How Designer Katie Monkhouse Creates Spaces Made For Living

Rip & Tan: Tell us about your journey into interior design. What led you to start your own design firm?

Katie Monkhouse: I started my career working in fashion. I worked for a few high-end boutiques in New York before meeting my husband and moving to San Francisco where I was the buyer and merchandiser for three boutiques in the city.

After having my first kid, I started a freelance business helping boutiques and small businesses rework their interiors, product assortments, and marketing. One of my clients asked if I would also help with her home, which was always my dream. I documented that project and the renovations of our own home on Instagram. From there I started getting small projects and it grew organically. I did a short stint with a wonderful local designer before officially hanging out my shingle, but I always knew I wanted the challenge of growing my own business.

Rip & Tan: What are the core creative principles that guide the work you do at Katie Monkhouse Interiors?

Katie Monkhouse: We’ve been talking about this a bit at our studio lately and I think balance is the most important principle. I want our designs to have depth and sophistication but also be deeply livable and warm. We love a little quirk and tension but everything should work in harmony. I want people to experience our designs as a feeling more than a look. When things are arranged in a thoughtful way, colors play off each other, patterns don’t compete but compliment—when balance is achieved there is a calmness to a space. We’ve started to look at our designs and ask “what else?” What detail, layer, or unexpected element can we add to elevate the design. Again, it’s a balance between building on our designs but also refining and editing. We also strive to follow the architecture—ask the house what it needs and give it that without imposing too much of our “look” on it, this is also something I believe guides our work.

Rip & Tan: How do you strike a balance between laid-back and elevated in your interiors? Do you have any tips for creating a space that’s curated yet still personal?

Katie Monkhouse: Refine and edit: this is something I am always working on. I love to layer and layer and layer but sometimes it’s the editing that elevates the design. We keep materials and colors as close to what nature offers us and we avoid anything too precious.

Collect over time: get comfortable with white space until you can find something you truly love and will cherish forever. I find that the most elevated designs are often the quiet ones where the materials speak the loudest and each piece is special rather than filling a room just to fill it. Found objects and vintage or heirloom furniture are a great way to make a space feel collected but still casual.

Rip & Tan: These days, we have endless interiors inspiration right at our fingertips. How can we tap into the styles that surround us while still creating a space that’s unique?

Katie Monkhouse: It’s honestly a tough thing to do. We run into this at our studio all the time—we work on a design we feel is unique and special and then you come across something so similar on Instagram or Pinterest. It’s getting harder to create something that feels truly unique because I think we are just bombarded with imagery and you never know what you have subconsciously cataloged. If uniqueness is your goal, stick with smaller furniture makers, artists, and vintage. These things are less ubiquitous and can help your space feel more individual.

Rip & Tan: Tell us about this particular project. What was the initial vision and how did you help bring it to life?

Katie Monkhouse: This project was really fun because I actually owned this same model house (it’s in a mid-century tract neighborhood so there are only 4-5 styles of houses). The house that we owned had already been remodeled and I never really got the chance to put my stamp on it. So when these clients approached me it was like getting to do all the things I had wanted to do at our house! The vision was to really improve the flow of the main level, bring in lots of natural light, and create spaces that would be fully utilized and lived in.

The original layout had a tiny galley kitchen and two living rooms—one of which was never used. The dining space felt uninviting and when you walked into the house there was a big closet right in front of you. We eliminate one of the living rooms to accommodate for a big kitchen that really feels like the heart of the home. In the remaining living room, we built out a new fireplace with storage and added a slat wall behind the sofa to create some architectural interest and allow light to flow to the adjacent stairwell. We also removed the closet to create a nice wide entry hall with large cased openings to the updated living and dining room. Now when you walk in and see directly out to the 4-panel bi-fold glass doors in the kitchen, it’s pretty dreamy!

Rip & Tan: Where did you source some of your favorite pieces from? Any design details that you’re particularly proud of?

Katie Monkhouse: The slat wall is probably my favorite design element—just took the living room to a different level. The concrete tile fireplace was also a labor of love and math…the installer probably hated me but I was determined to not use any trim pieces so there are over a hundred miter cuts. The custom white oak end panels on the kitchen island really elevated the cabinetry, it’s a great way to get a custom feel without going fully custom.

The dining room table was a last-minute huge favor ask from our local furniture maker, Mike Finizio. We were about to shoot the project and the table we had our eye on was back-ordered and I asked him to whip up this classic parsons-style table over a weekend—and he did it! We did a deep matte black stain on ash wood and the end result was so chic. We also sourced the beautiful landscape painting from local artist, Alex Cole. It’s so important to me to have locally made pieces in every project. We are spoiled in California with so many amazing makers and artists that it feels good to fill homes with their work.

Rip & Tan: What’s one design trend you’re happy to see go and one you’re excited to see on the rise?

Katie Monkhouse: Happy to see any and all trends go away to be honest! I think we all get caught up in trends and some are better than others (I still love arches, reeded and fluted textures, scallop details but even these are all starting to feel a little over done). I love the movement towards more timeless interiors, classic elements, mixing traditional and modern, fewer things but better quality, and sustainability.

Rip & Tan: What does living well mean to you?

Katie Monkhouse: Living well means being full of gratitude for everything always—the wins, the lessons, the opportunity to wake up every day and try again. Something I am working on all the time.