← Talk Shop with Ariel Okin: A Fenimore Lane Production
Talk Shop with Ariel Okin: A Fenimore Lane Production
A Decade of Design with Kate Rheinstein Brodsky
00:45:15
Loading summary
Transcript292 lines
- [00:00]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think it's the opportunity to work with artists and artisans. I love that. I love getting to be a part of their support system and help them figure things out or figure out the logistics. I love being able to support their work. I love being able to help them showcase it. I love being able to collaborate or come up with an idea.
- [00:21]
Arielle Oken
Welcome to Talkshop. I'm Arielle Oken, a New York based interior designer, writer and editor looking to bring a little bit of magic into our homes every day. After years as a writer and editor in the interiors world, I founded my own editorial site, Fenimore Lane, in 2020 and the TalkShop interview series was born. Each week I delve into the personal experiences of the top interior designers and tastemakers around the globe. Welcome back to season four of Talk Shop with Me, Arielle Okun. I'm excited to kick this new season off with a creative who grew up immersed in the world of interiors. Kate Reinstein Brodsky is a second generation member of the interiors world as the daughter of the iconic Suzanne Reinstein. After graduating from nyu, Kate built her skills at Jeffrey Bill Huber Ralph Lauren Home and Elle Decor magazine before her passion for retail propelled her to open KRB NYC on the Upper east side of Manhattan in 2015. KRB is one of our most favorite home stores at AOI and it's celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. KRB brings a fresh perspective to timeless designs, combining the traditions of classical decor with Kate's uniquely charismatic and colorful point of view. The store offers a curated selection of antiques, vintage furniture, art, and exclusive home accessories. KRB is a place where someone can walk in and find something to fall in love with, whether it's a piece of 19th century pink splash luster porcelain, a lacquer side table, or a vintage chair reupholstered in a zippy way. And it's always a place I love to visit. So please join me as we welcome Kate to the podcast. Kate, thank you so much for coming on the show. I'm so excited to kick off our season with you. You are like one of my favorite people in the industry.
- [02:04]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, thank you. I'm thrilled to be here.
- [02:07]
Arielle Oken
Yes. Well, for those who may not know and new listeners also, we kick off every episode by asking everyone who comes on, can you describe your style in three words or less?
- [02:19]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Colorful, personal and engaging?
- [02:23]
Arielle Oken
I love that anybody who walks into KRB I think would agree. And for those listening, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and where you are at this point in your career right now?
- [02:33]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well I have a store on the Upper east side called KRB on the corner of 73rd and Lexington, which is magical place.
- [02:43]
Arielle Oken
And everyone should go.
- [02:45]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Thank you. Thank you. And I've been open for a little over 10 years, and I live on the Upper east side with my husband, Alexander, and my three daughters and two naughty dogs.
- [03:00]
Arielle Oken
Your dogs are so cute. I love when you post pictures of them just, like, sleeping in front of the fire. They're, like, living the life.
- [03:08]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
They are living the life. Listen, dogs are like children. When they're asleep, you could have dozens of them.
- [03:13]
Arielle Oken
Yep, 100%.
- [03:15]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But they definitely add a layer of richness to our lives.
- [03:19]
Arielle Oken
Yes, exactly. That's such a perfect way of putting it. So let's walk through your career so far because you grew up in a complete design family. Your mother is Suzanne Reinstein, and I just love to chat a little bit about growing up in a childhood that was just so deeply enriched by, you know, beauty and design. And what drew you to sort of follow in your mother's footsteps?
- [03:46]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, I grew up in Los Angeles in Hancock park, in a Georgian revival house that my parents bought when I was, like, six months old from a design stand. It was great. I had. My parents were what was then considered older. My mother was 35 when she had me, and my father was in his 50s. And I was their only child, and we lived in this beautiful house. My parents entertained an enormous amount. And the great thing about being an only child is they really took me everywhere.
- [04:19]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, I'm an only child, too. I have half siblings that are much older than me, but me, too.
- [04:24]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I have two half siblings who are older than I am. But it was kind of magical, you know, being an only child. Like, I was, like, 8 or 9 the first time I went to Dawnridge.
- [04:34]
Arielle Oken
Wow.
- [04:34]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And then I turned to my mother. I was like, why does our house not look like this? I was immediately. Immediately I was like, totally.
- [04:41]
Arielle Oken
That explains your love of green.
- [04:43]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. I mean, you mean it? Our house could be this maximalist, and it's.
- [04:49]
Arielle Oken
Yes, it's amazing.
- [04:52]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But my life was the design world by the time I was eight or nine. My mother opened her store, Hollyhock, in 1988, and I spent, you know, my afternoons after school there and either doing my homework or working and, like, dusting things and all that kind of stuff. And we spent a lot of time on the weekends. My father was a producer, television producer and director, and traveled a lot producing NASCAR races, which sounds random, but it meant that I was with my mother and I were Together alone a lot. And we spent a lot of time down in San Juan Capistrano with the antiquarian GEP Durnberger. It was always designed.
- [05:32]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. You absorbed it.
- [05:34]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Absorbed it. And I didn't totally know that that's wasn't what everyone's life was like.
- [05:39]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. It's so beautiful because it's so intertwined with your relationship with her. And as someone who also is an only child and super close with their mother, it's just. There's something really special about that, for sure.
