“I love vintage properties and the character they naturally possess,” says Chicago-based designer Donna Mondi. The catch? Many of the firm’s projects are new builds and luxury condos that don’t necessarily come with built-in character. In a renovation, Mondi frequently contrasts classical features with modern art, but in a new build, the reverse often occurs. […]

Of all the tools in a designer’s kit, from color to texture, natural light is one of the most misunderstood. Often considered the province of architects, light in the hands of the right interior designer casts a spell over a room, transforming it from a space that is simply used and seen, to one that […]

For Nora Schneider, interior design brings the opportunity to know someone’s story. Many clients expect to begin the process with color samples or magazine clippings, but Schneider takes a different approach. “I always start by asking them to share something they already own, something they love,” she says. “It might be a rug or an […]

In a room designed by Bruce Fox, every object feels like family. Art Deco, mid-century and 1970s styles get along surprisingly well, creating a harmonious whole. “It’s as if all your relatives had great taste and you inherited everything,” Fox says. He makes it look easy, but it takes mastery of proportion, materials, color and […]

For the first time in its 20-year history, PAGODA RED is launching its own wabi sabi furniture collection. Designed by founder and creative director Betsy Nathan, these artisan-made pieces are crafted from centuries-old reclaimed elm wood. Made from ancient materials by modern hands, the Provincial Collection embodies a new generation of heirlooms.  A Lifetime of Learning Living […]

“Gardening is an activity for the soul,” explains Donna Dorian. A lifelong plant lover and the former editor of Garden Design magazine, she knows this firsthand. Dorian grew up among apple trees and raspberry bushes in New York’s Westchester County. Her grandfather tended a large vegetable garden, and her grandmother cooked three meals a day […]

Clients who enter the PAGODA RED gallery often tell us they feel they’ve been transported into another world. Inspired by classical Asian elements but designed with a modern sensibility, our space is influenced by the belief—shared by world philosophies including Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and many Western practices—that balance can be achieved through the coupling of […]

One can imagine themselves reading, relaxing and enjoying a warm cup of tea or coffee in a room designed by Jeannie Balsam. Her eye is present not only in the details that make up the design, but also in the unseen ways a room works — the seating arrangement that inspires conversation in groups and […]