A Home So Inspiring Its Owner Became A Decorator

Kim West may never have become a designer if she hadn’t moved to Austin, TX. Although she and her husband, David, had rehabbed several apartments when they lived in New York City, “it’s crazy expensive to start a business there,” says the former fashion executive. So four years ago the couple headed south, where they fell in love with a 1920s Craftsman. The home had pretty period details but lacked pizzazz, making it a perfect testing ground for Kim’s quirky style.

Friends took notice, and soon Kim launched not one but two businesses: a real-estate development company with her husband, for which she handles the interior design of the houses they remodel, and Supply, a showroom that sells to-the-trade home goods. Now her signature “color and pattern explosions” are seen in homes throughout Austin. “Designing our house helped me design the life I wanted,” she says.  

Above: Kim, David and their kids Ollie and Lulu on the porch.

Other than painting the front door French blue (Watertown by Benjamin Moore), Kim left the exterior as is. “I’m a blue addict,” she says. “It shows up in all my projects.” Drought-friendly plants, like a prickly pear cactus and agave, fill up the flower beds. 

With its impressive blue vintage chesterfield sofas, orchid rug from One Kings Lane and metallic gold wallpaper from Ferm Living, the extra-wide entry — which doubles as a living area — sets the tone for the rest of the home. “This room is a preview,” says Kim. “It tells you this isn’t your traditional Craftsman house.”

A vintage Empire-style chandelier and a retro-style Big Chill fridge in light blue help distract from the cook space’s older cabinets. The black-and-white tile floors were also already in place when the Wests moved in. Although they’re a little beat up, Kim likes their 1950s charm. 

Cookbooks, a cake stand and knickknacks live on these tough-looking metal shelves, which Kim found at the Round Top antiques fair in Texas. “Its industrialness keeps the kitchen from looking too sweetie pie,” she says. 

The custom acrylic table — another Etsy score — has the sleekness of glass but resists fingerprints. Vintage turquoise metal chairs, also from Round Top, and the floor, painted Decorator’s White by Benjamin Moore, add to the space’s lived-in vibe. 

“You’ll always see some kind of amazing wallpaper in the homes I design,” says Kim. The Famille Summerbelle one in her daughter’s room features a pattern called Morning in Manhattan, a nod to Lulu’s birthplace. A Rikshaw Design quilt and a Dash & Albert cotton rug play up the blue-and-white color scheme. Kim admits the Wolfum teepee is more for her than for Lulu. “She doesn’t use it much, but I love the fabric,” she says.

It may have been designed for Lulu, but this space appeals to adults, too, thanks to its playful low-slung daybed from PBteen and the graphic CB2 rug. The pint-size wicker table and chairs from One Kings Lane are vintage.