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How to Decorate

Ep. 225: architect Roger Seifter

How to Decorate

Ballard Designs

Arts, Business, Design

4.2785 Ratings

🗓️ 2 November 2021

⏱️ 50 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

We are long overdue for our conversation with the amazing architect Roger Seifter. He’s a partner at the renowned firm Robert A.M Stern Architects (RAMSA) and has designed houses all over the world including in the US, UK, India, and Canada. His work has been featured in Architectural Digest, House & Garden, The New York Times, Lux, and many more. He recently co-authored the book HOUSES with his colleagues featuring projects and the design work from the firm. We talk all about his processes, projects in the book, adapting to different architectural styles, and more! What You’ll Hear on This Episode: All about the process of writing HOUSES and the projects in the book. Details about the incredible Las Olas project featured in the book. Roger’s advice about designing or landscaping when you can’t build from scratch. What is Roger’s process in building and designing a house? How much input does a client have in a project? How ornamentation is used in Mediterranean architecture. Why a geographic location often dictates the architectural style of a building. What’s the best way for a person to learn about architectural styles? Is there such a thing as too much in terms of texture, ornament, patterns, etc., and how do you decide when and where to use it? How to work with a boxy house. More about Roger’s personal home in New Jersey he designed with his wife — a fellow architect. Details on the Kiawah project that RAMSA worked on. Decorating Dilemma  Hi Amanda, The easiest answer is DO NOT put a glass top table in the dining room; I would put a nice wood table. There’s enough beautiful tile that we don’t need to see through it, but you could do with some leggy chairs. Regarding the fireplace; it’s beautiful but it’s tiny, so it would be odd to focus the furniture around the fireplace. Your instinct to mount the TV in the built-ins is the way to go and then position the furniture in a way that you can actually sit in it to watch. I would put the sofa across the room with the two chairs opposite it and then some pull-up chairs by the fireplace. In terms of types and colors of furniture, I would keep the upholstery simple and soft in a neutral, lighter color. Then use pillows that pick up the colors from the tile. Just remember not to pick oversized furniture that will overpower the floors. If you decide to go without a rug, you’ll be relying on your furniture and window coverings to balance the sound, so maybe steer towards lush, skirted upholstery and ample, soft curtains. A bonus with skirted chairs is you can have them on swivels to access both the TV and the fireplace! This is an amazing space and we can’t wait to see it finished. These floors are so unique and such a treat to see! Please send us the after photos. Mentioned in This Episode: Roger Seifter RAMSA: Robert A.M. Stern Architects RAMSA Houses RAMSA on Instagram HOUSES on Amazon Las Olas Project Kiawah Project

Transcript

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0:00.0

Welcome to How to Decorate from Ballard Designs, a podcast all about the trials and triumphs of decorating and redecorating your home.

0:08.7

Each week will help you unleash your inner decorator.

0:11.6

I'm Caroline, and I'm on the marketing team.

0:13.7

And I'm Taryn, and I'm a product designer.

0:15.8

And I'm Liz.

0:16.5

I head up the Ballard creative team.

0:18.2

We're your host. Join the expert team at Ballard Designs

0:21.6

for tips, tricks, and tales from interior designers, stylists, and other talents in the design world.

0:25.9

Plus, we'll answer our listener question at the end of each show. So don't forget to send them

0:29.7

to podcast at Ballarddesigns.net. Yes, we love answering them. Now on with the show.

0:35.9

Okay, our guest today is Roger Seifter, a partner at the renowned architecture firm Robert Amstern Architects.

0:42.1

He's designed houses all over the world, including California, the UK, India, Canada,

0:47.3

and his work has been featured in Architectural Digest, House and Garden, the New York Times,

0:51.5

Lux Magazine, and many more.

0:53.1

He's also recently co-authored a new book

0:55.5

called Houses, Robert A. Amster Architects, with his colleagues that features the design work and

1:01.3

projects from the renowned firm, and it was published in January 2021. Roger, thank you so much for

1:07.0

joining us. We've long awaited this conversation. Thank you. Thank you. It's nice to be

1:11.4

here, sort of virtually. It's nice to be. It's hard to even know where to start with the book because it is

1:17.0

a huge and gorgeous tome. It is a tone. I hope it didn't feel like that when you were writing it

1:26.2

because I'm sure it was a large undertaking,

1:29.7

but it's a gorgeous book. And anyone who's house obsessed or working on their own project,

...

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