Lee Ann and Allie Thorton // The Creative Mother-Daughter Duo Building an Interior Design Legacy

Summary

Podcast Summary: Talk Shop with Ariel Okin – Episode Featuring Leanne and Allie Thornton

Podcast Information:

• Title: Talk Shop with Ariel Okin: A Fenimore Lane Production
• Host: Ariel Okin
• Episode: Lee Ann and Allie Thornton – The Creative Mother-Daughter Duo Building an Interior Design Legacy
• Release Date: January 15, 2025

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Introduction

In this captivating episode of Talk Shop, Ariel Okin sits down with Leanne and Allie Thornton, the dynamic mother-daughter team behind Leanne Thornton Interiors. With decades of combined experience, their collaborative approach has garnered attention for creating warm, inviting spaces that blend classic and bohemian styles. Their work, featured in renowned publications like House Beautiful, Coastal Living, and Lux, showcases their talent for melding timeless designs with modern sensibilities.

Design Styles and Philosophies

Ariel initiates the conversation by exploring the distinct yet harmonious design styles of Leanne and Allie.

• Leanne Thornton: Describes her style in three words as classic, relaxed, and cozy ([02:19]). She emphasizes a love for needlepoint rugs, white slipcovers paired with ticking stripes, abundant lighting, beautiful window coverings, and an abundance of flowers and candles.

  "I love needlepoint rugs. I love slipcovers, especially white slipcovers... paired with ticking stripes and lots and lots of good lighting." ([02:30])

• Allie Thornton: Prefers to describe her style as warm due to her use of richer colors like reds and greens, alongside a bohemian flair. She balances this with tailored elements, maintaining a vibe that's both preppy and eclectic.

  "I decorate with a lot more, probably a lot richer of colors. My mom's very blue and white... I definitely say warm. I have a bohemian side to me." ([03:22] – [03:47])

Both designers agree on the importance of creating spaces that feel lived-in and authentic, drawing inspiration from English country houses' layered and personable aesthetics.

Career Journeys and Firm Evolution

Leanne Thornton shares the organic growth of her design career. Starting in Los Angeles, she initially worked part-time in a charming store on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica, which eventually led clients to seek her expertise for baby rooms and full-home designs. This gradual expansion culminated in founding Thornton Designs in 2003 after relocating to Connecticut.

"Those moments were always hitting me... capturing this lifestyle that I wanted my family to live in." ([07:56])

Allie Thornton recounts her path into the design world, influenced by her upbringing in a creative household. Initially interning and exploring roles in marketing and event planning, she realized her passion lay in interior design, leading her to join her mother's firm in 2020.

"I remember going to my mom and my stepdad and just being like, I don't want to do this anymore. Can we just start working together now?" ([12:06] – [14:01])

Their partnership is marked by mutual respect and complementary skills—Leanne handles client interactions, while Allie manages backend operations and project management.

"I feel like the way we work together and the way we manage things together is pretty seamless." ([15:57])

Design Evolution and Project Highlights

Leanne and Allie discuss how their collaboration has evolved their design approach, allowing them to take more creative risks and push boundaries while maintaining their core aesthetic.

"Taking more risk every single time and pushing the envelope... sharing the design responsibility with someone else who's, you know, like, yeah, let's do it." ([18:35] – [19:11])

A standout project highlighted is their Backcountry Colonial, featured in Lux magazine, which exemplifies their ability to blend traditional elements with more edgy, modern touches.

"It's a really incredible mix of a little more sexy, a little more edgy, but with traditional fabrics and some traditional elements." ([19:31] – [20:08])

They express pride in their work's cohesiveness and the trust established with clients, allowing for seamless execution of their vision.

Navigating Challenges and Learning Experiences

The Thornton duo openly discusses the challenges inherent in interior design, emphasizing the importance of teamwork and resilience. They share anecdotes about handling project mishaps, such as furniture not fitting through doorways, and how these experiences have honed their problem-solving skills.

"You just learn from all of them. Like, okay, next time let's do X." ([29:08])

Leanne underscores the significance of maintaining an outwardly calm demeanor even when facing internal stress, likening it to a swan's grace.

"We know how we need to at least be perceived as far as, like, handling things." ([00:00])

"As long as you're outwardly calm like a swan... your feet are really pedaling underneath you." ([41:23] – [41:31])

Advice for Aspiring Designers

Leanne and Allie offer invaluable advice for those entering the interior design field:

• Stay True to Your Style: Focus on creating timeless designs rather than chasing fleeting trends.

  "Being true to your own style and just creating these designs, timeless designs, no matter what the trends." ([35:05])

• Understand the Business Side: Interior design is as much about business acumen as it is about creativity. Mastering logistics, client relations, and business management is crucial.

  "If you can't run a business, you will never survive in this business." ([35:52])

• Build Trust with Clients: Developing a deep understanding of clients' lifestyles and preferences ensures that the resulting designs resonate personally with them.

  "Building that trust is such a rewarding feeling." ([25:11])

• Embrace Teamwork and Flexibility: Being adaptable and collaborative within a small team setting enhances the firm's ability to handle diverse projects effectively.

  "In a small company like ours, you really have to be able to... be happy to do everything." ([15:35])

Personal Insights: Rapid Fire Questions

Ariel engages Leanne and Allie in a series of rapid-fire questions, unveiling their personal tastes and interests outside of design:

• Favorite Food:

  • Leanne: French bistro food and rustic Italian ([44:15]).

    "I adore rustic Italian... the olive oil being the olive oil that it is, it has to be something like that."

  • Allie: Her mother's homemade tortilla chips with guacamole and margaritas ([44:48]).

    "Nothing cheers you up after a hard day than chips and guac and a margarita."

• Favorite Drink:

  • Both favor margaritas and Diet Cokes ([45:22]).

    "We are margaritas and Diet Cokes, and I don't care what anyone says."

• Favorite Film:

  • Leanne: Romantic comedies like The Proposal and Notting Hill, and Nancy Meyers movies ([45:38]).
  • Allie: It's Complicated and Goodfellas, reflecting her diverse interests ([45:57]).

• Favorite Hotel:

  • Leanne: Carlisle Hotel in New York City and Firehouse in Marylebone, London ([46:31]).

    "My family and I have celebrated so many amazing things... it's just visually charming."

• Favorite City:

  • Both love London, appreciating its design inspiration and sourcing potential ([47:10]).

• Favorite Bedding:

  • Combination of Porto and Matouk products ([47:53]).

    "It's the perfect combo... I have 15 pillows on my bed."

• Tea or Coffee:

  • Leanne: Morning coffee with fresh beans and half-and-half ([48:25]).
  • Allie: Enjoys the aroma of coffee but prefers not to drink it ([48:37]).

• Favorite Playlist or Music to Listen to at Home:

  • Leanne: Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and James Taylor, including Nancy Meyer's Kitchen playlist ([48:45] – [49:24]).

