. In this particular instance, the decision to work with Ikea kitchen cabinets vs. custom were two fold. For one, we wanted a very clean and contemporary look in the kitchen, and that was something we could achieve through Ikea. Secondly, it allowed us to put more decorating dollars into other aspects of the project. In general, we feel that not everything needs to be, or should be custom. There are so many wonderful products that exist, as “in stock” retail options, that it simply doesn’t make sense to go for custom.
Mara: To both our horror and delight – beautiful antiques and “one of a kind” pieces are being reproduced and sold by retailers all the time. There really is a tremendous amount of good looking retail shopping out there, and often our clients prefer it to vintage items that have the maintenance issues of antiques without the value and provenance.
7) What are three simple changes someone can make to their home right now to create a “Positively Chic” interior?
This is a great follow up to the High vs. Low question. “Retail therapy” is a wonderful, affordable and effective way to make simple changes that give instant gratification. So long as the core of a room is solid (meaning, your seating, rugs, etc.), you can make a space positively chic by (1) Carefully editing what you have and eliminating excess (2) changing accessories: pillows, table lamps, shades, etc. (3) on your walls – change paint color, add wallpaper, or introduce some new artwork.
8) What are you most proud of from a professional standpoint?
Publishing our first book last fall, “Positively Chic Interiors”, is something we’re very proud of.
9) Any advice for us as designers, whether new to the field or seasoned?
Always remember that creativity is only part of having a successful design business, and that customer service goes a long way towards building (and maintaining) a loyal following. Really listen to clients – you can learn their values, taste, conflict with partners, and insecurities, and then best advise them or even push them to make the most impactful decisions (and know when to not push.)
All images courtesy of Carrier and Company
10) What’s next for you personally and professionally?
Professionally, we have a busy year ahead, wrapping up and installing some exciting projects that we’ve been working on over the last two years. Personally, we will be embarking on a small renovation / expansion of our own modest abode, finally giving our kid’s their own room each!
Thank you so much Jesse and Mara for taking time out of your busy schedules to do this interview. Your answers are thought provoking, refreshing and inspiring. Have a wonderful time while you are here in Toronto!
What do you think?