In Conversation With… Kelly Hoppen

Kelly Hoppen, a prominent interior designer with five decades of experience, discusses various aspects of her life, including her family, career, and a new homeware collection with Marks & Spencer. At 65, Hoppen maintains her passion for interior design, emphasizing her healthy lifestyle with products like Gold Collagen, aloe vera, Symprove probiotics, and lemon water. She expresses particular affection for her seven-year-old grandson, Rudy, and recounts her journey as a stepmother to Sienna and Savannah Miller, highlighting the effort required to blend families. Hoppen acknowledges the increased challenges faced by working mothers today due to social media and constant communication, advocating for establishing clear boundaries between work and personal life. Her new homeware collection with Marks & Spencer, a project kept secret for over a year, is a significant career milestone. The collection reflects her signature hotel-chic aesthetic and includes items starting from five pounds. Hoppen personally recommends three key pieces from the collection. The first is a "dinosaur vase," inspired by her grandson, which she describes as bold and unique with a matte ceramic finish. She suggests that such pieces can stand alone as decorative elements without needing to be filled. The second recommendation is bedding, which Hoppen considers an investment piece given the amount of time spent in bed. She argues that quality bedding is crucial for setting the mood for both sleep and waking hours, and it also serves as a significant decorative element in a bedroom, offering an easy way to transform the room's appearance. The double set of her recommended bedding costs £99. Her third highlighted item is a versatile throw, praised for its softness and adaptability. Hoppen suggests using it on a bed, sofa, or outdoors as the weather cools. She emphasizes the importance of layering textures in design, noting that this includes both soft and hard finishes. Beyond her product recommendations, Hoppen provides five essential tips for planning a home makeover, stressing that significant changes can be achieved without spending money. Her first tip is to always have a plan and measure before making purchases, unlike fashion items that can be easily returned. Second, she advises starting small, suggesting that altering elements like rugs or curtains can dramatically change a room's look without major renovations like painting or changing floors. Third, she encourages people to move existing items around their home, such as accessories and cushions, to create fresh perspectives. Fourth, she recommends "shopping your home" by identifying beloved items and repositioning them in different rooms or pairing them with new additions to achieve a renewed aesthetic. Finally, Hoppen suggests a self-assessment process, similar to the detailed questionnaires she uses with private clients, to understand personal needs and how a space should function. These intimate questions, ranging from sleeping preferences to daily routines, help define the desired outcome of a home transformation. #InteriorDesign #HomeMakeover #KellyHoppen #MarksAndSpencer #HomewareCollection #FamilyLife #Stepmotherhood #WorkingMother #DesignTips #HomeDecoration

This article features an interview with multi-award-winning interior designer and TV personality, Kelly Hoppen, as part of the 'My Happy Home' series. Hoppen shares insights into her personal living spaces, design philosophy, and career experiences spanning over 40 years. Her work includes designing homes, yachts, and jets for high-profile clients like Victoria and David Beckham, as well as luxury hotels and residential towers globally. Hoppen discusses her dual residences: a home in west London and a converted lambing barn in the Cotswolds. She describes her Cotswolds home as very 'chilled,' while her London residence is a private space she refrains from photographing. Recalling her childhood, Hoppen mentions growing up in a well-designed London townhouse and annual visits to her grandparents' old-fashioned countryside home in Cape Town, which inspired her passion for home design. She reveals her daily routine upon returning home, which typically involves checking the fridge for dinner plans and changing into comfortable attire. Her favorite rooms are the kitchen, which she considers the heart of the home, and her dressing room, described as her private sanctuary. She also highlights a bar built specifically for entertaining guests. For her Zoom backdrop, Hoppen uses a wall adorned with photos and letters, including a handwritten thank-you note from the King for scented candles she created for The Prince’s Trust. She emphasizes her preference for white walls in both her homes, stating it allows art to 'breathe.' Hoppen also reflects on her most significant decorating mishap, which involved having to saw off a bed base to maneuver it up the stairs of a mews house, followed by commissioning a seamstress for a new upholstered base. She collects photography, with a notable piece being a photo of Muhammad Ali by Flip Schulke. Her best home bargain is a Zara table, priced under £100, which closely resembles her more expensive Christian Liaigre table. Conversely, her biggest extravagance is marble, particularly the 'over-the-top' varieties used in her London home. Her Edwardian bathroom features concrete floors and walls, complemented by Italian Calacatta Viola marble and vintage white powder-coated lighting. Finally, Hoppen expresses a keen interest in observing other people's homes, a curiosity she has held since childhood. She cites the Los Angeles home of Robbie Williams and Ayda Field as a spectacular example. The article concludes by noting that Kelly Hoppen’s Retrospective furniture collection is available at Andrew Martin. #KellyHoppen #InteriorDesign #MyHappyHome #LondonLiving #CotswoldsHome #HomeDecor #CelebrityHomes #DesignPhilosophy #DecoratingTips