    "Every single thing about her playlist... If I could just live my life with that sound inside my head..."

• Favorite Weekend Activity:

  • Leanne: Early morning walks with her husband and puppy, reconnecting with home, lighting candles, and making dinner ([49:27] – [51:37]).
  • Allie: Aligns closely with her mother's activities, enjoying cozy home environments ([49:36] – [51:25]).

• Favorite Design Book:

  • Allie: Americana Farmhouses and Manors of Long Island by Kyle Marshall ([51:45]).
  • Leanne: Works by Gil Schaefer, particularly his books on luxury living without pretension ([51:45] – [53:14]).

    "Anything by Gil Shafer... showing a way to live in beautiful luxury, but without the luxury vibe."

Conclusion

Leanne and Allie Thornton's episode on Talk Shop offers a deep dive into the synergy of a mother-daughter partnership in the interior design industry. Their emphasis on creating cozy, timeless spaces, coupled with their ability to navigate business challenges and evolve their design philosophies, serves as an inspiring model for aspiring designers. Personal anecdotes and rapid-fire insights reveal a genuine passion for both their craft and their family life, underscoring the authenticity that defines their work.

Listeners are encouraged to explore more about Leanne Thornton Interiors through their website and Instagram, where they share ongoing projects and creative endeavors.

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Notable Quotes:

• Leanne Thornton: "We know how we need to at least be perceived as far as, like, handling things." ([00:00])
• Arielle Oken: "As long as you're outwardly calm like a swan, yes, you're outwardly calm and graceful, but your feet are really pedaling underneath you." ([00:08])
• Allie Thornton: "You're dancing like you're having a ball." ([00:31])
• Leanne Thornton: "If you can't run a business, you will never survive in this business." ([35:52])
• Allie Thornton: "We're margaritas and Diet Cokes, and I don't care what anyone says." ([45:31])
• Leanne Thornton: "It's the perfect combo... I have 15 pillows on my bed." ([47:56])

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Additional Resources:

• Leanne Thornton Interiors Website: www.leannethorntoninteriors.com
• Instagram: @leannethorntoninteriors

Transcript

[Leanne Thornton]

We may not be feeling it on the inside, but we know how we need to at least be perceived as far as, like, handling things.

[Arielle Oken]

As long as you're outwardly calm like a swan, yes, you're outwardly calm and graceful, but your feet are really pedaling underneath you.

[Allie Thornton]

No, it's fully. Like on the outside, you're Diane Keaton, end of First Wives Club. On the inside, you're Diane Keaton, beginning of First Wives Club. You're a mess, you're stressed, you're manic, but on the outside, you've got your white suit on. You're dancing like you're having a ball.

[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, Fennimore 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. This week, I'm welcoming a mother daughter duo, the creative forces behind Leanne Thornton Interiors. Leanne and her daughter Allie are known for their soothing color palettes and incredibly warm and inviting interiors and believe in creating homes filled with meaningful furnishings and charming details that bring joy, comfort and inspiration. Since launching her eponymous boutique design firm in 2003, Leanne has developed a reputation for creating high end residential and commercial projects rooted in classical designs and infused with English sensibilities. In 2016, Ali joined her mom, starting as a project manager, then a designer, and now as partner. She brings to the team a fresh, preppy, bohemian style, a welcomed thread to Leanne's timeless and classic sensibilities. And each approaches their work with both warmth and thoughtful attention to detail. Leanne and Ally's work has been featured in magazines like House Beautiful, Coastal Living, Lux and others. And we are so thrilled to have the mother daughter duo on today. So please join me as we welcome Leanne and Allie to the podcast. Leanne and Ali, welcome to the podcast. I'm so excited to have you both on.

[Leanne Thornton]

Hi, we're thrilled to be here. What a treat.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh my God, I love having a mother daughter duo. This is like my favorite dream episode. Well, to kick off the conversation, we always ask everyone who comes on, can you describe each of your styles in three words or less?

[Leanne Thornton]

I think the best way to describe it is it's classic, it's relaxed, and above all, it's cozy.

[Arielle Oken]

I love that. I love cozy.

[Leanne Thornton]

I Love needlepoint rugs. I love slipcovers, especially white slipcovers. I love them paired with ticking stripes and lots and lots of good lighting mixed with lots of beautiful window coverings and tons and tons of flowers and candles everywhere.

[Allie Thornton]

Definitely.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. I feel like you can see that in your portfolio too. It's like all homes that you want to live in.

[Leanne Thornton]

That's the intention, definitely.

[Allie Thornton]

And even though you stole my word, I will rephrase. Even though cozy is in our DNA and I'm so lucky I grew up in a house where that is like our lingo. I will change cozy to warm because I decorate with a lot more, probably a lot richer of colors. My mom's very blue and white, and it's sort of her signature look. And it is for a good reason because it's just.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Allie Thornton]

So gorgeous. I probably use, like, more reds and greens, so I definitely say warm. I for sure have a bohemian side to me. I am plotting my escape to the Cotswolds every single day. And everybody layered like crazy. English house and designer. I'm just like, I get it.

[Arielle Oken]

I know. I love it too.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah, I'd say warm, bohemian, and maybe a little more tailored and not as, like, loose and funky, but definitely have that vibe.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. It's one of the things that I love so much about English country houses in general is you get so much personality and things are not perfect, but in a warm, layered, livable way. Well, for those listening who. Where are you guys at this point in your careers and sort of how do you get into your day to day?

[Leanne Thornton]

First and foremost, I'm the mother of three incredible daughters and now a grandmother of a perfect grandson who's about to be five. It's my life.

[Allie Thornton]

They're besties.

[Leanne Thornton]

It's just. There's nothing better. And my husband and I live in a darling seaside town in Connecticut. It inspires me every day to create the cozy, romantic lifestyle that I'm always trying to achieve. We're focused on working on projects that bring us joy and lots of pride in our work. Our firm is very busy right now. We're working on roughly six projects that are all over the place, meaning location, where the projects are, beginnings, middles, ends, which is great. You know, it's kind of. It's no different than any other year. But we're busy. We're busy right now. And confirming our 2025 schedule, which sounds like I'm in like some sci fi movie when I say totally.

[Arielle Oken]

We just had our 2025 planning meeting today, and I'm like, oh, my God, how are we even here? Like, I don't know how we got to the end of the year at all, but I love that you have three girls and that one of your daughters chose to work with you. Because I have two girls, and it's always my dream that one of them might end up wanting to do that and work with me one day.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, I think it's. For any mom, your relationship with your children is obviously a bond that you could never have imagined. And then you have these daughters that become immediate best friends, confidants.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

Dream individuals in your life. And then a. If you're lucky enough to have your children, even want to hang out with you when you're older, that. That's a major. And then if you have one that's like, okay, I'm gonna actually work with you. You drive me crazy, but I'm gonna even be with you on a daily basis, then you hit the jackpot, and I feel like that is the jackpot. And nothing, like I said before, is more important than my relationship with my children. So I get to have a double whammy, and I get to have one of them that I get to talk to every day and kind of navigate this crazy world of interior design that we all understand is so certainly not like, walk in the park. You know, you get to trade all the crazy stories. Good, bad. With someone that you're so close with and trust.

