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Kasia Karska on “How the Fashion Industry Informs Interior Design”

At Kasia Karska Design, we aren’t the only ones who appreciate the link between fashion and interior design; there’s an entire book called Conversations: Up Close and Personal with Icons of Fashion, Interior Design, and Art by Blue Carreon, and the first documentary, Interior Motives, produced by Natalie Shirinian, came out in 2017. Blue Carreon asserts that fashion informs interior design, and vice versa. And I agree.

Fashion designers have been inspired by architecture and glamorous interiors, and interior designs have definitely been known to look to fashion for color schemes and patterns.

In addition, fashion designers like Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Gucci, Ralph Lauren and many more have added home collections to their original clothing lines.

At Kasia Karska Design, it’s natural for us to merge fashion with design. Before diving into the world of design and construction in Colorado, I experienced the world of fashion, film and television in New York City. There, I saw just how deeply visual arts, design and fashion work together. 

For example, the legendary Perry Ellis, whose square, masculine lines dominated fashion in the 1980s, started the era of clean, modern and open design. 

Holly Hunt, a textile designer who was deeply involved in the fashion world, decided to open her own furniture and décor showroom carrying famous designers. Christian Liagre Versace, Prada and others followed suit, inspired by fashionable patterns and colors.

Both fashion and interior design create a mood: One simple example is how a checkered or plaid shirt pattern, which lends a cozy, warm and woodsy feeling, might show up in a powder room’s wallcovering. Or, the uplifting, shiny silvers and golds we see emerge in New Year’s Eve fashions might be reflected in throw pillows during the holidays and throughout January to usher a little sparkle into the new year. 

Just as you dress for a special occasion, professional commitment or downtime, you also “dress” your home to look and feel a special way. Some people love sleek, contemporary, ever-changing fashions, while others take a more cozy or traditional approach. Below, we see an example of contemporary furnishings, followed by a more traditional approach.

Ironically, both of these photos showcase apartments in the same building, called The Plaza in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Both apartments had the same layout, but once we remodeled them, they had a completely different feel, style and look. 

The traditional one was full of family heirlooms from Germany and British country homes, collected over the years, and adorned with country-like patterns and furnishings by Ralph Lauren, as well as gold-plated crown moldings blended with Venetian plaster and classic stripes. Yet, two floors above, in the same size space, Holly Hunt’s simple lines of furnishings and fabrics worked beautifully for a different mood and modern style.

Just as the fashion world uses jewelry and accessories to complete a look, interior design also employs art and décor to finish a room. The first photo shows more modern art, lighting

and shelving, while the second uses floral artwork, a lamp, bust and silk flowers in a brass pot to accent the room, just as a pearl necklace and earrings might finish off a classic outfit.

In fact, jewelry itself can act as a jumping off point for interior design. Consider these dianthus beetle drop earrings, with their green tones and touches of red and gold, which could be a fabulous color palette and shape inspiration for designing a tropical room.

Just like every individual has their own “signature” fashion, so, too, do homes. I work diligently with each client so that they can fully find, and express, their own home fashion. My goal involves listening to and directing each client to achieve their own sanctuary, whatever it takes. 

Just as a dress or an outfit has to really fit you — and serve as your “best friend”— your space is your sanctuary where you spend a precious amount of time, so making it look and feel perfect to you is our goal at Kasia Karska Design.