1. NATURAL POISE
Nothing in nature is totally linear or symmetrical. That humbles me and reminds me to abandon perfection. Beauty lies in organic flaws. With flowers, you are at the mercy of the seasons. Surrender to what is available at the market or in your garden. It might not be the perfect branch – may be part of it looks frail – but it can fill a vertical void like a line drawing in space. As a stylist, natural ephemera has been a lifeline. Even a stone can become a sculpture.
2. THE ART OF EMPTINESS
We often feel compelled to fill the void. In conversation, it’s a struggle to endure the awkwardness of a pause. We rush to break the silence, even if we have nothing to say. And the same is true of styling.
3. VIVID DETAILS
Styling is about identifying and romancing those subtle variations, introducing layers through glazes or textiles, or blooms. And no matter the setting, I treat color like any object – looking for commonalities and differences between it and other elements of a room, playing with that tension.
4. IN THE FRAME
The context of – and relationships between – objects are just as interesting as individual pieces. Take architecture into account – a disregarded corner, the dimensions of a windowsill, the procession of a hallway. This is your framework. Let what is there inform what you are doing.
5. OBJECTS IN DIALOGUE
It can come down to scale, so I vary or group pieces according to height. Or it can come down to silhouette: the convex curve of one treasure echoing the concave curve of another, something horizontal reinvigorating something vertical
6. TACTILE EXPRESSIONS
The knots on a plank of oak, the grooves on a rock, the crack on a piece of pottery – what excites your fingertips also excite your mind. Surfaces are sentiments of sorts, capable of stirring an emotion or conjuring a memory. The smoothness of one object can accentuate the relief of another.