[Arielle Oken]

So much goes on over the course of a project. And I would imagine being able to experience that with your daughter where, like, you probably are, like, telepathic with each other, like I. I am with my mom. Like, we could just look at each other and, like, we know exactly what the other one is thinking. Like, that's so much fun because that's not just work. That's a whole other level of a beautiful parent child relationship.

[Allie Thornton]

It's so true, though, because, like, in this, you know, in this industry, there's so much that can and does go wrong. Like, it's just no matter how much you do right, it's just. It's in the hands of a thousand other people. And working together and knowing that, like, we implicitly have each other's backs and want the best for each other in every situation is something that you're never going to get, obviously. Even with the most amazing, incredible employee.

[Arielle Oken]

No, I mean, it's a totally different thing. It's just. It's really special.

[Allie Thornton]

Definitely.

[Arielle Oken]

Well, let's start with Leanne. So you decided to step into the design World. You talked about how it was an organic process of opening your firm up. You opened your firm up in 2003. So you've been doing this for a long time. Can you tell us the story of what drew you to design and how you opened up your firm?

[Leanne Thornton]

Well, you know those moments in life, not like the big moment, but like the little moments in life that you realize that you are very exposed to environments that you become incredibly aware of. Those moments were always hitting me. Maybe it was being in friends homes, maybe it was being in a hotel. We'd move and immediately it was about trying to capture this lifestyle that I wanted my family to live in. Yeah, when I say lifestyle, I mean moments and the energy I wanted in the house and the way I wanted it to feel. And one of those moments before I opened up my farm in 2003, we were living in Los Angeles and my two daughters, Allie and her older sister Nikki, were in school. I had time on my hands and there was this darling store on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica. And I passed it all the time. I bought things for the girls there. And I walked in one day, they asked me, I asked them. I can't really remember, but I started a part time, like two or three days a week, going in a few hours in the afternoon, and I did merchandising.

[Arielle Oken]

Ooh.

[Leanne Thornton]

And I'd create a bedroom. I'd create a little this and that. And then clients would ask me if I would help them with their baby room. And I was thrilled to. So my company really started as a children's firm.

[Arielle Oken]

Wow, that's fascinating.

[Leanne Thornton]

Well, what's even more fascinating and a very cozy tidbit that this store was the store that furnished Father of the Bride to le baby suite.

[Allie Thornton]

No.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God. You know, I'm the ultimate Nancy Meyers fan.

[Leanne Thornton]

It was all the charming furniture, all the hand painted stuff, the big stuffed animals, the, you know, the hand painted, like three tiered things for all the crayons, the cribs. It was a dream to work in the store. So you can imagine why I was attracted.

[Arielle Oken]

I'm like envisioning and you've got me on like the children's bookstore, but like a really beautiful kids furniture version.

[Leanne Thornton]

It was so darling. The windows were just filled with delicious furniture and I just, I was so drawn. So that was very cheery and happy to get me started knowing, wow, I'm not just into this, but I actually could do it. And people are actually interested in hiring me. Then cut to. We moved to Connecticut. Our whole Life changes into this beautiful New England world. And within a year of being here, I had all these girlfriends either having babies or had little ones like I did. And we're so excited to get the help with that. And then on top of it, let's do this. Let's do the living room, let's do the kitchen. Turned into full houses. We all know, you know, the scale of these frontage homes and it became a business before I really even, like had thought about doing a true business and formed Thornton Designs in 2003.

[Arielle Oken]

That's amazing. I'm always so blown away by stories like that because sometimes finds you, like you're not really even looking for it.

[Leanne Thornton]

I think it finds you if you live the passion of it.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, it's not going to find a cpa.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Allie Thornton]

Do you see? I laugh all day. Like, I literally just laugh.

[Arielle Oken]

I mean, it's the best, but it's so true. I mean, that was how I started. I was working in public affairs. Like I was not. My friends would come over to my apartment and ask for help. And so it kind of started like that. I think it's really amazing when your passion finds you in that way and you can create this really incredible long term business out of it.

[Leanne Thornton]

A long term business. And within all those years, I have to say my favorite project is my home. It's just my home. It's an everyday elements of new candles, new arrivals, of lampshades, getting new potted plants. It is something that I think all of us, including I'd like to always say to my clients, continue to work on your own home.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. Allie, what was it like growing up with a designer as a mom? Like, how did you know you wanted to follow in her footsteps?

[Allie Thornton]

Well, as you can imagine, I had absolutely the most gorgeous bedroom growing up ever. I'm sure I had the classic Bowood, the pink and green. Always had it. My older sister had the green and blue, like the classic color palette. But yeah, I grew up in the most gorgeous house and always enjoyed it. But I wasn't really ever sure that that's what I wanted to do. I would always intern for her in high school. Just kind of come by. And our old office was right downtown in Greenwich. After school, we'd go sit in my mom's office. We'd like prank call her from the other room and she's like, I know you guys are on the other end. Like, she's like, I'm in the office. Yeah. I grew up with our office, you know, starting at our House. It was very cool to see my mom at work during the day. And in college, I think I interned one summer, and then I interned for, like, some marketing companies and a wedding company, Carrots and Cake. I was like, their second employee, and I interned for them. They do they have, like, a big wedding website?

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, I remember Carrots and Cake from when I was getting married.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes. And it was in the city then. I was my senior year of college, kind of figuring out what I wanted to do. I was an American studies major, so, you know, I've always been obsessed with Americana and American history. And, you know, I did a big emphasis on architecture, like, American architecture in that. That. And when I was graduating, I was just like, oh, a lot of my friends are applying to, like, marketing jobs. Maybe I should do that. In the back of my mind, I was like, I can't work for my mom yet. Like, that. I'd be such a loser if I started to work for her the second I graduate. And so I get hired at a company in July, and by September, I remember going to my mom and my stepdad and just being like, I don't want to do this anymore. Like, can we just start working together now? And then next month on Halloween, which I felt like was very fitting, was my first day, and we've been together since.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God. That's so funny. So how long have you been at the firm?

[Leanne Thornton]

20. 16.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah. Eight years.

[Arielle Oken]

That's a really long time.