- [05:53]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, I did not think that I would go into design when I was growing up. I. My fantasy was always to own a bookstore. Totally dreamy. And I get that. My oldest daughter, who's 17, works in a bookstore in the summers, and I feel like she's. It's like wish fulfillment for me. I'm like, you have the most amazing job.
- [06:11]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, it's the best summer job ever.
- [06:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But that clearly didn't work out. But I feel like by the time I was leaving high school, I was aware that the economics of owning a bookstore were probably not from there. I was interested in fashion, or I thought I was interested in fashion. And I interned in college for Diane von Furstenberg in the PR department and quickly realized that I didn't really love fashion as much as I really loved style and people's personalities.
- [06:44]
Arielle Oken
Interesting.
- [06:45]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You know, she was like a. She is, you know, a personality and like a lifestyle and, you know, I was more into that and, like, the ideas of people like Carrie Donovan or Deanna Vreeland.
- [06:58]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [06:59]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Versus actually being interested in fashion.
- [07:01]
Arielle Oken
And there is so much crossover. It's interesting we've had so many people come on the show who sort of, like, started in fashion, and then they. They quickly sort of ended up pivoting to interiors. And I think there's a lot of crossover. And the interesting thing about what you're saying about more tied to the personality and the story behind it, that makes sense for interiors because it is so personality driven and so story driven.
- [07:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally after college when I was. I've always been what I call an aggressive homebody. I mean, even in college and in high school, I was forever. My mother would always let me have people over. You know, it was fine. If I was willing to cook, I could have 10 people for dinner. In high school.
- [07:40]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, your house was the place, which.
- [07:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Was great and fantastic. And I went off to college, and I kind of thought, like, that too, which was both great and terrible because I couldn't make dinner for six. But feeding Myself, I was not as adept at.
- [07:53]
Arielle Oken
I feel like your house is like that now. Now.
- [07:55]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yes, it is. I mean, there's always a lot of people here. There's always a lot of action with the kids. Y always easier to. I'm always happy to have people over. I'm always, like, luring people over. I'm like, just come have. Have coffee over here or like, have a drink over here.
- [08:10]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, I like that too. I think aggressive homebody. I think you need to, like, trademark that. I think. I think we need shorts because I think everyone in the industry is an aggressive homebody.
- [08:22]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
No, you're right. You know, you left the house.
- [08:24]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. There's just something special about. I think people that are drawn to the interiors world in general are just. There's. From a young age, there's something that sparks in them about being really in tune to their environments and wanting to be home and cozy and totally.
- [08:41]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And loving that environment. I mean, even though I say that I never wanted to, growing up, I didn't think I would go into design or I wasn't interested in it. I mean, rearranging my room was my favorite pastime.
- [08:52]
Arielle Oken
Right.
- [08:53]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And trying to convince my friends to let me rearrange their rooms. When I went over at their house.
- [08:57]
Arielle Oken
Much to their mother's annoyance, the signs were always there.
- [09:01]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I feel like signs were always there. I mean, I was. My dollhouse was really elaborately decorated, but I didn't actually play with the dolls. Like, I was much more interested in, like, constructing the bed.
- [09:13]
Arielle Oken
And it's just in you. It's innate. It's incredible. So when did you pivot from fashion to interiors? And how did you sort of make that stretch?
- [09:22]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
So after college, I was really looking around and going, okay, I really love the decorative arts and I love home. Maybe I do. Maybe I do want to be an interior designer. So the first thing I did was I signed up for two evening classes at New York School of Interior Design and promptly started interviewing for low level interior design jobs. And I got hired at Jeffrey Billhuber to be his personal assistant.
- [09:49]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God.
- [09:50]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And I was like, great. It's a foot in the door. And that was an amazing experience. It was really interesting to see an interior design office kind of from the inside. You know, I always watch my mother do design, but you're kind of too close to it when it's your mother.
- [10:04]
Arielle Oken
Well, because it's. I mean, even like when my girls come to the office, like, they're just. They don't realize that this is where I Work. They're just. They think it's like their second home.
- [10:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. And you have all those fun things, like fabric samples.
- [10:16]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, exactly. And they love to make a mess.
- [10:20]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
So much fun. Yeah. So I worked for Jeffrey, and it was a total education, and there were lots of interesting people there. Jesse Carrier was there when I was there.
- [10:30]
Arielle Oken
Oh, wow.
- [10:31]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And I loved seeing his office work. I just loved seeing the process. I always loved the process of things. And I loved the way he worked with designers, and I loved getting to see all that. And I loved his this big closet full of samples, and I would rearrange it in my downtime. But it also became. I felt like it really helped me see that I probably wasn't suited to be an interior designer, because, as you know, first of all, interior design is hard. Not that I didn't think it was, but there's so much creativity to it. But that is such a small portion. And there's so much administrative. You know, getting that one upholstered is. Has about 65 moving parts.
- [11:12]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. I always think. And this is why I think interning is so important. Figuring out what you don't like is just as important as figuring out what you do like. And so it gives you the opportunity to try different aspects of the industry, because, like, you. I mean, you've carved out one of the most incredible, important stores in the country. Truly, it's like my favorite place. I love coming in there, and that's such a crucial part of the design world. And people don't automatically think of the different facets because everybody always just automatically thinks about design.
- [11:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It's true. But it was great because it helped me see that. Okay, I love this. I love interior design. What other aspects are there that I exactly lucked into the position? Working at Ralph Lauren Home for Deborah Canabis. Someone in their PR department took disability for several months, and I went in and I filled that space hot, which was perfect because I always knew it was going to be short term. And getting to see Ralph Lauren from the inside was, again, a total education.
