Having devised spaces for Anna Wintour, Annie Leibovitz, and many others, Jesse Carrier and Mara Miller sit atop the design A-list. Their book, Defining Chic, is a master-class in creating spaces with soul. Read on to learn more about what inspires them, and shop their Chairish favorites.
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How would you describe your aesthetic and approach to design right now, and how has it evolved over time?
Aesthetically, our work strikes a chord between luxe and livable, eclectic yet edited, both tailored and timeless. We believe that our interiors should reflect the people who inhabit them and our role is to elevate and refine our clients’ personal style through thoughtful, curated design.
Our work spans a broad range of styles, but always with a common thread of warmth and layered sophistication. Whether we’re working within a classical envelope or a modern framework, we strive to create spaces that feel authentic, personal, and enduring; never overly decorated or self-conscious.
Over time, our approach has evolved to include an even greater appreciation for contrast: traditional silhouettes with modern lines, rustic textures with refined finishes, and vintage pieces paired with contemporary ones. We’ve always believed that tension and balance are at the heart of beautiful design, and our projects increasingly celebrate that juxtaposition.
Ultimately, our goal is to design homes that feel effortlessly chic and timeless.
You’re known for refreshing vintage and antique finds in interesting ways. Can you give a few examples of unconventional ways you incorporate vintage into your projects?
Weaving vintage and antique pieces into our work allows our interiors to look and feel collected, versus “decorated”. If a client doesn’t bring heirloom pieces with them, we layer in vintage and antique pieces that bring soul, patina, and a sense of history that can’t be replicated. If working within the confines of classical architecture, we’ll use midcentury and more contemporary furnishings to enliven the interior, and bring it into the 21st Century, the same way we might introduce one of a kind, hand hewn antique pieces into a modern structure to help soften clean architectural lines.
What eras or icons of vintage furniture design are you most drawn to and why?
We are drawn to a wide range of eras and influences, it’s part of what keeps our work layered and personal. That said, we consistently find inspiration in the restraint and elegance of early 20th-century French design, the sculptural boldness of mid-century Italian furniture, and the timeless utility of American and English antiques.
You’ve developed such a broad range of products and collections (many available on Chairish). How do you prioritize what to create; are you looking for certain types of pieces you need for your projects? Could you provide some examples of ways you’ve used your collections in your work?
Our collections of furniture, lighting, textiles and artwork are often a response to needs we encounter in our interior design work and inspired by our decades of sourcing one of a kind antique and vintage pieces. Whether it’s the perfect scale of a side table, the right silhouette for a dining chair, or a textile that brings just the right note of texture to a space; we’re often designing what we wish existed.
We approach the design of our collections the same way we approach our interior design projects, with longevity and versatility in mind. And much like our interiors, our collections offer a broad range of styles and materials that capture the essence of our timeless and collected style.
We’re always excited for the opportunity to incorporate pieces from our collections into our interiors projects, whether it’s one of our Visual Comfort light fixtures crowning a room or one of our Loloi rugs grounding it. In the Conde Nast closets, we were able to dress the walls and windows in some of our signature wall coverings and fabrics from Lee Jofa, adorned with framed prints from our Soicher Marin collection.
Name 3 trends / products / or styles you LOVE and 3 you HATE (and write a one-line sentence about one you feel passionately about as to why you love or hate it):
Three we love:
- Decorative lighting with personality: Sculptural or vintage fixtures that feel like jewelry for the room.
- Warm, layered neutrals: Cream, sand, mushroom, and taupe can be just as expressive as color when treated with texture and nuance.
- Skirted upholstery: It’s classic, cozy, and instantly softens a space.
Three we’d rather leave behind:
- Overly staged minimalism – Rooms that feel more like showrooms than homes.
- Fast furniture – Poor quality, short-term pieces that end up in landfills.
- Open shelving in kitchens (with no closed storage!) – Not everything needs to be on display.
One we feel strongly about:
A home should feel collected, not decorated; layering pieces with soul and history is what makes a space truly livable.
Lead Image: Interior Design by Carrier and Company, Photography by Tim Lenz/OTTO.