[Allie Thornton]

I know. And I've kind of. You know, it's. It's funny because a lot of people will say to me, like, gosh, it must be so nice and easy working with your mom. Which, of course it is. But I think people think of it in the sense you don't really have to try hard or you don't really have to do much. And I am almost, like, more fearful than love, like, letting her down than a random boss.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[Allie Thornton]

I feel like when we first started, I never wanted to, like, take a day off or have a sick day or anything like that, because I wanted to sort of prove that, you know, even though we're mother daughter, we're still working together. And I really just kind of came in as a project manager during COVID really is when we designed, like, our first project together.

[Leanne Thornton]

True.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah. I was living at home, and it was our first real. My opinion was really prominent, and it felt so great. Ever since then, you know, we both designed together, and we're partners now, and it's really been, like, a very natural Progression. But I'm happy that, you know, I was sort of at the bottom of sorts. You know, I did the project management. I've worked with our bookkeeper. I know how to do all of our accounting. It's been like a jack of all trade. Yeah, it's been a jack of all trade type of experience.

[Arielle Oken]

That's so important because as you move through the firm, you pick up different skills in terms of, like, what everybody else is doing around you. And so you can step into someone's shoes if you need to.

[Allie Thornton]

100. Especially in a small company like ours, you really have to be able to. First of all, you can't have an ego, which, you know, whenever we hire anybody, it's so important to find people who are just willing to be a team player, because when you're working for a small company, you just kind of have to be happy to do everything. And that's sort of where we both thrive. So it's lucky.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God, I love that story.

[Leanne Thornton]

I mean, obviously working with my daughter, she's been influenced in my design aesthetic, as she said, but she brings her own sensibilities to our work, and truly, that's where the magic is. When we designed that house that she was talking about together, I was a little blown away that there was so much attention to detail. And I was really happy that there was so much cohesiveness in our spirit as designers. But we both kept building on each other's game. And I really can't say it enough. It just. I mean, listen, obviously Allie's a bit more tech savvy. You know, she handles more backend stuff. I definitely interface with clients more, which makes sense. But I really think the way we work together and the way we manage things together is pretty seamless. And even though we're touching upon different things, we are side by side. And the other thing I want to speak to Ali is what you said before, if something's going wrong in a project or whatever it is, we've got each other's back. Like, as a mother, clearly no one's going to talk badly to Ali.

[Allie Thornton]

She's like, mama bear mode.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God, I could imagine.

[Allie Thornton]

And then I'm like, they can't talk about my mother like that. Like, yeah, wait.

[Leanne Thornton]

If a client's in a sassy mood on a text, I will literally respond without Allie on the text, like, yeah.

[Arielle Oken]

Because you're protecting her.

[Leanne Thornton]

I'm like, hey, listen, I can handle this.

[Allie Thornton]

It's really. It works. And we also know kind of how to, you know, If I get an email from somebody that I know I can fix, before I even fill you in, Mom, I'm just like, you know what? We're going to take her off, we're going to solve it, and we're going to come to her with a solution. We don't even need to involve her in the minutia.

[Arielle Oken]

No, but that's like, even if it's not, you know, all in the family type of firm, that's the way to do it, because everybody has to learn how to delegate. And I think when you can own things in that way and not get bogged down in the details, you know, top down, I think it's really helpful for just running the firm in general. How do you think, you guys, your designs, have they evolved over time from you two working together?

[Allie Thornton]

Mine definitely has, for sure.

[Leanne Thornton]

I would think. Absolutely. You've been exposed to so many methods and recipes that have worked over the years that now you understand the concept of how to make things work. I felt a little safer, maybe taken on more risks in regards to color and pattern for our clients.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

But, you know, I think Allie experience for both of us has been our learning curve, and that's how we've evolved, is just taking more risk every single time and pushing the envelope. And, you know, I don't mean anything edgy. That's not who we are as designers. Just taking things on in a way that maybe doesn't feel so safe, and there's a comfort there and sharing the design responsibility with someone else who's, you know, like, yeah, let's do it. I like it.

[Arielle Oken]

I love that. When we had Gil Schaefer on last season, he said that one of the biggest things about how they grow, you know, how he grows as an architect and how they grow as a firm is taking stuff on that makes them just a little bit uncomfortable and things that kind of force them to look at something in a new way, and it just kind of keeps you on your toes. And I think it's a great thing.

[Allie Thornton]

But I will say that's so true, because we've a project right now that, you know, there are decidedly factors in dairy and mom. There are decidedly factors that are not traditional to our core, and it's really kind of made us expand what we thought we were capable of. And the final product is a really incredible mix of a little more sexy, a little more edgy, but with traditional fabrics and some traditional elements. And we're really excited to get to share this one because it's. It's Shown a different thing of what we're capable of.

[Arielle Oken]

Ooh, I can't wait to see it.

[Allie Thornton]

There's some very different things, wouldn't you say, Mom?

[Leanne Thornton]

1,000%. I kind of feel like. Ally, I love everything you post on Instagram. Ali, I think you are so cool. I love all of it. I love your sort of.

[Allie Thornton]

You're my biggest Instagram fan. I love it. I love it.

[Leanne Thornton]

What can I say? But I do think the things that you've got in your mind and the designers that you truly relate to, and you bring those to us and that feeling. And I'm bringing maybe slightly more old school, whether it's, you know, my old Colfax Fowler ways or Rose Tarlow, and we're incorporating all of those worlds together. That's where I think, especially on the project, you're talking about taking things to the next level.

[Allie Thornton]

100%.

[Arielle Oken]

The mix is really interesting and can make for some really unique and beautiful work. I'm so excited to see this project you guys are talking about. Are there any projects that you guys are particularly, like, super proud of or fond of?

[Allie Thornton]

Well, I know, because I feel like we have a couple. But our project that we had in Lux last year, our backcountry colonial, that's the project I was referring to, that we both. We started designing it, truly, February of 2020.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, wow.

[Allie Thornton]

By March, we were, you know, I left my apartment in New York, I was living at home in Greenwich, and my mom and I were working from the second we woke up until past dinner, you know, with a glass of wine at the end of the day, just putting.

[Arielle Oken]

That's so fun.

[Allie Thornton]

It was so much fun. And I think that's why we love this project so much, because, A, we had the best clients who trust our design implicitly. Never an interjection. Always just like, yep, that sounds great. You guys know what you're doing. And being able to have that, it makes for the most special and most fun projects. And it always has the best outcome because everyone's on the same page. Everyone wants the project to succeed. And we just did so much, you know, we had nothing else to do. So our attention to detail on that.

[Leanne Thornton]

Project and Allie did not that they loved. They loved British design. They loved everything. Cozy.

[Allie Thornton]

Oh, major Anglophiles. Yeah.

[Arielle Oken]

That's amazing. Oh, my God. I wanna. I'm looking up this project right now. I wanna look at it. Wow. Oh, my God. It's just so layered and warm and happy.

[Allie Thornton]

And that's how the clients live, which is really great. And Mom, I have a feeling. I have a feeling I know yours well.