- [12:10]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God. And such a dream job.
- [12:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah. And then I became an editorial assistant at El Decor, which was basically fact checking and writing captions and was amazing. And I worked for Margaret Russell, and I got to work with Michael Boudreau, who I, you know, adore.
- [12:26]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God. I love listening to him on the Terrace podcast.
- [12:29]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I know.
- [12:29]
Arielle Oken
He's so much fun.
- [12:31]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
He's funny and he's smart, and he definitely schooled me in a lot of things, which is what I needed. But so I did that for a few years and then I got married really young and started having kids.
- [12:43]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God. How old were you when you got married?
- [12:45]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I was 26. When I got married.
- [12:47]
Arielle Oken
I was 25.
- [12:48]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, there you go.
- [12:49]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, I had my girls young too. Like my. All of my friends are having kids now and I have a six year old.
- [12:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah, listen, I was, you know, 28 when I had my oldest daughter at.
- [13:00]
Arielle Oken
Me too.
- [13:01]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
None of my friends.
- [13:02]
Arielle Oken
Yes. No, it's hard. It's hard when you're the only one because you. But then it's kind of beautiful because then you make a whole new set of mom friends.
- [13:10]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I totally agree with that and I'm thrilled. Now. I think that it definitely contributed to my decision to go back to work when I did because I was not great at being a stay at home mom. I like really thought I was going to love it and I did not like the amount of unpaid labor the schools want you to do.
- [13:28]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, it's so true. So is that sort of what drew you to open up krb?
- [13:33]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, yes. So I. Well, I put it this way. I loved interiors, decorative arts. I've always loved it. And working on my own apartment, I kept. I feel like I have this optimism about interiors and objects and I'm always like, oh, you could use that. Like this. You know, I'm always saying, I'm like, well, if you turn it around, I.
- [13:54]
Arielle Oken
Mean, you are gifted with such an eye and you, you know, you walk into your store and you feel like you're transported into another world. You just. And that is such a skill. And to be able to curate is, you know, the most crucial thing for having a store. And I just feel like every time I'm in, I discover something absolutely stunning and new and something that I haven't seen anywhere else too, which is really hard to do.
- [14:20]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah, I really love retail. And it was 2013, my father died and it kind of was a little bit the push where I was like, I'm like, my life is crazy. I have these two young children. But if not now, when?
- [14:34]
Arielle Oken
Right.
- [14:35]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
There's never going to be a good time. And So I opened KRB on 79th street in 500 square feet.
- [14:43]
Arielle Oken
Wow, that's amazing. Because your store now is so big.
- [14:47]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I know. Well, but I never would have had. I would have not, not been able to be where I am now if I hadn't started so small. But I did outgrow it within like two years.
- [14:55]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [14:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Turns out I need a printer. That's not like collapsible. That's amazing on the room to print out. That's how I kind of got out there and started it. And I really thought in the beginning that I was gonna sell pretty much only antiques and vintage furniture and quickly realized that I needed to show. You know, the thing my mother always told me was that in a shop, in sort of like a retail situation in a city where you're really the end user. And she's like, you need to show people how to use things.
- [15:32]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [15:32]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Make them understand the scale of it. You need to get them to see how it would look with lamps or a mirror. And I quickly realized that I needed more pieces to make that happen. And I short, in short order, started carrying lacquer trays from the lacquer company and Fitz Miller accessories and lamps.
- [15:52]
Arielle Oken
Yep. Which we love, love, love and use all the time in our projects. And I love also, you have those incredible lampshades that you make too, which.
- [16:00]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Is so much fun. And that was something that. That's, you know, all these things are like evolutions over the years. You know, it started as I'm a. An intensely mediocre photographer.
- [16:13]
Arielle Oken
I'm not good at it. Yeah.
- [16:14]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And I kept trying to make these posts for Instagram and our website better. And I was like, okay, well, these white card shades that come with the Spitzmoon lamps keep blowing out in my photographs. I'm like, I'm lampshades. And that's ridiculous as that sounds. That was sort of the push to start. And there was a great market for them. People are excited to have them.
- [16:35]
Arielle Oken
They're so saturated and colorful and fun and different. And I feel like that's sort of the ethos of KRB in general.
- [16:41]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
100%. I think it's like that optimistic. I think there's a bit of optimism to the interiors. I will say we have plenty of more subtle colors and paired back things, you know?
- [16:53]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. You do. It runs the gamut in there, for sure.
- [16:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It's not always what we push to the forefront. I do think that it's easier to understand how to buy an ivory linen shade than it is to buy a hot pink one.
- [17:07]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. I love hearing that. The advice from your mother. And also for those listening who don't know, Kate's mother's store, Hollyhock, was also like an absolutely beloved, very important store in American interiors. And so the through line with that is just really beautiful. So you're celebrating your 10th anniversary with krb, which is just absolutely wild. And you moved into that larger location recently, which we just adore.
- [17:35]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Me too. I love it.
- [17:37]
Arielle Oken
It's so fabulous. And it's so nice that you can do book signings there. It's just. It's amazing.
