Los Angeles, reathdesign.com
Nobody does wallpaper — and its associated color- and pattern-mixing — quite like Frances Merrill of Reath Design. Would you like a custom sofa upholstered in seven different shades of chenille? How about a living room featuring four different florals? Or a kitchen with lavender cabinets, checkerboard floors, cabana-stripe skirting, and a terracotta stove? Somehow, in Merrill’s hands, it all works. 

What is American design to you, and what excites you about it?

What I love about American design is similar to why I love working in LA. With the history of Hollywood, there is such a sense of possibility, in that you can really create anything you want from scratch, and there are fewer rules. The architecture is so eclectic, which also allows for experimentation, and an opportunity to pick and choose references in a fun, casual way.

What are your plans and highlights for the upcoming year?

We have been slowly settling into our new studio space, which has been a fun and collaborative project. I also moved into a new house this year, so will spend the next many years transforming it.

What inspires or informs your work in general?  

I find I am most inspired by an interesting house and an interesting person, and trying to figure out how they go together, and how the design can inform their lives. I also love to support designers, artists and artisans who are making interesting, unusual things, and finding ways to incorporate their work into our work. And I am continually inspired by old craft traditions that I get to rediscover, and re-introduce into people’s homes, and lives.