Allison Caccoma
photo by Kathryn MacDonald
If you could have a second home anywhere, where would you live? Paris. I’m a city girl.
What are three words to describe your style? 1. Fresh 2. Timeless 3. Inviting
Tell us about your childhood bedroom? I was allowed to have one accent wall. It was my father’s way of letting me redecorate without having to re-do the entire room (since he was the one painting!) I dabbled with colors and he dabbled with ‘70’s textures. We were quite the team!
What’s the first investment piece you ever bought for your house? I was a young gal working on Wall Street and in Paris for the first time, I found a single 19th Century pink opaline column lamp in an antique shop that I absolutely had to have. I had no business paying $1500 for a lamp (30+ years ago) but it was coming home with me on the plane. I still have it and treasure it. It was my first!
In the history of design, if you could hire any designer other than yourself, who would it be? Renzo Mongiardino
No room is complete without table lamps and silk lampshades.
People think of me as chatty, but I am really somewhat shy.
Things you omit from:
A flower arrangement: The vase from the florist
An hors d’oeuvre platter: Nuts – I’m allergic.
A bar cabinet: Nothing!
A song for: (I can’t pick one!)
Dinner at home: Anything James Taylor
Working at your desk: Lately the Hamilton soundtrack
Going for a run: Beyoncé’s Greatest Hits
Biggest Vice? Not selling my inventory of antiques because I like the pieces too much to part with them!
If you were on an Ambien high and internet shopping, what would you buy? Clothing. I hate shopping for clothing in person. Moda Operandi and the Outnet would keep me busy!
Do your clothes reflect your design sensibility, if so, how? Yes! After 10 years of living in San Francisco, people still stop me and say ‘You’re not from here. New York?’ I take that as a compliment – I’m a bit more formal than California and so are my interiors.
Who is your star crush? Bradley Cooper
What is the thing you would never do on a project, but don’t detest when you see others do it? Dark ceilings
If there were a fire, and you could only keep one design book, what would it be? I’d need two. Bunny Williams’ Love Affairs with Houses. It’s my bible and brings back so many fond memories. And The Making of the Royal Pavillion Brighton.
For posterity, what would you like your work to be known for? For being comfortable, cozy and full of family memories.
photo by Stacy Bass
A Few Favorites:
Movie: Does Bridgerton count as a movie?
Book: The Joy of Cooking, One Hundred Years of Solitude
Scent: Aqua di Parma. I’ve been wearing this unisex scent since I stayed at the Four Seasons in Milan where Aqua di Parma is their bath product line.
The fabric you always come back to: Bennison
Dream project: A 20,000 square foot house in Connecticut with Gil Schafer or Ferguson Shamamian (wink, wink Gil and Mark!)
Meal: Gnocchi
Drink: Chardonnay in the summer, Pinot Noir in the winter. I’m so boring.
Hotel: 47 Jobner Bagh in Jaipur
Travel Destination: Morocco for the second time, Sicily for the first time
Artist: Édouard Villard
Thing to collect obsessively: Books, porcelain
Era in the history of design: Early-mid 20th Century French
Museum: The Met
Paint Color that always looks great: C2 Oxygen / Benjamin Moore White Dove
Favorite person to follow on Instagram: Kate Brodsky. Love her shop, her sense of style, sense of humor and that little Delphine!
Dogs, Cats, or No Pets? A fantasy yellow lab.
