Oxford Design

photo by regan wood

If you could have a second home anywhere, where would you live?

Jordan Winston: A small, New England coastal town with a quaint, but active social scene
Tate Casper: London

What are three words to describe your style?
JW: Layered, Timeless, Eclectic
TC: Classic, Crisp, Tailored

Tell us about your childhood bedroom?

JW: What I remember most about my childhood bedroom was the architectural elements more than the furnishings (besides my great grandmother’s wooden antique bed).
Situated upstairs, the bedroom closet was tucked into the roof trusses. I remember loving hiding out there with the low, angled wall. There was also a small reading nook attached to my room where I asked for a custom built-in entertainment center for the tube tv and Nintendo. Even in my bedroom, I was attracted to the quirks of a closet and the value of separate private space.
TC: I lived in a bedroom full of painted wicker, Ralph Lauren bedding, and a flat-weave rainbow rug. And lots and lots of monograms.

What’s the first investment piece you ever bought for your house?

JW: What I consider my first true investment is a piece of contemporary art by Andrew Bush. It is a photograph of two older ladies driving a classic car speeding down the interstate. Raised by a father that taught me the appreciation of beauty found in classic cars, it immediately reminded me of my childhood.
TC: I worked for my godparents, Chris and Melanie Hill, in my early twenties and they charged me with tagging all of the furniture and art in their Koski’s estate sales. I eyed a Regency mahogany dressing table with a striped bench seat and just about knocked over a man to claim it on sale day. My daughter still uses it for her Sephora hauls.

In the history of design, if you could hire any designer other than yourself, who would it be?

JW: Markham Roberts. I love his savvy furniture arrangements, timeless fabrics, and his art of displaying collections.
TC: Dan Carithers

No room is complete without:

JW: A found piece. It could be an antique chest, or a vintage lamp, or even one of kind table top accessory.
TC: a meaningful piece of art

People think of me as ___, but I am really

JW: a perfectionist, but I am really most interested in the beauty of imperfections
TC: formal, but I am really most comfortable with my inner circle of friends in tennis clothes.

Things you omit from:

• A flower arrangement

  JW: leaves on stems that fall below the waterline in a vase
  TC: fringey ferns

• An hors d’oeuvre platter

  JW: Anything that can not be eaten in one bite or too big to hold in one hand
  TC: Anything that looks ugly

• A bar cabinet

  JW: Plastic soda bottles
  TC: Cans

A song for:

• Dinner at home

  JW: Babylon by David Gray
  TC: anything Pat Green

• Working at your desk

  JW: Fast Car by Tracy Chapman
  TC: Taylor Swift is a crowd pleaser in our office

• Going for a run

  JW: I Don’t Feel like Dancin by the Scissor Sisters
  TC: 90’s hip hop

Biggest Vice?

JW: Late night furniture purchases on auction sites
TC: Margaritas and late nights

If you were on an Ambien high and internet shopping, what would you buy?

JW: A pair of John Himmel woven chairs.
TC: Art, I love an Artsy find after a glass of wine.

Do your clothes reflect your design sensibility, if so, how?

JW: Yes, I am of a fan purchasing vintage clothes and accessories, wearing patterns on patterns, and always gravitate towards a stripe
TC: Yes, quality classic pieces that go the distance layered with interesting jewelry/accessories.

Who is your star crush?

JW: Cillian Murphy in Peaky Blinders
TC: Kevin Costner in Yellowstone

What is the thing you would never do on a project, but don’t detest when you see others do it?

JW: A perfect botanical series above a sofa
TC: A sparse, minimally designed room.

If there were a fire, and you could only keep one design book, what would it be?

JW: The Perfect Kitchen by Barbara Sallick
TC:.A book I bought on Ebay of classic Georgian architecture and elements of design.

For posterity, what would you like your work to be known for? 

JW: The unexpected mix of new and old, the modern mixed with the traditional, and the fine mixed with the casual in a clever arrangement that invites people to stay and sit for a while
TC: Design that ages well, suits my clients and their stories, and is well-layered and collected.

photo by regan wood

Your Favorite:

• Movie:

  JW: Fried Green Tomatoes
  TC: The Original Parent Trap

• Book:

  JW: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  TC: Shantaram by Gregory Roberts

• Scent:

  JW: 724 by Maison Francis Kurkdigan
  TC: Byredo Inflorescence

• The fabric you always come back to:

  JW: Robert Kime- Lilac Lamp Voile
  TC: Blue and white stripes

• Dream project:

  JW: A residence in New England or the mountains of North Carolina
  TC: A big house on Red Mountain in Aspen

• Meal:

  JW: Salad with a side of fries
  TC: A big boozy lunch with my tennis team after a big win!

• Drink:

  JW: Skinny Margarita with Salt
  TC: Champagne

• Hotel:

  JW: The Beaumont in London
  TC: Le Bristol

• Travel Destination:

  JW: Costa Rica
  TC: Marrakesh

• Artist:

  JW: Ellsworth Kelly
  TC: At this moment, Cig Harvey or Helen Frankenthaler.

• A cause near and dear to me:  

  JW: American Cancer Society
  TC: The Ronald McDonald House Charities

• Thing to collect obsessively:

  JW: Shells
  TC: Books

• Era in the history of design:

  JW: The Albert Hadley Days
  TC: 18th Century England and Georgian Architecture

• Museum:

  JW: Sir John Sloane in London
  TC: Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum

• Paint Color that always looks great:

  JW: Calke Green by Farrow and Ball
  TC: Drop Cloth by Farrow and Ball

• Favorite person to follow on Instagram:

  JW: Summer Thornton
  TC: My dad

• Dogs, Cats, or No Pets?

  JW: No Pets
  TC: A big blonde labradoodle named Lollie