[Leanne Thornton]

It's definitely that one. And it lends itself to being the type of decor we wanted to create, the type of home we wanted to create. Amazing clients. There's a lot of projects I feel like I'm really proud of. I am actually very proud of some of the things, these two new projects that we just took on, which I think one of them is going to be once it's all said and done, maybe one of the ones I'm the most proud of. So that's something that hopefully we can photograph in the next year and get that out there. And I think the elements of that are, you know, a classic, traditional Greenwich home that large in proportion and very classic. But bringing it down to this really beautiful, livable way for a young, darling family is something I think we're going to be really proud of. And all the colors and.

[Arielle Oken]

And it feels so core to what you guys do, too, which is sort of like your ethos.

[Allie Thornton]

Definitely.

[Arielle Oken]

Is there a favorite element about the design process for each of you?

[Leanne Thornton]

I think the very beginning of a project, when the client is sending you their images, you start to put together. Do you know what I mean?

[Arielle Oken]

It's like dating. It's like the beginning of a new relationship.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes, the beginning. Yes. The beginning is so romantic.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah. You wore the class T shirts in high school.

[Allie Thornton]

So did I.

[Leanne Thornton]

Like, you know, it just. You start to, like, see each other's sensibilities, and then once you understand it, you're like, oh, I can make this real good. Then you really want to impress them.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

That's where just, like, the jumping off point comes and bringing them elements. You feel so proud. You know, you're like, you're going to love this.

[Arielle Oken]

It's like a psychological exploration of people. I mean, you're figuring out what they gravitate toward and what they love, and then you're bringing them something that, you know, it's like a present to them.

[Leanne Thornton]

Isn't that what we do, though? At the end of the day, we are psychological mind tamers, you know, and.

[Allie Thornton]

Well, we always joke that we're like, half designer, half therapist. When you're involved with someone's home, it's like the most intimate, deep, like, intimate part of their life. And you really get to see into their psyche and the way that they live and who they are. And it's really lucky when it's someone that trusts you to, you know, welcome you into their home like that and just kind of be able to explore with them, maybe push them more than they were expecting at first. But building that trust is such a rewarding feeling.

[Leanne Thornton]

Now, girls, I will tell you this. Having Instagram, Pinterest, all of that is a whole game changer.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

20 years ago, you were just kind of presenting what you felt was right for the house.

[Allie Thornton]

You were faxing people.

[Arielle Oken]

Honestly, I remember. I mean, my parents, we worked with an amazing designer called Judy Kling. We would go to her office. I was probably 11 or 12, and I remember pouring through interior design books, and this was like, my first exposure to design. And I still remember it. She would give sticky notes, and you would put sticky notes on the books, and that's how you would go through that original exploration process. Because there were no, you know, unless you were pulling from a magazine and tearing out.

[Allie Thornton]

That was your inspo.

[Arielle Oken]

There was no Pinterest. There was nothing.

[Leanne Thornton]

Ariel, that's so funny. I forgot about the magazine tear outs.

[Arielle Oken]

Of course. Yeah. Oh, my God. I remember my mom. My mom showed up with a folder of tear outs. I remember.

[Leanne Thornton]

And you'd give the client their bag, and it was usually a bag from counting and tout. When you went to all the showrooms, and you're like, your living room's in there, and. And it was just a really sweet process for the presentation. And then you just kind of quietly went about it. Whereas now good and bad, but it's a whole different thing. But it's sort of like when you have a client, let's just say they're putting, like, almost their inspiration mood board together for you, and you find out about their lifestyle. So it's not just about, I love green, I love flowers. I want a family room that feels like Ralph Lauren. You know, those are great. Like, you know, those are great concepts. But when you find out truly about. We love to go to London because. Or we'd love to go to Provence. And my husband. I love to go to a cooking stool together. And, you know, because we love to cook and have people over. I'm like, ding, ding, ding. Oh, okay.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. Because those are like, the Easter eggs that you can put that into the house.

[Leanne Thornton]

Like, I'm putting a banquette in that kitchen, and you're people over on a Friday night.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes. No, it's so true. We were. We were talking about this to someone recently, a new client. We're working on a project in Lloyd Harbor. And then they were saying, well, how do you kind of, like, decide what to show us? And we were like, well, we want to get to know you and we want to know what you're into and interested in. And the house needs to be personal to who you are and to who you know, how you guys live. And so that's the most fun part.

[Leanne Thornton]

I think it's the most fun part. And I think it's also giving way of a designer to be less selfless about what they want to do and really understand what the client wants and give the clients their world. That. That's probably the best part. I think we could all agree at the end of the day about what we do.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah, that's. It's just. It gets to be so rewarding at that point and it feels so good.

[Arielle Oken]

100%. Are there any design rules that you guys follow or are there any you think that are definitely mean to be broken?

[Leanne Thornton]

Can I giggle and just say that's cute, alan, till the 10 foot sofa can't get in the door? But no, I just, I digress.

[Allie Thornton]

I literally, I tend to block those things out. I can't live with that much PTSD in my life.

[Arielle Oken]

No. We've started having our upholsterer come measure before we fabricate the sofa, which is a recent thing we've started doing, so that they measure the doorway so that they can build it so that it comes apart the right way, so that it can come apart and come together so that it can get up the stairwells and the. And all of that. So.

[Leanne Thornton]

So that you're not stuck out in Southampton in a snowstorm where you get a sofa in. I'm just asking for a friend.

[Arielle Oken]

But don't you love those stories? Because it's like so horrible in the moment, but looking back, it's like hysterical because you figured it out.

[Allie Thornton]

And honestly, you just learn from all of them. Like, okay, next time let's do X.

[Arielle Oken]

You do. And you know what? It's never at the expense of a client because you're always going to make it right with the client. So at the end of the day, like, you're learning and, you know, it's just ridiculous, these stories sometimes it's so funny.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah.

[Allie Thornton]

And it's just like, you know, at the end of the day, we're all very lucky to be in a business where we're dealing with very pretty things.

[Arielle Oken]

And yes, I always say it's not brain surgery.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes.

[Leanne Thornton]

But it is fun to be able to share stories with other designers.

[Allie Thornton]

It's a level of camaraderie.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes. I was going to say only another designer could appreciate it. Yes. And find the humor in it.

[Allie Thornton]

Totally okay, we digressed back to your rule question.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes. Are there any rules?