This article features an interview with renowned interior designer Kelly Hoppen, who is celebrating 40 years in the business. She discusses her journey into interior design, her design philosophy, and how she maintains her signature style amidst evolving trends. Hoppen shares that her interest in design began at a very young age. At 11, she was allowed to redecorate her childhood bedroom, opting for a modern, pop-art aesthetic with a cream shag-pile carpet, chocolate-brown felt walls trimmed with chrome, white shutters, and a silver Robin Day chair. She credits her bohemian London upbringing, surrounded by artists and creative individuals, for fostering her early design sensibilities, despite her mother’s self-proclaimed messiness. Hoppen started her professional career at 16, securing her first project through her stepfather. Although it was a challenging experience, it provided invaluable practical exposure. At 17, she took on a significant project, designing a large house for Formula 1 driver Guy Edwards, which marked the true beginning of her career. She reflects on her teenage years, during which she bought and renovated her own apartment in Chelsea, establishing an office there shortly after. She emphasizes that her early style development was intuitive and driven by intrigue and experience, rather than merely imitating existing designs from books, which she observes as a common practice today. This organic approach allowed her to cultivate a distinctive and enduring style. Regarding her client interactions, Hoppen explains that her role often involves translating a client's emotional desire for a space into tangible design elements. Many clients know how they want to feel in a home but struggle to articulate their specific design preferences. She describes this as an art form that requires deep understanding and a selfless approach to guide clients toward their vision while maintaining her high standards of style and beauty. She acknowledges that in her earlier career, she was more inclined to impose her ideas, but over time, her process has become more collaborative and ego-free. She dismisses the influence of fleeting trends on her work, stating that her inspiration comes from diverse sources such as art, fashion, vintage items, music, people, and conversations. She believes that trends are transient and lack the substance necessary to significantly impact her design philosophy. Her consistent adherence to her core aesthetic, centered around neutrals, has been a key factor in her longevity and success in the industry. Despite her strong association with neutrals, Hoppen clarifies that she is not afraid of color and incorporates accents to enhance and sharpen neutral-toned rooms. She admires other iconic designers like David Hicks, John Stefanidis, Terence Conran, Philippe Starck, and Kelly Wearstler for their distinct and recognizable styles, asserting that owning a unique technique is crucial. Hoppen reaffirms her commitment to her signature neutral style, which has been successful for four decades and will continue to define her work. The article also provides glimpses into Hoppen's own home, illustrating her design principles. Her open-plan ground floor, a former auction house, features calm shades of taupe and white. Her dining area showcases her custom-designed stone table, complemented by furniture from designers like Christian Liaigre, Guillaume Alan, and Tom Dixon. In her bedroom, texture is paramount, with layers of linens, velvets, and silks set against taupe joinery and floorboards, featuring pieces from Christian Liaigre and Spencer Fung. Her dressing room includes vintage armchairs upholstered in pink-taupe silk velvet and glossy side tables by India Mahdavi. The guest bedroom follows a grey, taupe, white, and sea green theme, with a striped velvet runner and vintage bedside tables spray-painted in sea green lacquer. Her master bathroom, a personal favorite, features a lotus-inspired bathtub designed by Hoppen for Apaiser, set on a Calacatta marble plinth to create a floating effect, with a ceiling light sculpture by Niamh Barry. Her study combines modern and classic elements, including a Cassina armchair, Christian Liaigre coffee table, and her own desk, with a zebra rug and orange accents adding vibrancy. The entrance hall features striking black and white marble flooring with a custom lacquer table and bespoke pendant lights by Hervé Langlais. #KellyHoppen #InteriorDesign #NeutralPalette #DesignPhilosophy #HomeDecor #ArchitecturalSpace #LuxuryInteriors #DesignInspiration

