THe Layered Lives Series is our attitude to the designer profile, in which we have intimate conversations with iconic creative people who go beyond portfolios to reveal the memories, possessions and passions that shape their aesthetics. Every story is a more layered portrait of life and design: warm, emotional and human.
You can often record the characteristic look of a designer. Perhaps it is a color scheme that you hold on, a material that you thread through every project, or an aesthetics that is woven into every house. But take a look at Marie Flanigan's portfolio, and although you notice that everyone is similarly classic and timeless, what you share is not a “look”, but a feeling. All of their projects reflect the people who live in them; They are layered and light and increased, yes, but also relaxed and lived in it. There is a softness and rapprochement with your style, which is very natural.
It is an interior design style that we all want to achieve, but it is difficult to get right because it is so dependent on the balance between a feeling of space, but still full of personality. Marie's biggest tip? 'Design for the life you live, not what you think that you “live”. Her home should reflect her story, her rhythms and joys. When you start there, of course, beauty follows. '
Here, Houses & gardens Take a step in Marie's world. In a detailed interview, we learn more about the designer behind the beautiful rooms and get an insight into the love of design, her key sources for inspiration on how she designed her own dream house and how her daily family life works in the rooms.
(Photo credit: Marie Flanigan Interiors / Photography Julie Soefer)
Homes & Gardens: Where did your journey with interior design began?
I loved the arts as long as I can remember, and my parents were wonderful to maintain this creativity. They gave me the freedom to design my own room that planted the earliest seeds of what would eventually become my career. Exploring this freedom, color, texture and space was the beginning of my design story.
Homes & Gardens: Can you describe the first room that shaped your feeling of design?
My children's bedroom was the first place where I discovered how design could change a room. My parents let me experiment with colors and furnitureouts, even if this meant a bold green and black palette in one place. In retrospect, it was a gift to play freedom, make decisions and see how a space can reflect personality and creativity.
Homes & Gardens: Is there a specific project that you see as a turning point in your career?
One of the most important turning points in my career was to work with a customer at home early when I just started as a solo designer. Years later, they invited me to design their second home, this time with my company behind me. It felt like such a big moment not only to see how far I had grown as a designer, but also to recognize the development of my business and the incredible team that now supports every project.
(Photo credit: Marie Flanigan Interiors/Julie Soefer Photography)
Homes & Gardens: And how about the design of your own home of projects where you have worked with customers? How did you feel your own home like “at home”?
At home is where I exhale, where a lot of life happens and where I charge myself. I have three little children, so it's really a place that feels pleasant and functional for our needs. When I designed my home, I enjoyed creating spaces that reflect warm, safe and my family and the way we live.
Homes & Gardens: What was the most important inspiration for your home?
The inspiration came from the desire to mix timeless architecture with lived heat. I wanted rooms in which craftsmanship and natural materials were honored, but I also felt accessible to our children. My goal was to create a backdrop that gracefully age with three young (and very active) children and would greet the grades of a family of five.
(Photo credit: Julie Soefer)
“At home is where I exhale, where a lot of life happens and where I charge”
Marie Flanigan
(Photo credit: Marie Flanigan Interiors / Photography Julie Soefer)
Homes & Gardens: How would you describe your style and the overall style of your house?
I would describe my style as timelessly with a feeling of lightness. I am attracted to classic forms, natural textures and a palette of subdued gemstones, but I love the depths that can be attributed to vintage pieces and personal collections. Over time, I really assumed that I have told a story through design – layers of pieces that have a meaning and reflect where a family is at this moment.
Homes & Gardens: Has your home changed when your family has grown and have changed your needs?
We have been at home for about three years, so I didn't have to change too much. When I started working on this house, I tried to think ahead how the needs of my children would change in the coming years.
(Photo credit: Julie Soefer / Marie Flanigan Interiors)
Homes & Gardens: How did the design of a house with your family affect the decisions you made?
Each decision was made with the idea that our home should support our life should not compete with our lives. That meant selecting permanent surfaces, creating storage solutions that children could actually use, and space for the beautiful chaos of family life. I think a way to be a home and manageable is to keep the decor relatively easily. For example, a curated coffee table, just a few pillows on the sofa, a very simple bed table for a simple need.
(Photo credit: Julie Soefer)
Homes & Gardens: Which room in your house do you enjoy the most?
Our kitchen will always be my favorite. Here life really happens – meals, homework and it has the best natural light. The kitchen opens to our living room so that we always oscillate between these two rooms.
We love to host and the kitchen is always the meeting point. From there, the guests flow into the dining room or into our back yard. I like to flow between the rooms so that people can move slightly and feel at home. All of these areas are connected, so it is really fun to make hosting and committed hosting, since everyone is in the immediate vicinity of space to move.
Houses & gardens: Have you changed your favorite rooms over time, the longer you have lived in your house?
For various reasons, I still pulled to every room, but a room that we really put on is our landing on the second floor. We have a large, cozy department in this room, which are anchored by our only television. So when we go up there, you usually have to roll up for a film and enjoy an outrageous family time at the weekend.
(Photo credit: Julie Soefer)
“Over time, I really assumed that telling a story is told by design – layers of pieces that have a meaning and reflect where a family is at that moment.”
Marie Flanigan
(Photo credit: Julie Soefer)
Homes & Gardens: What are your favorite rituals in your home?
I am an early booker, so I am often in front of everyone else and try to press a training session followed by a prayer. Then I will watch my calendar for the day and check e -mails. As soon as the children have got up, we eat breakfast, get dressed and go out of the door. My husband and I protect family meals very much, so we always gather at the dining table, and I lit a few candles to do something special that time. Usually, after the children went to bed, my husband and I make tea and use this time to relax from the day.
Homes & Gardens: Do you have a favorite memory that is linked to your home?
I really loved organizing holidays in my house. I come from a very large family and it was so much fun that they come to Thanksgiving or Christmas with us. We gather in the living room and with so many musicians in my family, including my son, always strikes someone on a guitar. I love to create a warm and inviting ambience that everyone can enjoy. It is the moments when we can really slower and mean so much.
(Photo credit: Marie Flanigan Interiors/Julie Soefer Photography)
“I love to create a warm and welcome ambience for everyone. They are the moments when we can really slow down and enjoy it so much.”
Homes & Gardens: What are your most important tips for the design of a house that feels timeless, trend and also personally?
I start with a basis of classic elements – architectural details, quality materials – that will never go out of style. Then I layer antiques, personal pieces and smaller accents. The goal is to create a room that feels like it is heard YouNot up to a moment. For example, I personally love to collect beautiful invitations. Over the years there have been some incredible invitations, so I framed them like art and put them in my house.
Houses & gardens: Which interior drives your creativity outside the interior?
Nature is always my biggest source of inspiration, but travel and product design is also creative. Regardless of whether I sketch new lighting pieces or explore the textures of a carpet collection, these outlets give me space to present me and create in a new way.
Homes & Gardens: Have you finally made a design error that taught you something essential?
Absolutely. At the beginning of my career, I learned how critical it is to work with the right craftsmen and craftsmen. Design is only as strong as the team that helps to bring it to life, and the development of trusting relationships with those who perform the vision and details makes the difference. This lesson has shaped the way I am closer to every project today.