BetterHomesandGardens
Better Homes and Gardens - April 2007
 

Anna began her design career in London where she worked as a freelance assistant on various television campaigns.  She helped to recreate scenes as interpreted by such noted directors as Stephan Friars and David Bailey.  It was her first introduction to the incredible appeal of creating fleeting vignettes.  Upon moving back to Manhattan she was hired by Clair Watson of the New York City Opera to help spruce up the image of their namesake resale shop.  Anna was a part of the team that successfully reshaped the store's retail image from thrift shop to vintage boutique.  Her unique window displays increased street interest (and banter) and sales went up markedly. Consequently, the shop received several nods from the likes of NY Observer and The NY Times. Anna's novel window designs, in particular, were noted by Time Out Magazine NYC, July 1996.

As a result of the publicity Anna was hired by Bergdorf Goodman under the esteemed Creative Director, Linda Fargo.  Bringing her own unique designs, Anna was contracted to help merchandise the store's famous holiday windows just before moving west. After reviewing Anna’s portfolio, Ms. Fargo (who had lived and worked in San Francisco) suggested she call upon Wasteland and Gumps when she arrived in the city.

…which she did. Anna made her way by freelancing at various stores about town. Combining her love of fashion, thrift and high end design Anna was able to create designs for : Wasteland, a famous haunt on Haight Street and the city’s largest vintage shop. Again, her fresh window designs drew attention and even more traffic into a store that was already popular for SF fashion plates.   Anna also came on board, as a window dresser for the opening of Diesel’s flagship store in SF.  The window displays were featured in Visual Merchandising and Store Design magazine, VMSD, July 1998 in an article pertaining to the cutting edge of “futro” design. It was at this time as well, that Anna looked up Gumps, the city’s reknown and historic department store.. Initially hired as part time freelancer for display and window dressing she was eventually hired in a full time position (1998-2001) as head table top designer. Her work included many of the major projects that Gumps was known for, including the Gumps Bridal event, Gumps Holiday and various designer/vender specific events.  She designed tabletops with top tier merchandise from Baccarat, Salviati, Snt Louie, Robert Kuo, William Yeoward, Christolfe to name just a few.

After 10 years in the field Anna took time out to raise a family. In the process of designing space for her children she found there was little originality, basically a void in the commercial approach to kids room décor. With the completion of her own kids rooms, an eclectic balance of thrift, funk, and that old display know how blossomed a new passion that has become Nest Interior. One of her first room designs was recognized and received an award in a contest sponsored by Bay Area Parent Magazine Oct.2005 Look for her designs this April 2007 in Better Home and Garden magazine  and the story goes from there…

 

San Francisco Chronicle Article (original article)

For her, decorating kids' rooms is like child's play
Anna Stahl wouldn't give in to the branding and pastels typical of decor for younger set

Allison Serrell, Special to The Chronicle

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Motherhood and reinvention often go hand in hand. For Anna Stahl of Pleasant Hill this was certainly the case; she found two muses in her young son and daughter and started an interior design business.
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Anna Stahl, a former window dresser, eschews pastels in k...Stahl's son, Oliver, has a room inspired by dinosaurs. Ph... View Larger Images

It all began a couple of years ago when the erstwhile window dresser set about decorating a room for her daughter, Lola, now 4.

First she painted the walls fuchsia. Inspired by beautiful but pricey floral wallpaper, she drew her own large flowers onto self-adhesive vinyl, cut them out and pressed them onto the walls.

Stahl rescued remnants of vintage fabrics from her closet to fashion her daughter's bedding and furnished the room with pieces from IKEA and a white shag rug procured on eBay. Stahl found the experience so gratifying that she launched Nest Interior, a design business focused on children's rooms.

Born and raised in upstate New York, Stahl got a degree in sociology from State University of New York in 1990. She moved to London on an exchange program, where she found work as an assistant prop stylist. When Stahl returned to New York, she took a job at a thrift store run by the New York City Opera and soon got noticed for her innovative window displays. Stahl moved on to the venerable Bergdorf Goodman's before moving to San Francisco, where she signed on with Gump's department store.

Stahl gave up retail and took time off to have two children. When it came time to outfit her son's room, Stahl said, "He was really into Thomas the Tank Engine. I thought 'Oh, Lord, no.' " Rather than give in to branding, Stahl created original artwork for the room. She produced two prototype drawings of dinosaurs, and then had them magnified and printed onto vinyl by a sign manufacturer. The result was an instant mural.

"My son was having nightmares at the time," Stahl said. "The dinosaurs became his protectors. He thought they were his mascots."

Stahl's signature style mixes vintage finds with modern pieces. For Oliver's room she found a wood dresser at a thrift store and painted on graphic blue and brown stripes. She picked up an old-fashioned dinosaur poster at a garage sale that fit perfectly with the theme. Stahl replaced ugly closet doors with a curtain fashioned from vintage Danish fabric; a tiered side table from West Elm and a whimsical clock from Urban Outfitters freshens up the funky space.

Eschewing pastels and safe neutrals, Stahl embraces color and often chooses bold hues for the kids' rooms she designs. In Lola's room, she balanced the color with wood furnishings and white accessories such as a shag rug and modern ceiling lamp. These touches "help ground the space," she said.

With a background in fashion display, Stahl has a true love of fabric, especially vintage finds. She often makes upholstered headboards and has even turned vintage dresses into pillows. "I am obsessed with fabric," she said.

Stahl favors fun, sophisticated looks that have longevity. She says the key to designing a child's room is not to go overboard on trends. So if your child loves Dora the Explorer, don't make the whole room an homage. "Use accessories or artwork to acknowledge your kids' taste," she suggested.

Accessories also help elevate kids' rooms. "I love to take a high-end look and transform it to be cost-effective," Stahl said. One way to do that is to throw one or two "adult" pieces into the mix. The lamp she chose for her daughter is something you "would never see in a child's room," she said. "That one piece brings the whole room up."

For Stahl, designing kids' rooms is both fun and freeing. "It's so fulfilling to take a child and make a room based on their personality," she said. "Adults are more inhibited."