- [17:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think one of the nicest things about it is that it's purpose built, you know, and I, again, you have to go through the earlier iterations of things to get to kind of the right place sometimes. And this space was a raw space, but it had 50ft of frontage on Lexington, and I knew that I needed. I had this opportunity to purpose build it, to build it out in a way that really served the store and served what we were doing. And I was lucky enough that I have this great relationship with Dick Bories and James Sheeran. And I called them and I was like, guys, I know you don't do retail. Can you please help me out, though?
- [18:21]
Arielle Oken
That's amazing.
- [18:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And they did. And my directive to them was to give it enough architecture and sense of space that it looked good even when it was chaos. Like, even when, you know, we've got four crates from France that we're unpacking or we're getting a giant shipment, that there was enough sense of place that people didn't walk in and go, you guys are a mess.
- [18:44]
Arielle Oken
Well, even when you have. I've been there for book signings when you, you know, 70, 80 people packed in there, and it's still. You feel like you're in someone's home. You don't feel like you're in a store at all.
- [18:55]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Thank you.
- [18:56]
Arielle Oken
Do you have any good stories or favorite moments that you want to share? About 10 years of shopkeeping.
- [19:03]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think it's just been a series. I mean, we've been really lucky. I've been really lucky. It's a series of great moments. You know, I think that we have great clients and it's really, really fun to see where pieces end up, you know, that designers buy. Yeah, I loved seeing those. Those tortoiseshell two tier tables in that project of yours recently. They look so amazing.
- [19:24]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God. Than. Well, the backstory behind that project. I think you know this, but that client, huge KRB fan, she walked into KRB and she was like, can you tell me the name of an up and coming designer? I want to work with someone new on my Hamptons project. Did you know this?
- [19:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I knew that story, but I didn't realize that was the one.
- [19:45]
Arielle Oken
Yes. And it's the only first and only project that we've ever gotten into A.D. i love it.
- [19:52]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I'M sure it was Annie Kaplowitz, who's the director and makes the world turn at krb.
- [19:57]
Arielle Oken
It was. Yes. And she's beyond fabulous. And, like, we're forever indebted to her because she hooked us up with the most incredible client who had the most discerning taste and was so much fun. That project is so huge for us, so thank you.
- [20:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I would say stories like that then, you know, are. What's great about having been in business for 10 years is the connections that you can make and. And seeing where pieces go. I think being a part of the design community is something that's so satisfying to me. I think in general, interior design is pretty friendly and pretty collaborative.
- [20:31]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, it is. That's one of the things I love about it. Everybody celebrates each other and goes to each other's launches and parties, and it's just. It's a really nice thing that I think is unique and specific to this world.
- [20:46]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I agree. I think Alex, my husband, comes with me to a lot of things, and everyone's like, oh, your husband's so sweet to come. He's like. He's like, oh, everyone's so nice in design.
- [20:54]
Arielle Oken
It's so true, though.
- [20:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Everyone's very nice and lovely, and they have interesting things to say and they're welcome. He's like, why wouldn't I?
- [21:02]
Arielle Oken
It's a good group of people. Well, working in design, you know, being sort of a part of the design world without being a designer yourself. What do you think some of your favorite things are about being in the industry but not working with clients in that way?
- [21:19]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think that's the opportunity to work with artists and artisans. I think that. That just. I love that. I love getting to be a part of their support system and help them figure things out or figure out the logistics. I love being able to support their work. I love being able to help them showcase it. I love being able to collaborate or come up with an idea, you know, whether it's okay, what are we thinking for your next. You know, it's. Sometimes it's like Marian McAvoy, and it's like, all right. She's like, well, what are you thinking next? What do you want next? And I'm like, well, why don't we. Could we have another round of this? Or could you?
- [21:56]
Arielle Oken
It's so cool, though, because it's. Those pieces then end up getting put in someone's home. And those beautiful. The blue flowers by Christian that we put in one of our Southampton projects. Those are going to be on the COVID of our book.
- [22:10]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I love that. That is so fun to hear.
- [22:13]
Arielle Oken
But it's just so amazing how, like, you know, you're sort of ideating with these incredible artisans and creating just so much beauty together, and then those things end up in projects and homes, and people are making memories with that, and they're in the background, and it's just a very cool thing that you get to do.
- [22:33]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, thank you. I really. It's my favorite part about having a shop is that collaboration and getting to support them and put more work out there. And I think that, you know, it's all about the layers that go into a house and the layers that make the richness of the way we live.
- [22:51]
Arielle Oken
I mean, to that end, like, is there a design rule you always follow, or do you think there's one that's particularly, like, made to be broken?
- [22:58]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think sort of the design concept, I guess, that I would say I always try and follow is get the architecture right first. If you can get the envelope to be proportionally correct or to kind of be right, then it makes everything else easier. And I think I break so many rules, but I don't even know that I'm breaking them.
- [23:17]
Arielle Oken
But that's why it's so good. I agree. Also, the. The architecture piece is so crucial, because if. If the bones are right, you can really kind of run wild. And I think that's important. Looking back through your career. I mean, I know your mother was a tremendous influence on you. Do you. Have you had any other mentors?
- [23:37]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Definitely my biggest mentor and influence. You know, it's funny, because my mother was not a big explainer. She was a big shower.
- [23:45]
Arielle Oken
Interesting.
- [23:46]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yes. And then I would say the other person who was, like, such a profound influence on me was the late Joe Nye, who ran my mother's store, who ran Hollyhock and her design studio from, like, the mid-90s to the mid-2000s before going out on his own. And I loved Jo so much. We definitely did not get along initially. He was kind of like. He's like, who are you? I was like, who are you?
