Susan Caruso

The designer shares designs she did of a northern California hotel and those of her own vacation home.

All About

Product Ideas

See a bold and dramatic escape that looks like a home in the Italian countryside that's actually a hotel in northern California designed by one of the country's top designers, Susan Caruso. Then, Caruso reveals the secrets to designing rooms like those in her own alpine vacation home:

Caruso's design philosophy is to create an environment that is comfortable yet stunning and she isn't the least bit shy when doing so. Her signature style is high drama including exotic fabrics, over-scaled furniture plus warm and inviting colors. One of her most talked about designs is the Cypress Hotel in Cupertino, California. If you've ever dreamed of bringing Tuscany into your home, then this is a great place to get inspiration.
When you enter the hotel's doorway it's as if you've been whisked off to Italy with all of its old world charm including handpainted ceilings, red upholstery and flowing drapes. Caruso was given creative free reign and she decided to go for it using inspiration from the people and places she'd seen in Italy. She imagined the hotel as a real Tuscan villa owned by a collector who traveled the world by going on safari in Africa and on expeditions to the Far East.

The lobby walls are wild. One is covered in a giant red and yellow leather checkerboard (which can also be done with fabric or paint) while the other is adorned with two larger-than-life whimsical murals. Complementing the checkerboard wall is red upholstery and dark mahogany accented in wild animal prints. She likes to use a lot of textures and shapes to create drama.

To create a one-of-a-kind look, Caruso's team designed every piece of furniture, which allows her to oversize a couch or chair. But you don't have to have custom furniture — just be a hunter with a good eye at an estate sale to find furniture that nobody else sees personality in.

To make the lobby look as if it has been around for years, Caruso used a faux finish on the wall above the fireplace. The warm yellow base paint is muted by glaze and she even added a crack to make it look as if the building has aged. To complete the charming look, Caruso used a stencil design on the ceiling to capture the old world character of Europe.

It's a walk on the wild side in the guest rooms with tiger prints on the floor, jaguar prints in the bedding and sleek leopard prints on the walls. She likes to use animal patterns because it adds an exotic touch to a room.

At the Cypress Hotel, Caruso's favorite place is the terrace with romantic sheer draperies that blow in the breeze and it's not a difficult look to achieve in any home by adding a few sheers.

If you've been inspired to use warm and vibrant colors, here's a simple way to make them look their best. Caruso always uses halogen bulbs in her lighting fixtures to show colors in a truer and more flattering way.

Susan Caruso is known in the design world for her international flair whether she's creating the look and feel of a Mediterranean villa or the comfort and rustic atmosphere of an alpine lodge. In her own vacation home, she toned down the animal prints, creating a softer yet still eye-catching look.

When it came to creating her alpine getaway, Caruso incorporated her favorite ideas into a rustic and comfortable vacation home in Telluride, Colorado. The traditional log cabin structure gives her a very different palette to play with. It has a western feeling and it fits in really well with the surrounding landscape.

Caruso has traveled the world over and you can see that in her designs. Here you find the safari prints she likes so much and creamy Italian marble mixed with Native American weavings. While the look is more subdued, its' not exactly a walk on the mild side.

It's really important to Caruso to have a very comfortable chair or sofa and she dislikes stiff sofas that have hardly any upholstery to them. To keep things comfy, she recommends using natural fabrics such as cottons and wools.

In this fabulous mountain setting, one of the most important things to incorporate is the view. Caruso says if you like what's outside a window, don't overpower it with color. In this space, she relies on the contrast of dark wood against light upholstery instead to create drama.

Caruso accessorizes with colorful Native American designs on the throw pillows and Indonesian rugs plus her trademark animal print on seat cushions. She has used her ideas about animal prints, oversized furniture and inviting colors to create a look that's rustic yet polished, worldly yet down to earth.

The main fireplace is done in Telluride Gold stone, which is also used on the exterior of the home. It's one of the big focal points and because of its location, it helps divide the great room from the den.

Susan Caruso says that the key to designing any space is making it fit its setting. Before starting a new project, she thinks about the location and the people who will be staying there. Once she comes up with a theme, everything seems to fall into place.

Resources

Guests
- Susan Caruso, Interior Designer, Intra-Spec
  4218 Glencoe Avenue #1
  Marina del Rey, CA 90292
  Phone: 310-821-0376
  Fax: 310-821-7151
  E-mail: info@intra-spec.com
  Website: www.intra-spec.com