Andrea Monath Schumacher
photo by Roger Davies
If you could have a second home anywhere, where would you live? I just recently made my dreams come true with a second home in Santa Barbara. It’s been a seven year hunt for a place there. I landed on a classic mid mod style home.
What are three words to describe your style?
1. Traveled
2. Curated
3. Layered
Tell us about your childhood bedroom? I was always painting it myself and rearranging it. I think once I cleaned my closet out and had my headboard coming out if it.
What’s the first investment piece you ever bought for your house? These Indian Cobra sconces from the 1970s. They were originally candelabras and I had them electrified.
In the history of design, if you could hire any designer other than yourself, who would it be? Dorothy Draper
No room is complete without something meaningful to you.
People think of me as outgoing, but I am really an introvert.
Things you omit from:
A flower arrangement: Baby’s breath
An hors d’oeuvre platter: Olive pits
A bar cabinet: Play doh
A song for:
Dinner at home: Anything that creates a nice atmosphere!
Working at your desk: Coldplay
Going for a run: Dua Lipa
Biggest Vice? Instagram
If you were on an Ambien high and internet shopping, what would you buy? OMG! I didn’t even know what this was!
Do your clothes reflect your design sensibility, if so, how? I think so! Stylish-yes. Statement pieces-yes. Layered-yes. Sometimes bohemian which maybe would be considered “traveled”. Never overly colorful but just the right amount.
Who is your star crush? Daniel Tosh and Ashton Kutcher
What is the thing you would never do on a project, but don’t detest when you see others do it?
All white everything.
If there were a fire, and you could only keep one design book, what would it be?
Yikes! Probably the catalog of all my grandmother’s prints! I don’t have a single favorite.
For posterity, what would you like your work to be known for?
Helping people realize their story through their homes and helping other aspiring designers.
photo by Emily Minton Redfield
A Few Favorites:
Movie: Barfly
Book: Women who Run with the Wolves
Scent: Geeking out on all Le Labo
The fabric you always come back to: Too many to say!
Dream project: boutique hotel in Marrakesh
Meal: Anything Italian
Drink: Sancerre
Hotel: El Fenn
Travel Destination: Morocco
Artist: Elizabeth Burger Monath aka Liesl aka my Grandmother
A cause near and dear to me: Animal rights
Thing to collect obsessively: This is so personal! If you do pick one thing to collect obsessively, I think it’s important to not only have a personal attachment, but also consider how it would look on display in your home. Will it stand alone? Or grouped with other items? For example, I collect African Ibeji dolls, as it tells my story of living in Nigeria as a little girl.
Era in the history of design: So many to list! I feel the most groundbreaking that still resonates today is the Bauhaus. I love the basics of design in form follows function and using simplicity to then add layer after layer. And almost in reverse you can peel the onion back to simpler when you tire of the layers and change anything up when in need of a refresh.
Museum: Brighton Royal Pavilion is a seaside palace with a mix of Regency with Chinese and Indian influences-my favorite styles to combine!
Paint Color that always looks great: Go to white: Swiss Coffee by Benjamin Moore. It’s the best chameleon white, and it goes with creams and stark whites. Cat's Eye by Benjamin Moore is such a lively green.
Favorite person to follow on Instagram: My kids.
Dogs, Cats, or No Pets? Dogs: James and Goldie. Cat: Mittens.