- [24:15]
Arielle Oken
It's like a Meet cute. That's amazing.
- [24:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It was great, though. I mean, and I worked. By the time I was in high school, I was working at the store on weekends and after school and on breaks, you know, and he'd have me there, like, Windexing William Yard, like, all day on a Saturday. Like, you missed one.
- [24:33]
Arielle Oken
Great training.
- [24:34]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, no, it was. There's nothing better. But he was a great explainer, and he'd Be like, no, we don't do this this way because of this. He's like, no, no, double health know this.
- [24:44]
Arielle Oken
No that fascinating because the design, I feel like designers, typically creatives are more visual and so they're not really explainers. And. And then the operation side is the explainer. And you kind of got the best of both, which is really good.
- [25:01]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And Joe was definitely, definitely in education.
- [25:05]
Arielle Oken
That's amazing. Now we're going to get into a little bit about you and I'm so excited to talk about your homes because I just absolutely adore everything about them. And your apartment was just recently featured in ad.
- [25:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
So exciting.
- [25:19]
Arielle Oken
And I can't stop thinking about it.
- [25:21]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Thank you. I. I mean, I was thrilled to have it in ad. I was. It was exciting.
- [25:26]
Arielle Oken
It's so beyond. I mean, that stairwell, the green, that library, your girls rooms, like everything is just beyond chic and fabulous and it's just, it has personality and it's so idiosyncratic to you. And I think the best spaces do that because they're telling a story. And I think it goes back to what we said at the top about, you know, interiors are personality driven. And I think, you know, looking at, at that home, in your Hamptons home, you really see that for sure.
- [25:55]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You know, the apartment was. Had last been renovated probably in the 80s and the people had big art and as was the style of the time, they took all the 1930s detail out and covered up windows in the living room. They covered up a number of windows and things like that. And we bought the apartment in January of 2020. I was like, we got to get in here. It's Covid.
- [26:18]
Arielle Oken
I'm like, that's like peak Covid time.
- [26:21]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, it was peak Covid. And I was like, what can we. How can we do the things to this apartment so that it feels like we've done these things on purpose? But also I need to be in. In a year.
- [26:34]
Arielle Oken
I mean, we had a few projects that started January of 2020 and it was not pretty at the time.
- [26:39]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It was a little crazy. So. But I, I think it helped us prioritize and edit and.
- [26:45]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. And move things along. Yeah, totally.
- [26:47]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But we were in January of 2021, which was kind of crazy. But I really, I left the apartment and it feels good and it's got. It was nice during peak Covid because it's got a lot of space.
- [27:01]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. And it's cozy. What do you think your home says about you?
- [27:05]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, honestly, I think it says that I'm a sentimental Fool. Because I'm always. I'm always incorporating things that are important to me emotionally. Like, I really. I. I have, like, a deep sense of nostalgia.
- [27:20]
Arielle Oken
We all do. I. Collectors, people who collect. I think it's just things are tied. Have an emotional tie to them totally.
- [27:28]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You know, And I incorporated a number of things. After my mother died and I sold her apartment, I incorporated a number of my favorite things into my apartment.
- [27:35]
Arielle Oken
That's really special.
- [27:37]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Exactly. There's. I would say I tend to not get rid of things. You know, the chandelier in our dining room I've had for 20 years, has been in our last two apartments. You know, the bench in the entry hall has been in our last. This is the third apartment it's been in, and it's been in the same fabric.
- [27:56]
Arielle Oken
Wow, that's amazing. Which is.
- [27:59]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I know you can tell it's a perch and not like, something that the children eat on, because those things don't work again. I think also that my apartment says that it's deeply personal because I'm also willing to do things that I think most people are not. I mean, we have a barn in the middle of our living room, which is totally impractical, but really fun.
- [28:19]
Arielle Oken
I know, but it's so cool. It's so cool.
- [28:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I think it speaks to my flair for the dramatic. I was like, I really think I need to build the entire living room around this. And I remember saying that to my mother, and she was like, okay, like, justify it visually. Like, if you can make it work, get it, girl.
- [28:37]
Arielle Oken
Like, so good.
- [28:39]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But it's really fun. It's very. It's great for parties. We have a lot of, like, buffet suppers, and so it's a great.
- [28:46]
Arielle Oken
And your mom was famous for that, too.
- [28:49]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. I mean, I do not have a new trick in the book. I mean, everything good I cribbed from her 100%.
- [28:55]
Arielle Oken
I mean, what an amazing person to learn from, though.
- [28:58]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. I think. You know, my. Both my parents were loved to entertain, and I think that. I mean, I entertain like, a third as much as they did. And I still feel like I entertain a lot. And we have people over a lot, and I love it. It makes me happy. I love having people over. I love.
- [29:16]
Arielle Oken
So special. My parents entertained a lot, too, especially my. For my dad's work, they entertained a lot, and it was always at our house. And I remember the smell of my mom's perfume and the click of her heels and what. You know, all the lights were dimmed and the music was on, and that Feeling stays with you. And I try to do it at home now with my girls. Besides krb, what are some of your favorite places to shop for? Home.
- [29:43]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, I love to shop. It's always, you know, I love Cove Landing. I love Nikki Kehoe, Gerald Bland. I mean, Kenny Ball, Sage Street Antiques. Liz o'. Brien. I love an antique show. I love the East Hampton Antique Show. I love going to the winter antique show, although I don't get to buy as many things there.