Open-plan living areas are highly sought after for their expansive feel, yet interior designer Kelly Hoppen suggests they often lack a crucial element: distinct zoning. Speaking on an Instagram live, Hoppen addressed this common oversight, offering practical advice to enhance the functionality and aesthetic appeal of open-plan layouts. The discussion, featuring friend Kelly Holmes's modern open-plan space encompassing a sitting area, kitchen, and dining area, highlighted the need for strategic design to define individual areas within a larger room. Hoppen emphasized that while open-plan designs are popular, without proper zoning, they can feel unfinished or lack cohesion. To effectively zone an open-plan space, Hoppen recommends utilizing accessories and furniture to subtly alter the atmosphere and purpose of different areas. For instance, in the living area, she suggested replacing smaller, less comfortable chairs with a large loveseat or two substantial, cozy armchairs. This change aims to make the space more inviting and comfortable, especially since it serves multiple functions like cooking, sitting, and dining. Furthermore, to prevent a sofa from appearing to 'float' in the middle of the room, Hoppen advised placing a large rug beneath it and flanking it with coffee tables. These elements collectively anchor the furniture and visually delineate the living zone. The discussion then shifted to the kitchen area, where Hoppen identified a blank wall opposite Kelly Holmes's large island. Her suggestion was to hang a prominent, old-fashioned railway clock on this wall. Such a clock not only adds character but also serves as a practical focal point, subtly dividing the kitchen from other areas. This eye-catching feature helps to break up the vastness of an open space, providing a visual boundary without the need for physical walls. Similarly, Hoppen proposed placing a vase of fresh flowers on the kitchen island to achieve a similar visual separation between the sitting area and the kitchen, offering a softer, more natural divide. For those who prefer alternatives to flowers, a selection of houseplants can also effectively serve this purpose. Finally, in the dining area, Hoppen recommended installing shutters at the windows and hanging a large black and white photograph on the wall. These additions contribute to creating another distinct and well-defined zone within the open-plan layout. Hoppen's core message is that small, thoughtful adjustments like these are instrumental in giving each area within an open-plan space a clear purpose and identity. By implementing these simple yet effective design tricks, homeowners can transform their open-plan living areas into more organized, functional, and aesthetically pleasing environments, ensuring that each zone serves its intended function while maintaining overall harmony. #KellyHoppen #OpenPlanLiving #InteriorDesign #HomeDecor #Zoning #FurnitureArrangement #KitchenDesign #LivingRoomIdeas #DecoratingTips

Kelly Clarkson's living room exemplifies effective interior design that fosters connection and conversation. Her living room seating arrangement, which she attributes to an age-old technique, features a sofa positioned opposite two armchairs across a coffee table. This configuration allows for easy communication among five or more people. Specifically, her space includes a cream boucle sofa and two green chenille barrel armchairs. A striped pouf on the right side of the sofa serves dual purposes as a side table and an additional seat for extra guests. Much of the furniture in Clarkson's living room is derived from her latest 'Kelly Clarkson Home' collection, available at Wayfair. This collection draws inspiration from her recent relocation to New York City, blending the comforts of home with an urban chic aesthetic. The pieces in the collection are characterized by their clean lines, luxurious textures, and a thoughtful incorporation of various metals, collectively creating an inviting and subtly opulent ambiance. Despite the collection's urban inspiration, the overall living room layout provides a sense of escape from the city's hustle. Clarkson emphasizes her connection to nature, stating that she intentionally curates items for her line that bring life into her home, countering the 'concrete jungle' feel of New York. Key elements available from her collection include a Bettie 92" Square Arm Boucle Sofa, a Steven Upholstered Barrel Chair, a Crescendo Upholstered Pouf, a Cardy Oriental Rug, a Therese Cotton Throw Pillow, and a Hessie Ornate Antique Gold Metal Wall Mirror. A significant aspect contributing to the warmth and inviting atmosphere of the living room is the abundance of texture. Beyond the boucle sofa and chenille armchairs, Clarkson integrates numerous decorative cushions. A white shearling throw draped over one of the chairs further enhances the cozy and welcoming feel of the space, promoting comfort and visual interest. Furthermore, a strategically placed coffee table is crucial for a successful conversational setup. As illustrated, the table allows guests to place drinks or snacks conveniently, preventing the need to hold them and contributing to a tidier living space. This design philosophy contrasts with many modern living rooms that prioritize television viewing over social interaction. To achieve a balance, a television can still be present, positioned in front of the main sofa, while ensuring that the primary seating arrangement remains geared towards conversation. Throw cushions can also be utilized for additional floor seating, especially for children during family watch parties. Ultimately, the objective of any living room layout should be to facilitate 'living.' By considering individual and family needs, one can create a space that effectively supports those requirements, with Kelly Clarkson's living room serving as an inspiring model for such design principles. #KellyClarkson #LivingRoomDesign #ConversationalSeating #WayfairCollection #HomeDecor #InteriorDesign #NYCInspired #CozyLiving #CelebrityHome