Decorating & Design
A Sneak Peek At Designer Homes From Caitlin Flemming’s New Book
Updated on November 16, 2023
Caitlin Flemming started as a blogger but has since launched her own design firm in 2012 with projects in the Bay Area, where she lives, and nationwide. She and her mother Julie Goebel, just penned their second book, a follow up to the popular Travel Home. The new book A Sense of Place: Design Inspired by Where We Live (Abrams, 2023) delves into homes that evoke a strong sense of place — a sense of belonging and comfort. Click through to see inside the homes of designers and discover what makes them so special.
“I’m often asked when I find pieces if I know exactly where I’ll put them, and the answer is that I rarely know exactly where it will go,” says Caitlin, pictured in her San Francisco living room. “What I do know is that I’m attracted to it. I could walk around our home and tell you what I love about it and where I found the items. I feel as if our family is bringing that piece new life.”
“The idea of A Sense of Place: Design Inspired by Where We Live came out of our own renewed appreciation for where we live,” write Caitlin and Julie. “While our first book, Travel Home, focused on how travel affects the work of interior designers, we now have a heightened interest in inspiration closer to home. We thought there must be other designers and creatives who also felt a renewed connection to their local environments. So we set out to find them.”
The ottoman is by Fragments Identity, while the rollarm sofa is dressed with custom pillow textiles by Penny Morrison and Rose Cumming Macclesfield.
The kitchen in designer Penny Morrison’s Welsh house is the heart and soul of the home. The breakfast nook has chairs upholstered in a variety of Penny’s textiles, including Killi Red, Ashok, and Helena Pink. The room also houses many pieces from her collection of antique dishes.
Baskets are hung from the ceiling in the pantry in the 17th-century Norfolk manor of designer Carlos Sánchez-Garcia. “I purposely set out not to make the house look ‘decorated,’ rather for it to be a characterful home that reflects years of living and enjoyment in it.”
Graphic designer and illustrator Hanna Seabrook of Gadabout Studio specializes in branding and product design, she has designed many lines of textiles. Her home in Columbia, S.C. is full or original mouldings, case goods, doors and doors. An antique tapestry hangs above the sofa in the living room. “I like to think about how items have story lines,” she says.
Designers Nate Berkus and Jeremiah Brent’s Montauk retreat is a short stroll from the beach. The home is filled with their signature style of soft, neutral colors, vintage pieces, and items from their travels. In the living room, a collection of pots can be found while rocks collected on the beach are displayed on the upper ledge of the large windows. “No one stresses about sandy feet, nothing is precious, everything has patina.”
Molly Mahon is a printmaker and the founder of a design studio who creates vibrantly colorful patterned items for the home — textiles of all kinds, wallpaper, stationery, and more. The living room in Molly’s East Sussex home is painted in Papers and Paints Parsonage Pink. The sofa is home to needlepoint pillows Molly made as well as her hand-blocked patterns. If she wanted lampshades, throw pillows, or curtains, she would go to her studio and make them.
Molly Mahon’s textiles are used as a cabinet curtain and a valance in the kitchen. Pink is the primary color throughout the home. “We can not be precious in our home. We live amongst nature’s gifts: leaves, mud for half the year, vegetables, sticks, dogs, and barefoot children,” says Molly.
Karen Emile of @milkandhoneylife amassed a following on social media for the spaces she has designed for her family. Her home in Calabasas, California is full of monochromatic interiors, with a carefully curated choice of belongings, have an undeniable appeal. She is shown in the kitchen with daughter Brooklyn and son Aiden.
The kitchen area is filled with items Karen Emile has carefully curated, including another painting by Aiden and pottery made by her daughter. “I’m very selective. I do love to shop secondhand; there’s something about buying items that are preloved and bringing them home. It’s just an aesthetic I’ve always loved,” says Karen. “I grew up like that. The first time I remember buying something old, my mom bought a table that needed to be sanded down. I found it satisfying even at a very young age. I’ve found pleasure in that since then.”
The design work of Virginia-based Lauren Liess has been celebrated in her three best-selling design books: Feels Like Home, Down to Earth, and Habitat. In addition, she has collaborated on lines of furniture, kitchen cabinets, and home accessories. All of them keep to her aesthetic of natural, easy beauty.
Lauren Liess designed the kitchen cabinets for Unique Kitchens & Baths, have a natural wood that blends with her clean design style. “We move a lot, and this house is pretty modern, but I generally try to have things that are very earthy and natural. In this particular house, ” says Lauren. “Home, for me, always has a strong connection to the outdoors and gardens. Cooking together is home at its best.”
Simone Leblanc is a fashion designer who owns a premium-gift studio, has deep roots in a creative lifestyle. Her 1912 Craftsman home in West Hollywood has a principle bedroom with French doors to the garden. Simone dresses the bed with a vintage suzani. “I collect fabrics, notions, ribbons, and buttons — little things I use in my creative work.”
Stephanie Russo
A Sense of Place: Design Inspired by Where We Live by Caitlin Flemming and Julie Goebel (Abrams, 2023).