- [30:03]
Arielle Oken
That's more like dream shopping.
- [30:06]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But I love all those. I mean, it's been years since I've been to the Nashville Antique show, but that was also really fun. I love looking and seeing what people have, so I'm always happy to go through and take pictures of things that inspire me and that are exciting.
- [30:21]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, I feel like you just, like, live for the hunt. You love to shop. And I think to be a shopkeeper, you kind of have to be that type of person, too.
- [30:29]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You have to be into it. You have. And you have to love the objects. I mean, the things I find for the shop are all things that I'm attracted to, and I love. Not all of them fit into my home, which is literally why I have a shop, because I'm like, oh, that is so great. I love that I have.
- [30:44]
Arielle Oken
No, it's the best because then you have an excuse to just buy more things.
- [30:49]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But then, as my mother always would say, she's like, well, now you have to sell it somewhat. So how are you explaining to them how they would use it, why they would be into it? Why is interesting what appeals to.
- [30:59]
Arielle Oken
To you, and the styling is sort of how you can do that. I mean, and that's why I think the store feels so unique when you walk in. It's like you see things paired together that you wouldn't think to put together, and it's so striking.
- [31:12]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
That's also the fun of the shop. I mean, it doesn't have to be practical. I'm like, I really love these lamps on top of this, you know, console. I'm like, this color combination is striking. You know, it doesn't have to flow.
- [31:25]
Arielle Oken
And you can change it all the time, which is fun, too. It's like you get to play with, like, a little palette.
- [31:29]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah, it is.
- [31:30]
Arielle Oken
Where do you find your inspiration?
- [31:33]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I find. I find inspiration all over. I mean, I don't. With my children, the age they are, I do not get to travel a lot.
- [31:40]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [31:41]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And that's. That's okay. That is, like, the season of my life. I Am in. But I love books. I love design books. I love old ones. I love new ones. I mean, my entire library is, you know, design coffee table books.
- [31:53]
Arielle Oken
Same. My husband's like, you have to stop. They're, like, taking over our house at one point.
- [31:59]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
This happens every time we move, but I start using them as side tables. And Alex is like, I feel like I need to draw the line here. He's like, are we gonna get a real table? Like, he's like, not a criticism, just a. Just a question.
- [32:11]
Arielle Oken
Just a question.
- [32:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Another place that I find I get a lot of inspiration is the garden.
- [32:17]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [32:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I have in the last six to eight years. I'm a deeply mediocre gardener, but it brings me tremendous joy.
- [32:27]
Arielle Oken
Me too. I'm very. Not good at it, but I love it.
- [32:30]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I just want to kill plants on my own. But I find that the colors, the shapes are so inspiring. And to be a total choose ball, like, it's pretty amazing watching a fern unfurl. It is the most kind of primal, intense. Like, Fibonacci sequence. Historic plant satisfaction.
- [32:52]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, it's wild. My daughter and I are growing sunflowers from seed right now. She is mesmerized. I mean, we check them every day. We water them, we take care of them, and it's just so crazy. I mean, I was saying this to my daughter. I was like, just look at how much life came out of this little seed. It's just so cool.
- [33:15]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. It's deeply satisfying.
- [33:18]
Arielle Oken
Yeah, it is. I wish I was a better. I. I don't have a green thumb. But to your point about the colors and the shapes, I mean, I'm like, I must be getting targeted somehow, but I'm getting, like, seedling catalogs in the mail, and I will spend two hours looking at the white flower farm catalog.
- [33:35]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Like, I. Oh, that's just dangerous. I mean, you're like, I definitely need all of these.
- [33:40]
Arielle Oken
Same. It's so insane. But I love it.
- [33:44]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, it's the best. I mean, it is the best. It's the most fun. I mean, I want to be clear. Like, I kill as many things as thrive.
- [33:50]
Arielle Oken
Oh, same. I'm. I actually just picked up Martha's new gardening book.
- [33:54]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, I bet that's great.
- [33:56]
Arielle Oken
It's really good. It's like her definitive guide to gardening, basically. And it just came out, and I feel like I'm learning a lot from it that I didn't know and probably many reasons why I've killed things in the past.
- [34:06]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, I have this. This. I'm very spoiled. I have this great cheat. I have Christopher Spitzmiller, who I always say is my. My garden.
- [34:14]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God. Well, that's not fair. That's like the best and the best.
- [34:17]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I know. And I'm like, chris, what did I do? He's like, well, you definitely over watered it. He's like. He's like, it's way too early to set that out now.
- [34:24]
Arielle Oken
It's amazing.
- [34:26]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
He's like, cut it back harder. And I'm like, okay. He's like, it's not thriving there. Move it. And it's great because it's. He's also very. He's not precious about it. He's like, it's either going to live or it's going to die. And I'm like, all right.
- [34:37]
Arielle Oken
It's that farm life. I'm so inspired by the way that they've sort of cultivated this beautiful farm life. And it's so cool.
- [34:46]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It is so cool. And I. It's constantly. I always joke that Chris has more hours in the day than the rest of us.
- [34:53]
Arielle Oken
Yes, he honestly must, because I don't know how he does everything that he does. He, like, is maintaining a pigeonire. He's got a whole new collection of lighting coming out. I mean, it's amazing.