[Allie Thornton]

I feel like we are not loosey goosey, but we don't really keep specific rules in our back pocket. We kind of like to go with things that feel natural and things that feel homey and good in a space. But I think my mom and I both have this Rita Koenig quote in the back of our mind a lot of the time, because my mom is also a lighting freak. Like, each room needs to have seven different layers of lighting. She did this interview and she kind of described it as like the holy trinity of a table, lamp, chair. So it's like wherever you sit in the room, there's somewhere to put your drink and a light to read by it.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, I feel like Ali speaking to that about rules or no rules. I want a room lit, like she said, at every level. I could quite possibly have 10 different lampshades printed, striped flowers. And I really mean it's. I had a girlfriend come from LA and she said, oh, man, you might have a lampshade problem. Like, there's something going on here. But every single thing is delicious. I just had two pookie lights delivered last weekend that are battery operated, that have a darling shade, because my Christmas bar needed a little light to the left. And for me, if everything is dimmed properly, would have as much or as little furniture in a room if you just get that beautiful glow.

[Arielle Oken]

And you really do know, it's so true.

[Leanne Thornton]

And I think if there was anyone that followed rules, they'd come in and say, oh, no, no, no, no. Three laminated, two pleated, one gathered, one solid, two in a floral. I think I remember somebody saying something. I'd be kicked out of the lampshade club. But it just.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, it's so important to follow your gut on so much of the decorating piece of it. And the lighting is so crucially important because it sets the mood for the whole house.

[Leanne Thornton]

The problem is the clients believe there should be rules. More so than we do.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes.

[Leanne Thornton]

Doesn't that seem like too much? Does that really go together? You know, all of those questions, and if you have someone that's like, I trust you, then they'll let you do it. But there's a lot of people, and I don't blame them. They're paying you their hard money, you know, hard earned money. I really, you know, think that seems excessive and you sort of have to not die on that hill and just say, okay. You know, there's a pair of standing lamps and that's your recessed and you're good to go.

[Arielle Oken]

You're.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, those aren't the projects. You're walking away going, oh, my gosh, I love it so much.

[Arielle Oken]

No, it's so true that the trust element is so crucially important to just the work product in general.

[Allie Thornton]

It's everything.

[Leanne Thornton]

You want them to come to your home. I honestly think that's the ticket. And if someone comes in, they're like, yep, this is what I want. Like, I see how you went beyond the norms here and you just did what felt good. And, you know, maybe there's patterns on the sofa that don't really completely go together. If I'd seen it on a perfect presentation, but you've had it all for so long and now it all goes together. I mean, let's go back to Rita. She's the queen of doing that.

[Arielle Oken]

You know, the way she talks about pairing things and not everything having to be. I mean, it's the English design sensibility, you know, have you looked at her.

[Leanne Thornton]

Latest flat that she's designed? And she's the Schumacher. It's so gorgeous. But if you really look with a lens, clear lens, I would say if you put all that on a proposal, I'd be like, oh, does that all go together? But that's what I'm saying. It's funny you would want it no other way. But that type of commitment to choosing broad strokes and deciding that's how you want to live and create, that's just, I guess, girls, those are the rules to be broken.

[Allie Thornton]

Honestly. I agree.

[Arielle Oken]

Obviously, Allie, your mom has been a mentor to you in your career. Looking back through both of your careers, are there any other mentors that have helped sort of shape your trajectories?

[Leanne Thornton]

For me, growing up in la, a lot of my friends were designers. I had a fair. One of my best friends is a incredibly talented designer. And another friend of mine, incredibly as well. She. She actually helped me with one of my first houses I ever lived in when I was in my late 20s. Really just taught me so much about what it's like to be strong and run a business and be brave and stand up and talk to your clients and remember that it's a business. It's not just doing things for friends. And all of those things were very important to me. The people that I've known in the business, that definitely inspired me. I do think that the main thread was just being true to your own style and just creating these designs, timeless designs, no matter what the trends, you know, I'VE never really been inspired or motivated or had anyone that I felt was a mentor in my life that was someone that followed trends.

[Arielle Oken]

Because it's not lasting.

[Leanne Thornton]

No. And I think if you are innately trained in a classic way, whether it came to you naturally or you went to school for it, I think you won't even respond or be attracted to people that are motivated by trends. So I think there's a lot of people that I knew that were in their own design worlds, and I was very inspired and truly motivated.

[Arielle Oken]

That's also just, you know, as a young entrepreneur starting out, that's such crucial advice for people who are listening to stay true to yourself, to have the confidence to talk to clients. I mean, these are all things that come over time, but it's good to know that they're sort of like core things. When you're starting an interior design business.

[Leanne Thornton]

Would you agree? One of the ugly words in interior design is business. If you can't run a business, you will never survive in this business. There's not a chance you can be as creative and talented as you want, but if you don't have business sensibilities. And by the way, there are years I'm good at business years I'm not great at business. It is a, it's a, it's an animal. And you bring people.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

You bring people around you that you know will help better you. But that is the advice if anyone came to me. I mean, we've had, I'd say a handful of employees have gone off and done their own thing, which is wonderful. I've done. And everyone should do their thing.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

But I would always advise, please get to know the business side prior to you embarking on a career like this, because.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes. And I think at my age, I'm at the point where I've been doing this for a long time. And a lot of my girlfriends are, or, you know, friends of friends are in that phase where they worked for a company for a couple years and they're like, oh, how do you like interior design? Like, it seems so fun. And I'm like, yes, it is fun, but about 95% of it is me on my computer all day putting together purchase orders, making fires go away.

[Arielle Oken]

Logistics.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes.

[Arielle Oken]

I think people don't realize that it's not just picking fabrics and yes. You know, picking paint colors. It's really logistics.

[Allie Thornton]

And remembering your worth in this business is really important because even though it's kind of known as like a female centered business, because of that, a lot of the subs are men. And, you know, they're not all respectful of the woman designer, and we're lucky when they are, but, you know, then there's the grumpy husband who doesn't understand why they're spending so much. And I think just remembering that you are an important businesswoman and you're not just some silly girl picking out fabrics is really important.

[Leanne Thornton]

And I think another word that we can all agree on is that it's like the chaos theory. Like, you have to be able to handle chaos, chaos in a good way. You need to be able to get, like, jonesed up about things. Good, bad. You need to be able to, like, roll with how great you feel when it's all going. And you need to be able to, like, get amped up when things are going in the wrong way, too.

[Allie Thornton]

Totally.

[Leanne Thornton]

It really is like that type of thing that you need to show up every day super capable of conversations. Good. And the tough ones. That's something I think, that we can all agree on. Every designer out there being honest would say it. Yes.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. And that ties into running a business. I mean, part of running a business is having to have those uncomfortable conversations sometimes. So it's. It's true.

[Leanne Thornton]

But you know what the funny thing is? We're all doing it. We all love it, I think, because the good outweighs the bad 100%.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. And it's so gratifying.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah. And being true to who you are as a creative person and getting to do it, I feel after however many years I've been doing this, it's not lost on me how lucky I am that I pick up the phone and someone's actually calling me to work on their home. I am thrilled every single time. I feel a lot of gratitude about it. Tons of gratitude.

[Arielle Oken]

I love that. What do you think is the best advice for designing interiors you guys have ever received?

