This week Ariel is joined by a designer with her infectious energy and tireless work ethic, Alessandra Branca. Born and raised in Rome, Alessandra has called Chicago home for 30+ years. She acquired her love of classical beauty from her Italian upbringing and those roots still speak to her soul today. Her designs are anchored by classical details, rich colors, patterns and textures, paired with antique and custom furnishings, modern and European art, and distinctive accessories.

As an Art History student, she started collecting architectural and natural history prints, and after attending College and then marrying an American, she opened a print business. Her shop, fashioned to look like a charming home, led to requests from customers to decorate for them. Gradually that evolved into her full-time business

Her work has been featured in countless magazines, including Architectural Digest, Town & Country, The New York Times, Veranda, and Elle Décor. She has been recognized within the industry with awards from House Beautiful Master Class and won designer of the year from the Merchandise Mart in 2016. Inspiration comes from all facets of Alessandra’s life including, design, art, nature, travel, and culture and she continually seeks knowledge and explores new ideals.

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Follow Alessandra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abranca

Learn more about her work: https://branca.com/

This week Ariel’s guest Mandy Cheng cut her teeth on the fabulous sets of Hollywood, before transitioning her set design experience into a career as one of the most sought-after interior designers in Los Angeles. Mandy launched her solo design career first as a production and graphic designer in the film & television industry. You would recognize her design work from music videos for chart-topping names such as J.Cole, One Republic, and Dillon Francis & DJ Snake. And lent her talented hand as a graphic designer on projects ranging from 20th Century Women and Ladybird to Beyonce's Lemonade.

It was her design of the home of Emmy Raver-Lampman and Daveed Diggs, which landed the April 2021 cover of AD, and most recently, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Justin Mikita’s home, which was also featured in AD and their fan-favorite platform, Open Door. Since she founded Mandy Cheng Design, she has been named AD 100 for three years in a row, 2022 to 2024. And designed a wide range of properties including homes, retail stores and offices–all spanning the country.

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Learn more about Mandy Cheng’s Design Studio: https://www.mandychengdesign.com/

And follow Mandy on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mandychengdesign/

For this week’s episode, it’s a Talk Shop first, as we welcome a duo–lifelong friends and now co-founders–the team behind In Kind…Hannah Weil McKinley and Leah Melby Clinton.

Printed twice yearly, and available digitally, In Kind is a thoughtfully curated to touch on the conversations modern women are having about motherhood, career, ambition, personal style, and more. As they say, In Kind is a conversation around the things that really matter. Focused on capturing, exploring, and supporting the questions and dreams that the women in our orbits are having with each other.

Hannah and Leah first met, over a decade ago, during their times at POPSUGAR–a pop culture site that covers all things from fashion to beauty to shopping. A self-prescribed shoe-obsessed, Hannah spent twelve years at POPSUGAR, landing after a childhood spent knowing she wanted to work in Editorial. In 2018, after the birth of her first daughter, she felt a seismic shift, and began to look for and share more candid stories around motherhood and womanhood. It was then during the pandemic that the beginnings of In Kind took route. Across the country, Leah started to kick around an idea of creating a place–first a zine–for a community of mothers were looking for. From there In Kind was born!

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Learn more about In Kind: https://inkindmagazine.com/

And follow Hannah and Leah on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/hannahmck20

https://www.instagram.com/leahmelbyclinton

We are thrilled to kick off a new season with a guest who is the fifth-generation creative leader of an incredible 125 year-old family business: Jennifer Gracie. GRACIE creates some of the most beautiful and beloved custom hand-painted wallpapers in the world. Utilized by many esteemed designers and celebrities around the globe.

Founded in 1898, here in New York City, James Gracie originally sold custom lamps and home furnishings, until the 1920s, when they began to offer Chinese and Japanese furniture, screens, and porcelain. Soon after, it became the first company to import hand painted wallpapers to the United States since the 1700’s. Today, the studio has showrooms in New York, Los Angeles, and Dallas, with several exclusive collaborations with luxury companies such as Aerin, Estee Lauder, Sarah Flint Shoes, and more.

