Friday Feature with Molly Luetkemeyer

Hello and Happy Friday friends, I am very happy to see you both. I am looking forward to a relaxed weekend with some warmer weather here in NC, thank goodness. Old man winter it is time to take a hike, this southern girl is ready to move to a pretty caribbean island and stick my feet in the sand.

I cannot think of a better way to end the week than feature a designer whose 

interiors are off the hook creative, awesome, and really so me...come to find out she is an Aries too so maybe there is something in the stars.

Molly Luetkemeyer is the design genius behind LA based M Design Interiors. Since 2001 she has been designing residences for clients including Hollywood A-listers, entertainment industry insiders, and stylish people in need of Molly's creative touch. Luetkemeyer has been named one of House Beautiful's top 100 designers for the past 4 years and once you see her website with a sampling of her work you will surely know why. Her use of color, pattern, and the ability to cohesively mix them together to create a chic abode is pure magic. Luetkemeyer has also recently started a blog, Molly Loot, that is chock full of inspiration and full of her witty musings on, well everything. 

Today we are getting the scoop on what inspires Molly and a day in her life. She was gracious enough to have a little

 q & a session with me and I think what I love more about Molly than her designs (which is almost impossible) is her personality, she is so fun and hilarious! I know the first person I am visiting on my next trip to LA...that is if she will have me. Thanks Molly! 

1. Where are you from?

baltimore, md

2.  What you led you into Interior Design?

i came out to los angeles from nyc working with mike nichols and ended up falling in love with the color and light everywhere in the city.  i decided to stay and enrolled in ucla’s interior design program. as luck would have it, my first week in school, i met kelly wearstler at a party.  she told me about her new design firm and i managed to finagle an internship (unpaid, of course).  that was the beginning and i never looked back...

3.  Describe your style?

colorful.  personal.  bold.  exciting.  unexpected.  lively.  balanced.  i love incorporating modern and contemporary art in my interiors.

4.  What are some of your favorite looks, accessories, items?

i’m obsessed with the sexy furniture and mentality of the 70s, flirting coyly with early 80s color palates and furniture shapes, having a torrid affair with the patterns, precision and soft modernism of the werner werkstatte.  design books tend to be my favorite accessories because they do double duty – not only are they great to read but you can use them to create height and add color and interest on almost any table.  also, i have a thing for table lamps - they really are the jewelry of the room and give the room its flavor and personality.  oh, and i would take anything designed by piero fornasetti, charles hollis jones, pedro friedeberg, paul evans, and line vautrin in a heartbeat.

5.  What other designers, architects, do you admire?

gio ponti, muriel brandolini, yves saint laurent and peter berge, david hicks, piet boon, alexander cambron, tony duquette, terance conran, ilse crawford, kelly wearstler, antonia hutt, miles redd, luis barrigan, pedro friedeberg, john lautner

6.  Can you give me a brief summary of " a day in the life" of Molly Luetkemeyer?

in the immortal words of my co-m. designer, kate, i try “to cram 10  pounds of sh#! into a 5-pound bag day” every day.  suffice it to say there is always ample time spent on the phone (with clients, subcontractors, manufacturers and the office); in front of the computer (blogging, answering emails, desperately trying to make sense of my schedule); in the car (hustling from clients’ homes to fabric showrooms to the upholsterer’s to the drapery fabricator’s, blah, blah, blah); meeting with clients; in the studio working on fabric designs.  it can be a bit crazy at times so perhaps kate is onto something.

7.  Describe your personal fashion style? do you lean toward solids or patterns?

i tend to wear solid-colored basics (super psyched for this spring’s color-blocked pieces!) and then flesh out the look with jewelry.  i guess i should admit i’m an addict.  hi, i’m molly luetkemeyer, and i’m a jewelry addict.

8.  What can we look for with your new line of fabrics that debuts this year? Very exciting BTW, congrats! 

thank you!  i’m really excited about it.  all of the fabrics are inspired by artists i love (sol le witt, henri matisse) and the palettes are largely pulled from fashion illustration and advertisement color schemes.  it’s been a hell of a learning curve, but hopefully well worth the effort. 
9.  Your dream project?

just one?  oh no!  here are a few projects i would love to work on:  a boutique hotel at the beach (any beach will do); a bachelor pad inspired by willy rizzo and david hicks; a complete restoration of a trousdale estate (with an unlimited budget, natch).  but really, my dream client is anyone with an adventurous spirit, a decent budget and faith in the design process.

10.  What is spinning on your ipod right now?

i recently discovered how to make a mix based on a song of my choice and it has revolutionized the way i listen to music.  seriously.  i have so much music that it can be overwhelming and i can fall into a rut but these “directed” genius mixes are sort of, well, genius.  you get all kinds of surprises and deep cuts.  i have created some recent playlists using “cameras” by matt and kim, “dancing on my own” by robyn, “use me” by bill withers, “bring on the night” by the police, and “born under punches” by the talking heads.  

Studio City Residence 

M Design Interiors

Have a great weekend.