12 Questions with Kat from Copeland + Co.
Kat is an ice cream fiend, over-sharer, and the founder and creative director of Copeland + Co. She used to tell big brand stories in a promising advertising career but couldn’t deny her passion for interiors after many lunch breaks spent in design school. She obsesses over the details that turn a house into a home and has no intention of giving up her search for the perfect chair. She thinks that all conversations should be had over a tasty treat and that laughter is the best medicine.
I got the chance to ask Kat 12 questions about her design inspiration, her techniques for staging any home, and how we can attempt to inch our home decor that much closer to our style goals.
1. Do you think interior design / staging is more of an art or a science? Definitely both! They say you can't teach taste and maybe that's true, but I'm constantly accumulating hard skills on the job that continue to refine our work. There's so. much. math. Understanding volume and scale, color theory and pattern play, texture and layering... it all contributes to better design.
2. What is one big interior design pet peeve? It really grinds my gears when I see all the furniture in a space pushed up against the walls. Floating your furniture lets the room breathe and can often make the space look larger.
3. What is something easy we should be doing to improve the style of our home? I'm a massive fan of lighting and think it instantly elevates a space. I'm a sucker for matte black or ceramic fixtures right now. I also love spaces that have multiple lighting options depending on the mood I'm going for... shaded lamps for a sexy, warm glow or daylight bulbs for a bright, inspiring workspace, etc.
4. Where do you source your staging items from? We shop from a lot of to-the-trade vendors, at What's New Furniture when we're in a pinch and need to buy something off the floor, and we're always scouring Craigslist.
5. What is a current design inspiration? I'd be crazy not to speak to the moodiness and drama of the Pacific Northwest, but I also balance that out with the laid back, unfussy nature of the people here. I get really excited about natural materials and muted, earthy tones that make me feel both alive and grounded.
6. What are your favorite kinds of houses to stage? I'm a sucker for those neglected bungalows, awkward 80s condos and dilapidated farmhouses that just need someone to remind them of who they are. Staging makes even the saddest homes shine, and who doesn't love a good transformation moment?
7. What is one trick you use to tie a room together? One of the most important steps in bringing a room together is defining the focal point and grounding the space around it. If you want someone's attention to go to the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, position the furniture so that it creates conversation around them. Stay away from decor that will detract too much attention from the focal point (though a little eye candy is okay), and be sure that you bring the outside in with natural elements and sustainable materials.
8. Where do you start when designing / staging a room? I tend to spend an uncomfortable amount of time in a space getting a feel for the soul of the house, taking in the character that needs highlighting and the aspects that need downplaying. As much as I admire eclecticism, I'm a purist at heart and let the existing architecture set the brief. A design can morph into many things from that moment on, but I always start with the question, "what was this home meant to be in its original form?"
9. Is it harder for you to decorate your own space, or to stage a home? I AM MY OWN WORST CLIENT. Decorating my own space will always be the most difficult part of this job. We just purchased a 1903 farmhouse in St. Johns and it has completely overtaken all of my brainspace.
10. What are three words that describe your design style? Currently, I would say our design style is organic, curated and unfussy.
11. Do you think it's always worth it to stage a house before putting it on the market? I'd probably be out of business if I didn't! Apart from all of the statistics that demonstrate the efficacy of home staging, I care most about how someone feels when they walk into one of our projects. I want them to feel a sense of relief as their eyes bounce around the room, never landing on anything specific. And while a bit ambitious, I want them to feel taken care of in that space and in that moment in time. Design is my love language to our community.
12. How do you keep your skin so glowing?! Stop, I'm blushing! To be completely honest, my skincare routine currently consists of letting the shower water hit my face but not enough to remove the day-old mascara I'd like to get more life out of. I wish it wasn't true, but we're all friends here.