Designing for Real Life with Lilse McKenna

This week on Talk Shop, Ariel sits down with Lilse McKenna for a thoughtful, personal conversation about designing homes that are meant to be lived in — and loved — over time.

Lilse is known for creating spaces rooted in tradition and tailored to reflect each client’s personality and lifestyle. Drawing on years of experience in residential design, she expertly layers pattern, color, and texture to create interiors that feel sophisticated yet deeply livable. Longevity sits at the heart of her work, as she brings together a wide range of stylistic influences to ensure her clients’ homes can grow and evolve alongside them.

In this episode, Lilse shares her path into design, from growing up surrounded by shelter magazines and strong opinions on furniture proportions, to training under esteemed designers Lindsey Coral Harper and Markham Roberts before launching her own firm in 2017. Today, she is based in New York and Connecticut, with projects spanning the East Coast and abroad.

Lilse was recognized as one of House Beautiful’s Next Wave 2022 designers, and her work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Luxe Magazine, Domino, and more — but at its core, her work is about helping people build homes where memories, community, and everyday life can unfold.

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Learn more about Lilse McKenna: https://www.lilsemckenna.com/

Follow on social @lilsemckenna

And subscribe to her Substack: https://lilsemckenna.substack.com/

Explore Lilse’s ShopMy storefront

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To join Ariel and our Season 5 guests on ShopMy, download the ShopMy app, create a shopper account, and start building wishlists and shopping your favorite pieces, now at go.shopmy.us!