- [35:03]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, I also think it helps that he's married to Anthony, who is, you know, a trained landscape architect.
- [35:09]
Arielle Oken
Yes.
- [35:09]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And fully committed to the life too. You know, is on the farm seven days a week.
- [35:15]
Arielle Oken
I want to, like, move into that house. Honestly, between the animals and the kittens and the flowers, I mean, it's just like a dream.
- [35:24]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And the chocolate chip cookies. I know. It's pretty fab.
- [35:26]
Arielle Oken
Well, now we're at our take 10, which is our rapid fire questions. They have nothing to do with interiors, but I just like asking them because they're fun.
- [35:34]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Love it.
- [35:34]
Arielle Oken
So what is your favorite food?
- [35:36]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
If we are going out to a restaurant? I. My favorite is always to go to Korean.
- [35:41]
Arielle Oken
Ooh.
- [35:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And I love all types of Korean food and, like, Korean fusion. And that is always the way. My husband will, like, lure me out of the Upper east side. He says, I've made a reservation at the new, like, cool Korean restaurant. And I'm.
- [35:55]
Arielle Oken
That's amazing.
- [35:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But if I was going to. I'm like, at home, like, I mean, who doesn't love cheese and, like, crusty bread?
- [36:02]
Arielle Oken
I know. It's like my 4 o' clock every day I have some type of cheese with crackers. And it's every day, no matter where I am, I will stop into A Starbucks if I have to. And get a cheese. Favorite drink?
- [36:15]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Dirty vodka martini. Really cold.
- [36:18]
Arielle Oken
Yes, I love a dirty martini. Favorite film?
- [36:22]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
This has been my favorite film since I was probably 8 or 9, which is probably problematic, but Gigi.
- [36:28]
Arielle Oken
Oh, my God, that's so good.
- [36:30]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Like, Rouge, Chevalier, which is, like, wildly inappropriate, but I always loved it.
- [36:34]
Arielle Oken
That's so good. Favorite hotel?
- [36:37]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
The Villa Feltrinelli in Lake Garda.
- [36:40]
Arielle Oken
I've always wanted to go there. It looks incredible.
- [36:44]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I would say. I've been there, I think twice, maybe three times. And then we're gonna go back this summer. This is not a. This is someplace Alex and I go without our children.
- [36:53]
Arielle Oken
That makes sense. My. One of my best friends went on her honeymoon, and she said it was, like, absolutely beyond incredible.
- [36:59]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It's pretty fabulous and beautiful, and the service is wonderful and.
- [37:04]
Arielle Oken
Oh, you're making me want to travel. Favorite city?
- [37:08]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
New York. I mean, I love New York. I've been here. I mean, 25 years maybe long, maybe. I think 27 years. I love it.
- [37:18]
Arielle Oken
Wow. I also feel like coming from la, you, like, appreciate it even more. You know what I mean?
- [37:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I love la, too. I want to be clear, like, LA is what is my. My number two. But I love New York. It is. I love the architecture. I love being here. I love the energy, I love the people. I love never getting in my car.
- [37:37]
Arielle Oken
Favorite bedding.
- [37:38]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I like a mix. I love a porto sheet. I love the crispy. I need, like, that almost starchy percale. And then I like leontine linens. I like to use fruit for big Euro shams with my monogram on it. I love. I mean, I had a Southern mother. I love a monogram. And then, you know, a bit like a blanket cover with a monogram, too.
- [38:00]
Arielle Oken
I love it. I. You do. Your betting programs are just divine. And you have leontine come to the store, too, Do.
- [38:07]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And it's so much fun. They come two, sometimes three times a year. And it's just. First of all, they never leave without me ordering something when I'm like, I.
- [38:16]
Arielle Oken
Know it's dangerous because it's just so beautiful.
- [38:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, I know. Addicting.
- [38:21]
Arielle Oken
Tea or coffee? And how do you take it?
- [38:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Drip coffee with milk. Two cups. And I can't drink it after, like.
- [38:28]
Arielle Oken
10:00Am oh, my God. I. I can't either. I have. I can only have one caffeine, and it has to be, like, early in the morning. Otherwise, I'm like a rocket fuel all day.
- [38:38]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah, totally.
- [38:39]
Arielle Oken
100% favorite playlist or music to listen to.
- [38:43]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, I Have to be honest with you. Two of my children are teenagers. It's been so long since I've been in control of, like, any. Any playlist.
- [38:51]
Arielle Oken
Isn't it amazing how kid. Once you have children, like, your control over the radio just disappears?
- [38:57]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, I was like, this is not the hill I want to die on. And like, yeah, if we're in the car, I'm just like, keep it upbeat. I have to stay away. I listen to a lot of classical music when I'm by myself. I listen to a lot of. I often have my earbuds in when I'm trying. When I'm trying to do something else.
- [39:14]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [39:15]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I mean, nothing like piano, Mozart, piano concertos to, like, moving.
- [39:19]
Arielle Oken
Exactly. Favorite weekend activity if I'm in the city.
- [39:23]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Taking the dogs to the Central park and letting them off leash early in the morning and then coming back, changing out of my outside clothes, like, putting my nightcap back on, taking a second cup of coffee and getting back into bed with, like, every magazine or catalog or, like, new design book and, like, bedrotting.
- [39:44]
Arielle Oken
Yeah. That is a dream.
- [39:46]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yes.
- [39:46]
Arielle Oken
That's how I want to spend every day. Honestly.
