Decorating Is a Service Industry

"When you said that it really clicked," remarked Tim, poster boy for overqualified interns everywhere (or rather differently-qualified ones, meaning he could direct a Broadway musical blindfolded but didn't know his fringes from his gimps).

Of course I was just parroting Miles, who probably had it ingrained by his mentor and recent SCAD Style Étoile honoree Mrs. Bunny Williams, but the adage rings true: decorators, while creative folk, are in a service business. The business of making everyday life prettier, easier and more comfortable for their clients.

So I figure now's a good time to fill you all in on my doings since leaving the nest back in January. I decorated an office for a zingy, mid-size public relations firm, started helping a client-friend on her gorgeous house upstate, and just began the whirlwind process of staging model units for new condominiums. All the while I've kept chugging along with some fab consultation clients. See, I'm hearing over and over how there's a market for people who have a sense of their style, own a few solid pieces, some leftover Ikea from college (or last week's trip to Big Blue), but just need help pulling it all together. That's where I come in. I'll show up, push your furniture around, answer your questions, make recommendations, and talk sources that fit your style and budget. If you want me to draw up a complete furniture plan and lay it all out for you in a scheme board, from rugs to paint colors to window blinds -- or even execute the whole shebang -- I can do that too. However I will NOT insult your prized collections or make that Henri face at your sofa. You must remember the designer from Troop Beverly Hills who replies "Besides burn it?!?" when Phyllis Nefler asks what he can do with her Wilderness Girls uniform. I also won't insist you lacquer every surface of your rental apartment.

Speaking of, I'm genuinely bowled over by the response to my little Diana Vreeland-on-steroids moment. Merci beaucoup!! I knew from the get-go she wouldn't appeal to everyone, but I look at it thusly: the legendary Patricia Field's store windows always cater to an alien tranny stripper clientele, yet as a costume designer she's helmed the more socially normative Hope & Faith and Spin City, in addition to Ugly Betty and The Scourge of Manhattan. Pat's flamboyantly creative, and I imagine her personal aesthetic lies somewhere in between the two poles, but she's providing a service and really does right by her clients. As a decorator if I achieve a tenth of her range, I'll be happy.

And if you're interested in my services -- remember, "Prettier and Easier" -- please don't hesitate to email (see above right). I e-decorate too, which is great for me because then I don't have to miss Idol. Still no TiVo here. Anyway, thanks again for all the kudos!