Dear Alice | Interior Design

Dear Alice is an Interior Design podcast brought to you by Jessica Bennett and Suzanne Hall, the spunky geniuses behind Alice Lane Interior Design. These two ladies break down the highest end of the design and interior fashion world through their beautiful lifestyle approach with a heaping dose of wit and taste.

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Episodes

Thursday May 26, 2022

Many of you may be wondering what the party pantry is, which is why we have set aside a whole episode on it. We didn’t really feel like the party pantry had a name, but we felt like we were doing it even before and we first saw it on Veranda, which also goes by the name of party closet. In a word, it’s a place where you’re going to store all your things to party, such as your cake plates, tea pots, vases to put flowers in, napkin rings, birthday candles, table cloths, and things you’re actually excited to store and display. Where it came from 2:13 Creating a butler’s pantry for a client 8:08The aroma kitchen 9:42The butler’s pantry 13:07Reconfiguring a client’s kitchen 15:41Tiger oak’s pantry 18:01A beautiful pantry we did 20:12“I just think there’s something about going through and seeing your collections and seeing all your tea cups, and saucers, and travel little bits and pieces that you bring home in one place. A lot of times the butler’s pantry is in route from the kitchen to the dining room. That’s historically where you see that.” 13:36https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday May 19, 2022

Laura Kirar is the founder and Creative Director at Laura Kirar Design (LKD). She is an internationally renowned interior & product designer as well as a sculptor, a design industry connector and a creative experience producer. She’s in every single highly published shelter magazine that we love, she’s an artist, she’s fun, and we got to hang out with her at Market this last Fall, 2021. You just get lost in the conversation because she just has so many great stories and is just a truly inspired individual. We’re so excited to share this great conversation we had with Laura for all our listeners to enjoy. Laura’s history 4:32Her guesthouse boutique in Mexico 9:28Travel and her process of working with someone in Mexico 15:31The process of working with brands 22:27Favorite era 32:34Favorite icons and inspiration 34:31“In a collection I think there’s always places for what I’ve always called the little black dress pieces, and then the jewelry pieces, and you always have to have the foundation pieces in a collection to make it work, but then the jewelry should be really exciting, it should be really uniquely original and memorable. They’re not just the things that the press grab onto, but eventually it’s just great designers, such as yourselves, say, ‘Yeah, let’s go for it. Let’s do that. That’s perfect for that client.’ So that’s what I see as a designer as my job is to push the boundaries, push the limits, and create something new.” 27:17@laurakirar laurakirar.comhttps://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday May 12, 2022

We’ve had so many questions about cabinets, so we have gone to some experts and done quite a bit of research in order to be able to answer the various questions you might have on this subject. The cost of cabinetry is speculated to be around 15-20% of the home, which is similar to what we recommend for furniture when people are willing to go all in and style their home to its fullest potential. The cabinet work and finish work are two separate things, which many may assume is the same worker, and then your sizing is typically going to be custom, being what we often push on this podcast. The cost of cabinetry 2:291960’s Colonial home and cabinet door profiles 5:31Is your cabinet maker also the one to do the moldings? 15:06What to expect from your cabinet maker 18:42Sizing 22:37Dimensions of drawers for pots and pans 26:56Ideal height of sideboard/buffet and barstools 27:48Color 30:34Paint vs stain 33:31Is white out? 37:16Timeless wood stain and grain of wood 40:07Should white cabinets match the trim color? 45:28Backsplash, order of install 46:39Refinishing and filling knots 48:28“Somebody wanted to know, is your cabinet maker also the one to do the moldings? So these are like your door casings, your window casings, your crown molding, that paneling you’ve always dreamed of in your dining room. The answer is no, that’s your finish worker. You do need a finish work budget and you need a cabinet work budget, they’re two different things. Maybe in a small town he does both, but for the most part they’re different specialties.” 15:09https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday May 05, 2022