- [39:49]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I usually can like, get a.
- [39:51]
Arielle Oken
Maybe an hour as your kids get older, too. I feel like you get a little bit of the morning back because they sleep later.
- [39:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yep. For sure.
- [39:58]
Arielle Oken
Favorite. This one is the hardest one. I always. I always say favorite design book.
- [40:02]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Literally, I have an entire library of just design books. But I would say I, you know, I always go back to that. That horse interiors book from the early 90s.
- [40:11]
Arielle Oken
That's a really good one. Eliza Crater told me about that one. And I have. It's really good.
- [40:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
It really runs the gamut from, like, Gloria Vanderbilt to Oscar and Francois de la Renta to Truman Capote and James Holzer. And it's just. And his photographs were so great.
- [40:32]
Arielle Oken
So great. And also, I mean, talk about personality.
- [40:35]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Yeah, exactly.
- [40:36]
Arielle Oken
I love ending on that note because it takes us right back to what we said at the top. I love when we come full circle.
- [40:42]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
There we go.
- [40:43]
Arielle Oken
Well, a final few words. This was so much fun. First of all, I thank you for having me. Oh, my God, of course. This was like. I was so excited you were coming on. What are you working on right now? Is there anything new that you can tell us about?
- [40:56]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I feel like there's always, you know, something small or, like, iterations going on. I would say that we're working on some new shapes for the lacquer company, which is really fun. Yeah. Out and then sort of my Long term project, which I'm determined to get. Listen, I have three kids, so things go really slowly.
- [41:14]
Arielle Oken
I know, I don't know how you do as much as you do. You, you do so much.
- [41:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Everyone's mad at me. And sometimes projects that were supposed to take six months, take 18.
- [41:25]
Arielle Oken
And you know what, that's okay too.
- [41:27]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
But I'm trying to bring back to basically reissue a number of the upholstered shapes that my mother used to sell at Hollyhock because she had kind of created this great group of really comfortable upholstered pieces often inspired by vintage or antique pieces that she had and kind of tweaked to better suit her clients by either like changing the pitch slightly or lowering the arm or just tweaking them in a little, little way. It was supposed to be 2024, it's 2025 now.
- [41:57]
Arielle Oken
I mean, but you know what, that's life with kids and running a business and being a mom and totally. We were like we were saying before we started record recording, I took a months long break from recording this podcast because it was just crazy and it was busy.
- [42:10]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Life is full.
- [42:11]
Arielle Oken
Life is full. And it's a good thing.
- [42:13]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Totally. And that also I would say is one of the great gifts of being, I mean it's one of the upsides of being a small business and yeah. Being self employed is that it's like, okay, life got in the way, we're gonna take it on my timeline.
- [42:26]
Arielle Oken
Yes, I. It's so true. It's a gift to be able to, especially as a mom, it's a gift to be able to run your own business. Our last question that we ask everyone, which I always love hearing, what is your advice for someone looking to define their own interior style?
- [42:41]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
I would say, I would say more. This is more for the non interior design person or non industry person. I would say take a lot of pictures, whether that's gathering pictures from books or the Internet, but also take pictures of things you see in your daily life that appeal to you.
- [42:58]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [42:59]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Try and look at everything and see what the through lines are. You know, do you secretly have a love of, you know, burnt orange?
- [43:07]
Arielle Oken
Yeah.
- [43:07]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You know, or like do you continually take pictures of things with a sinuous sort of art nouveau shape? Like what, what are the through lines? Or like are you just every. Every Greek key you see you love is classicism it for you. And I think that taking pictures and kind of trying to mentally organize it that clearly I'm a visual person, kind of help you pull together themes, things, you know, because there's always a couple of outliers.
- [43:33]
Arielle Oken
I think it's a great piece of advice also, because I think people, particularly people not in the industry, who are, you know, kind of listening as, like, a hobby, I think it's hard for them to tune into what it is that they actually like. And so when they come to a designer, they're like, I don't know what I like. I can tell you what I like in a picture, but I can't, like, articulate it. And so photos are really the best way to kind of identify that totally.
- [44:00]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, I also think there's a difference between something that you admire and something you want to live with.
- [44:05]
Arielle Oken
Yes, for sure.
- [44:07]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
And you have to make sure you want to live with it.
- [44:09]
Arielle Oken
I love ending on Good advice. Thank you. Well, Kate, this was so much fun. I want to come see you in the store soon.
- [44:18]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Come visit us.
- [44:19]
Arielle Oken
Yes, I would love that. And tell everyone. Listening. Where can listeners find more about you and about krb?
- [44:26]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
You can find more about us online at krbnyc.com or on Instagram @krbnyc. We post on. Our website is always up to date. And we post on Instagram a lot.
- [44:40]
Arielle Oken
Yes, they have the best Instagram. And I've loved your tour videos lately. They're so good.
- [44:45]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Oh, thank you. We're trying to step it up.
- [44:47]
Arielle Oken
I love it. The mini microphone is my favorite. Thank you, Kate. This was so much fun.
- [44:53]
Kate Reinstein Brodsky
Well, have a great day. Thank you for having me.
- [44:56]
Arielle Oken
That's a wrap for this week's episode of Talkshop. Thanks for listening. We'll be back next week with more thoughtful discussions and amazing guests. Follow us on Apple podcasts, Spotify and YouTube, so you never miss an episode. And of course, follow me at arielokun. See you next week.