[Leanne Thornton]

I think listen to your intuition. Follow your guiding light. That is advice that I believe I've been given. I think it's what keeps me driven. It's what keeps me focused. It keeps me always wanting, demanding to run a strong business. And I think also the long run, you know, hearing from some of my very, very, very good friends and some people that I just know through the design world is I think if you can keep things as simple and calm, those two elements within the chaos and all of that, if you can just say, but that's how I want things, simple and calm, then you're gonna stick to that. And even while all the plates and things are going around you. It feels like, you know, everything's flying in the air. That has been the type of things I have heard, and I'm going to keep those in the forefront of my mind.

[Arielle Oken]

I love that. No, it's true. Because it's so easy to get frazzled in this business, especially if something goes wrong or something. But if you're calm, cool, and collected no matter what, I think it speaks volumes, and it helps you run a tight ship and run things the right way, too.

[Leanne Thornton]

I mean, listen, Ariel, it's also like, experience helps with that. And you've been doing this long time. You've had a lot of projects that you can reflect on. Good, bad, what went wrong, what didn't go right. I've been doing this a long time. Allie now has been doing this a long time. I think we know we may not be feeling it on the inside, but we know how we need to at least be perceived as far as handling things.

[Arielle Oken]

Mm. As long as you're outwardly calm like a swan. Yes, you're outwardly calm and graceful, but your feet are really pedaling underneath you.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah. No, it's fully. Like, on the outside, you're Diane Keaton and a First Wives club. On the inside, you're Diane Keaton beginning a First Wives club. Like, you're a mess, you're stressed, you're manic. But on the outside, you've got your white suit on. You're dancing like you're having a ball.

[Arielle Oken]

It's amazing. That's, like, the best comparison I've ever heard.

[Allie Thornton]

That is, like, how my brain thinks, and it's just. Or, you know, you're dying, Keaton. End of. Something's got to give. On the outside. You know, she really has a great character arc in all of her. Nancy Myers.

[Arielle Oken]

She does. She's. You can fix it, Diane.

[Allie Thornton]

She really is like. You're either crying at the desk, like, missing Harry or.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah.

[Allie Thornton]

And you're celebrating.

[Arielle Oken]

Well, before we get into our take 10, our rapid fire questions, I have a few personal questions that I always love to ask. What do you think your home says about you?

[Leanne Thornton]

Okay. I think my home says about me that I love to entertain people. I think it says that I love to welcome people and that I feel very safe in my environment.

[Allie Thornton]

That's a really great way to put it. I love that. I think for me, my home definitely shows that I have parents with incredibly great taste, because half of what I have in my house is from them. And I cherish it so much. I have A painting behind me right now in my snuggle room, which is a term that my mom has coined and we have taken over. And it's a painting that my parents got in Nantucket, I don't know how many summers ago. And I have it hanging above my sofa and it is like the coziest, happiest painting. And it just makes us feel so good.

[Leanne Thornton]

So she's so regal.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah. And we have like a great, we've a bunch of great antiques from my mother in law too. And it's just, it's starting to feel very adult. My house, which living in apartments in New York so long, I never really. You don't really get to that point yet. And now that we're settled in Charleston, we feel like we have a real adult home.

[Arielle Oken]

Totally.

[Allie Thornton]

And it's just cozy, it's happy, it's. You know, you can tell when you walk in that I'm a quilt addict because I have one hanging in my entry when you walk in.

[Arielle Oken]

I love that.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah, just very collected and I was.

[Leanne Thornton]

Going to say it's very collected out. Very collected.

[Allie Thornton]

And we're just. Yeah, we're very happy in our house here. It's a great feeling.

[Arielle Oken]

That's amazing. Oh, my God. Well, we're gonna get into our take 10 now, our rapid fire questions. What is your favorite food?

[Leanne Thornton]

I love French bistro food. I adore rustic Italian. Like you could just drop me in either Tuscany or Provence or a little town outside of Paris and everything just is very rustic and charming and simple, but with just all those little happy moments of a bearnaise sauce or the gorgeous bread. But the whole, the olive oil being the olive oil that it is, it has to be something like that.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God, I love that. Yeah.

[Allie Thornton]

You're kind of a French girl.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah, I am. I love to cook.

[Allie Thornton]

Yeah. Literally, like everything my mom makes is my favorite food, which is so embarrassing, but she's just such a good cook. But I think like growing up in LA and having parents that grew up in la, my mom's homemade tortilla chips and guac and a great margarita, it's everything. Nothing cheers you up after a hard day than chips and guac and a margarita. Like, you just can't be sad having that combination.

[Arielle Oken]

No, I agree with you. It's, it's, it's like a perfect trifecta. Well, the next question is favorite drink, which I feel like you're going to say margarita.

[Allie Thornton]

No, this is for both of us. And I will defend this till the day I die. I don't care about my haters. We are margaritas and Diet Cokes, and I don't care what anyone says.

[Arielle Oken]

Diet Cokes.

[Allie Thornton]

I am a Diet Coke. Girly for life.

[Arielle Oken]

That's amazing. Okay, next question. Favorite film?

[Leanne Thornton]

I'm a rom com gal. You could give me the Proposal. You could give me Notting Hill.

[Arielle Oken]

So good.

[Leanne Thornton]

Along with almost every Nancy Myers movie she's ever made.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes.

[Leanne Thornton]

That's my genre. That's why I'm real happy.

[Arielle Oken]

Me too. Amen.

[Allie Thornton]

I was kind of. I feel like the son of our family at some points. Like, I was always, like, I would, you know, like, watch stuff with my stepdad or, like, you know, help my mom carry boxes. I don't know where everyone else was. So I really have become, like, a woman of broad interests. And the two movies that I 100% have re watched the most are It's Complicated and Goodfellas. Unclear what that says about me.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, Goodfellas is one of my favorite movies. I know. Like, every word.

[Allie Thornton]

So good. So that's, you know, that's the dichotomy. The dichotomy of woman.

[Arielle Oken]

Favorite hotel?

[Allie Thornton]

We have the same. Feel free to answer.

[Leanne Thornton]

Oh, easy. Carlisle Hotel, New York City.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

Carlisle Hotel, New York City. My family and I have celebrated so many amazing things. My husband and I have. We courted there, we dated there, we went there on honeymoon. We've done so many wonderful trips there. And I, you know, honestly, I love the children. Firehouse in Marylebone, in London. I think that vibe is just something that's pure happiness and, like, visual. Just visually charming.

[Arielle Oken]

No, that's a very special hotel. And it's, like, so beautiful. Favorite city?

[Leanne Thornton]

London. London. London. London. London.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah. Especially for sourcing.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah, always London. It just is my. It's just in my, like, soul.

[Allie Thornton]

It tortures our souls.

[Arielle Oken]

You guys need to move.