We’re talking about one of our favorite topics, which is High Point Market. We’re gonna tell you all about it, answering the questions of what’s new, what’s the latest, and addressing concerns about making huge purchases like new furniture, which can cost a lot, so we’re here to answer your questions and give you the information you’re searching for. High Point is an entire city and all they do is furniture, so you have to know your lay of the land and have vendors with appointments and special buyer’s cards. It took us a while, but we’re finally good at it and want to share our experience with you. A consistent trend Jess saw 9:07What space she felt the most at home in 17:51What blew Jess away 23:51A funny story at Market 30:43What Jess bought for herself 37:10“Do not ask me if you can buy them because then I’ll have to sell them to you because everything’s always for sale, but I do not want to sell them. They’re so beautiful… It’s one of the things that I purchased that I just love so much that really I’m like, ‘Please don’t buy it. I just want it to stay in the store forever, it gives it soul.’” 29:32https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Apr 28, 2022

Today we’ve got a really fun guest with us who is a big hero and favorite of Susan’s and mine. Kara Mann is the founder and creative director of KARA MANN established in 2005 with offices in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. Over the past fifteen years, she has acquired the reputation of a cultural vanguard for pushing the boundaries of tradition. Her impactful, refined interiors draw inspiration from a myriad of creative fields including art, architecture, and fashion, where Mann began her career. Join us in this episode to listen to our discussion about Kara’s design process and some of her favorite design choices. How Kara started 1:45Kept 6:22Leather Collection 9:41From where Kara draws inspiration 16:08Travel and books 21:18What scent she’s crushing over now 23:59What influenced her to get to her point of view 24:42Her design process 26:14Favorite piece she’s designed 29:07Defining luxury 38:28“I like to dialogue with my client a lot to get to understand who they are and what they are, and I always say you have to pull some references for me. And if they don’t have references, I’m like, ‘Here’s a second magazine, look at this thing and pull some images.’ Because I wanna know what they see, and so for me it’s sort of getting into their head and into what they see, and what they gravitate to and how I can take that and turn the volume up or quiet it down a little bit, or guide that in a certain way.” 27:51@karamanndesign@kept.homehttps://coveteur.com/https://www.karamann.com/https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Apr 21, 2022

For today’s episode we will be answering all of your questions you’ve asked and sent us in recent months. We do an episode like this about once every quarter in which we answer the questions that have a shorter answer, but we sometimes do whole episodes around one question if it requires a lot more explanation. Send in your questions to dearalice@alicelane.comWalls and trim color 3:13Favorite wood tone for furniture 5:47Pattern curtains vs rugs 9:46Jess’s front door and home 12:09Questions for Sue and picking art 19:20Questions on windows 24:53One thing that every room needs 32:11Best tip for warming up white walls 37:04Kelvin/light temperature 39:38What to put on a 9 foot dining table 46:20Styling a very large basement wall with a TV, but no fireplace 51:45“I think we’re done with that day where people are painting their walls just white. It looks like a white piece of paper. That’s not cool anymore. I think you want something that looks more organic, more artisan, and has a little bit of warmth to it. It doesn’t have to be beige, it doesn’t have to be taupe, but there is a white that is a lot more special.” 37:16https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Apr 14, 2022

We’ve got John Valdez with with Epic Windows and Doors and we’re so excited to have him because we get asked all the time as interior designers about windows and we don’t have the answers always, so we felt like if John came on and answered all the questions, then all of us would know all of the answers. In this episode he gives us a vocabulary history lesson and answers all the questions you guys have been asking us. Deciding about windows and how early to start planning them 3:05Vocabulary, grids and mullions 9:34Remodeling and jumping the frame 16:06Glass, tint, and efficiency 19:50Adding charm to your windows and home with casements, awnings, and sliders 27:15Modern vs traditional homes 30:11Nanawall 33:37The steel windows 39:11Price differences between vinyl and aluminum 43:03Screens 47:08Windows in bathrooms 48:31“There’s a type called Satin Edge, which is kind of a sandblasted, contemporary looking obscure glass, or what’s become really popular and I do quite often is Switch Glass where you’ll have either on a Lutron switch or a switch on the wall, or it can be wired in your automation system, where with the flip of a switch it goes from clear to obscure.” 49:02https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Apr 07, 2022