Our guest this week is Gracie's Creative Director, Jennifer, who oversees the company’s day-to-day operations, social media, new collections, inspirations for custom projects and more. Alongside her brother and President, Mike, and Jenn’s son and Sales Director, Zach Shea, they continue to carry out Charles R. Gracie’s legacy and maintain the family’s generations-long commitment to exceptional design.

“The Art of Gracie”, available now from Rizolli, is a glorious celebration of America’s most storied hand painted wallpaper company, family owned for 125 years, featuring dozens of rooms by today’s top interior designers.

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Follow Gracie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/graciestudio/

Pick up your own copy of “The Art of Gracie” plus learn more about the upcoming book tour: https://graciestudio.com/the-art-of-gracie-book

Join me, Ariel Okin, interior designer, editor and writer, as I kick off season three of my design podcast, Talk Shop. Each week, I welcome the foremost tastemakers from around the globe to chat about how they built their businesses, where they find inspiration for new projects, and key pieces of advice they’ve learned along the way. And you don’t have to wait long, as we welcome our first guest of season three next Wednesday, September 25th.

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. See you soon!

In our final episode for the season, the theme is all about lighting a room, live from our second panel from the Fenimore Lane Design Summit, held at the Mayflower Inn & Spa. In partnership with Mitzi, Ariel is joined by fellow Mitzi Tastemaker, Anthony D’Argenzio of Zio and Sons, on the how-tos of decorative lighting and how they've styled some of the most popular fixtures from their Mitzi Tastemaker collections. With a special nod to our moderator Luxe Magazine’s Grace Beuley Hunt. Tune in for their bright and lively discussion!

Thank you again for joining us for this season and stay tuned for season three coming this Fall!

Follow our panelist and moderator:

Anthony D’Argenzio: https://www.instagram.com/zioandsons/

Grace Beuley Hunt: https://www.instagram.com/gracebeuley/

Learn more about Mitzi’s ceiling, wall and lighting offers: https://mitzi.com/

And their Tastemakers: https://mitzi.com/Tastemakers

Recorded live this past Saturday at the Mayflower Inn and Spa, in partnership with Farrow & Ball, Ariel is joined by two fellow best-in-class panelists to chat color and interior design: This Oak House’s, Annie Meyers-Shyer and Farrow & Ball's Colour Consultant and author, Joa Studholme. Special thank you to our moderator Luxe Magazine’s Grace Beuley Hunt. We sit down to discuss our love of color, how we interact with it in a room, and share a few tips & tricks for choosing the right color for your home.

Follow our panelists:

Annie Meyers-Shyer - https://www.instagram.com/thisoakhouse/

Joa Studholme - https://www.instagram.com/joastudholme/

Grace Beuley Hunt - https://www.instagram.com/gracebeuley/

Learn more about Farrow & Ball’s new wallpapers and current color catalog: https://www.farrow-ball.com/

This week Ariel welcomes her friend, Amanda Jones Vaughan. A creative consultant and tastemaker with a career path that runs the gamut from cutting edge interior design startups to fashion powerhouses, Amanda has done it all. From NET-A-PORTER and J. Crew, to most recently, Editor-At-Large for Over The Moon, Amanda’s day-to-day involves overseeing events, content partnerships, and VIP services along with sharing top trends, product picks and styling content for brides and beyond.

After over a decade in Manhattan, Amanda returned to Philadelphia with her husband and 3 lively boys, where she is continuing to provide her keen sense of brand building through a growing consulting and styling business.

Follow Amanda over on Instagram and to learn where you can subscribe to her weekly newsletter, “That Said,” where she will be sharing her fresh take on aesthetics, an enthusiasm for unique finds and a healthy, humorous dose of motherhood reality.

https://www.instagram.com/amandajonesvaughan/

Books recommended by Amanda:

Move and Work by Malene Birger: https://www.amazon.com/Move-Work-Malene-Birger/dp/3832798099

Mr & Mrs Clark: Ossie Clark and Celia Birtwell: https://www.artbook.com/9788836653768.html

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Also, we’re not wrapped for the season yet! Come back on May 22nd and the 29th for two special episodes recorded live from the Fenimore Lane Design Summit. And hopefully see you all at the Mayflower Inn on Saturday, May 18th!

Learn more about the Fenimore Lane Design Summit:

https://aubergeresorts.com/mayflower/experiences/fenimore-lane-design-summit/