[Allie Thornton]

No, it's such a problem. And honestly, as dweeby as this sounds, like Charleston, I love it here.

[Arielle Oken]

Charleston's an amazing, amazing, amazing, amazing city.

[Allie Thornton]

It's been an important part of my life for, like, 15 years now. And getting to live here now, I am just so happy. It's really a special place to live.

[Leanne Thornton]

That makes me so happy to hear that.

[Arielle Oken]

I always like asking everybody this because everyone has such specific preferences, but favorite bedding?

[Leanne Thornton]

Oh, I'll answer this for both of.

[Allie Thornton]

Us because we make our beds the same way.

[Leanne Thornton]

It's a combo of Porto and Mattuc. It's just the perfect combo.

[Arielle Oken]

I mean, that is the perfect combo, I have to say, right?

[Leanne Thornton]

It's scallop, matouk and perfect Porto. And there's like 15 different things on my bed. But, like, the combo of porto and matouk is the daily vibe.

[Allie Thornton]

She's not exaggerating, by the way. She does have 15 pillows on her bed. I wish that was an exaggeration.

[Arielle Oken]

I support.

[Leanne Thornton]

Thank you.

[Arielle Oken]

Tea or coffee? And how do you take it?

[Leanne Thornton]

Okay, I'm going first. Happiness is my morning cup of coffee, and it's with fresh beans and a fairy hearty splash of half and half. It's gotta be perfect.

[Allie Thornton]

I like the smell of it in the morning, even though I don't drink it.

[Arielle Oken]

Favorite playlist or music to listen to at home.

[Leanne Thornton]

There's always the standard Ella Fitzgerald playlist happening.

[Arielle Oken]

That's cozy.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah, it's very cozy. And usually in the summer, it's more like Billie Holiday and mixed with James Taylor. That type of playlist.

[Arielle Oken]

I love it.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, there's a playlist called Ali. Is it Nancy Meyer's Kitchen?

[Arielle Oken]

Yes.

[Allie Thornton]

Yes.

[Leanne Thornton]

It's so good.

[Arielle Oken]

We listen to the Nancy Meyer's Kitchen in the office all the time.

[Leanne Thornton]

All the time in the French music. And I mean every single thing about her playlist. Like, if I could just live my life with that sound inside my head, I think I'd probably just be a better person.

[Allie Thornton]

Definitely.

[Arielle Oken]

Favorite weekend activity?

[Leanne Thornton]

Well, I feel like Allie and I are going to answer this kind of in a similar fashion.

[Allie Thornton]

I know we just have different locations, but it's the same thing.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yeah. Honestly, waking up early, I get up very early and having just a walk with my husband and our precious puppy along the beach and spending time with our family. You know, like a fun dinner out. One of our favorite spots. It's really my weekend activity is my time to reconnect with my home. Because during the week, I'm running around, I'm focused on other people's homes, which is why at night I cue the music, I pour the glass of wine, I make the nice dinner. Because after being out all day and your brain is like scrambled eggs, you've done so many things and had so many conversations about everyone else's different stuff. I have got to come back and reconnect with and decompress. Absolutely. And that's what the weekends are about. I love Friday and Saturday night the way we did when we were in, like, sixth grade. Remember how much you loved a Friday? Oh, my gosh, you were gonna have a sleepover with somebody. And Saturday day you had a birthday party to go to, maybe.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, that's the best that's how I.

[Leanne Thornton]

Look at my adulthood. Like, fly night is whether we go out to dinner or not. But it's my husband and I, and if we're home, we're lighting candles and making dinner. If we're going out, I'm getting a little dressed step, then we're going out to have, you know, it's just about the way you reconnect with yourself, and that's what. That's the activity for me. Someone else might say, well, I do a lot of jogging. No, no, no, no, no, no.

[Arielle Oken]

You know what I love? You romanticize the everyday in life, and I feel like that's so special. And you, you have found the way to, like, make the life the movie set in a really authentic and special way. And I think that's really beautiful.

[Allie Thornton]

That's really sweet that you say that, because we all know that growing up with her, but, like, it's really true.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah.

[Leanne Thornton]

Well, it's a very warm and lovely, lovely concept. And if I can keep doing that for my family and hopefully for clients, then yay.

[Arielle Oken]

Yeah, Absolutely. Well, the last rapid fire question we always ask is the hardest, I think. What is your favorite design book?

[Allie Thornton]

I have a very random one. It might not be random, but I'd never heard of it. And I have it off the top of my head because it's sitting next to me right now. But it's this book called Americana. It's like. It's called Americana Farmhouses and Manors of Long island by Kyle Marshall.

[Arielle Oken]

Ooh.

[Allie Thornton]

It is the most inspiring book. It is cozy, antiqued, beautiful. Like country estates all over Long Island. Like that very northeast, sweet vibe that I feel like we're all attracted to. And I flip through it on the daily. Like, I get so much inspiration from it.

[Arielle Oken]

Ooh, I have to look this one up.

[Leanne Thornton]

Ali, who was the guy from the Colfax book that I like? Basically, the pages are worn out. Was it Robert Banks pie?

[Allie Thornton]

Yes, I think so. Yep. Yep.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes. He has some amazing books.

[Leanne Thornton]

I mean, if I was on a desert island and I could only grab, like, a few books to take with me, think it would be his books. And honestly, I'm going to just say it again. Anything by Gil Shafer.

[Allie Thornton]

The King.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes. Amen. I'm with you.

[Leanne Thornton]

You know, he just talk about showing a way to live and. Yeah, in beautiful luxury, but without the luxury vibe.

[Allie Thornton]

Without pretension.

[Leanne Thornton]

Yes. So I think that's a great combo.

[Arielle Oken]

Totally. I full heartedly endorse those. Well, Ali and Leanne, thank you so much for joining me. This is such.

[Allie Thornton]

Thank you.

[Leanne Thornton]

You're such a dollar. We're so happy to have done this.

[Arielle Oken]

Oh, my God. This was such a joy. And where can listeners find more about you and your firm?

[Allie Thornton]

We have our website, but our Instagram is really where, you know, I feel like you get a lot of our personality and a lot of our personal takes and taste on everything.

[Arielle Oken]

I love following you guys on Instagram.

[Allie Thornton]

Thank you. We have some fun video series that we're going to be doing in the new year. Just some, you know, more design videos, some entertaining. So I think it'll be really fun to head on over there and just kind of watch along with us.

[Arielle Oken]

Amazing. Well, we're gonna link both in the show notes so when people are listening, they can click in the show notes and go to both Leanne and Ali. Thank you so much. This was so much fun.

[Allie Thornton]

Thank you.

[Leanne Thornton]

I'm sending big hugs and thank you.

[Arielle Oken]

Yes, big hugs to you. Thank you. That's a wrap for this week's episode of Talk Shop. 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. Arielleokun. See you next week.