Not everyone wants to have an outdoor kitchen and in fact, none of us on this podcast has one, but we know there are plenty of people out there with great backyards who love to be outside, entertain, and love to grill. So if this is something that sounds fun and interesting to you, we’re gonna tell you which products we recommend and we’ve been calling all the experts this week to give you the very best advice. We’re working currently on an outdoor kitchen in Saint George, Utah where you’ll find palm trees everywhere and it’s gorgeous all year and we want to share some tips and the things we’re doing.The outdoor kitchen we’re doing 2:45Countertops 4:14Faucet, sink, and stainless steel 6:12A concept we love 7:53Appliances 9:43Dishes 12:29“A couple things to keep in mind from all of the experts we’re talking to is if you can find an area of your yard, or create an area that has some sort of shade or coverage, then your outdoor kitchen and the appliances in them are going to last a lot longer than if they’re baking in the sun year round.” 2:48https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Mar 31, 2022

In this episode we’re talking about home theaters and entertaining spaces, or as people like to call them today, media rooms. There are some great brands out there for carpet that we love, one being Stark, which has really gorgeous authentic designs to its quality and is super fashionable, but they have some tailored options too if you’re a little bit more preppy. There’s a line or sister of Stark called Prestige and they are the exact same designs and they are maybe 40-50% more affordable. We like to use sconces to light up the walls and provide a little bit more atmosphere with a more dim effect. There are some really great sound bars out there now that have really simplified the sound system process, but make sure to get a professional when figuring out the acoustics of your theater or media room to ensure you have the most strategic setup. Lighting 3:22Sound treatment 5:19Carpet 6:32Finish work and wall tone 9:49More on lighting 13:37Seating 15:46Wall posters 17:44Sound systems 22:30Insulation and sound barriers 26:59What we’re currently working on 28:04“I think whenever we start one of these spaces, like if it is an actual theater, I think people are usually looking at architecturally what is going to set this space apart? Whether that’s finish work and paneling, we usually see wall sconces and theatrics there, and you can get really funky, be it you want to be more formal, or you want it to have more of a young energy, I think that that’s when you skin the room. That’s what that does.” 3:31https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Thursday Mar 24, 2022

Today we talk to our special guest Gady Yesil, the owner and creator of Orientalist Home, where they bring more than 25 years of passion and experience in fine rugs and textiles. They travel around the world, collecting exotic, traditional, and modern handmade pieces and bring to the market the latest designs and color trends. We’re going to discuss vintage rugs and all things rugs, such as hand knotted rugs, different materials, why rugs are so valuable, what makes them last longer, and lots of wonderful questions we ask from a lot of our listeners and even questions we have for Gady as well. About Gady 2:17How to clean a rug 5:09Best climate for rugs 10:53Hierarchy of rugs and shopping online 13:21What Gady looks for 16:30The weaving process 21:32What size he most commonly sells 29:41What he has in his home 33:01Defining luxury 35:05“They sleep on the rugs at night, so the snake doesn’t like the feeling of that goat hair because it’s itchy. They use goat hair as a binding so the snake doesn’t go over the carpet. You see how smart they are? It’s unbelievable. They found that technique and they protect themselves.” 25:52@orientalist.home https://orientalisthome.com/https://www.instagram.com/alicelaneinteriors/https://www.instagram.com/alicelanehome/https://alicelanehome.com/https://www.facebook.com/AliceLaneHomehttps://www.pinterest.com/alicelanehome/https://www.youtube.com/alicelanehomecollectionsaltlakecityNews Letter:https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=HZENWY&g=PFcqV5

Alice Lane

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