Cathy Kincaid: An Eye for Timeless Style

Q&A

FLOWER: What a pleasure to page through the book! What made you decide to publish a book now?

Cathy Kincaid: Well, it’s the first and last! It was hard work, just coordinating projects and photographs, getting the right balance, and saying what I wanted to say. That said, once I started working on it, it was really fun—revisiting projects and the people who made each one a success. And it was important that it give readers practical information, such as sources about where to find something and how and why I made a decorating choice. I worked really hard to include all of that.

In the recent past, we’ve seen so many pared-down interiors and restrained finishes, but you have always adhered to pattern and color. Now magazines and book pages are full of color and collections. How do you approach the ebb and flow of trends and classics?

I’ve always felt that you can have pretty things and that you should not be afraid to use them. But at the same time, it takes a lot of work to keep things nice, and that’s what my clients want to know. They depend on designers to give them options that they can live with and that will grow with them. They want a timeless interior. For example, I recently worked on a project with a client I’ve had forever. We did her living room 30 years ago, but this time we took all the Gracie wallpaper away. We decluttered it. She still has her collections and things that are important to her, but it’s just simpler. Every decade has a different style.

Color and pattern are so important in your proj­ects. How do you approach selecting and combining them?

The clients know it’s the best when they see it, but they don’t always know why. Of course, I have my favorites like Robert Kime, Peter Fasano, and Bennison, but I also know what to look for when I’m creating a room.

I credit Joe Minton, my first boss when I was starting out, with helping me to understand color. He wanted me to pick fabrics and colors for a project we were working on. I showed him my selection, and he said that they were too perfect. That when it all matches, it looks cheap. He told me to combine colors and patterns that have a little tension. It makes a room more interesting.

So many of your projects involve remodeling, and you talk about making every effort to preserve the original architect’s vision. What stays your hand when it comes to updating an old house?

Well, the houses tell stories. I try to listen and be conscious of that. And the details that you see in the work of the great architects are so rare, with delicate moldings and different sorts of applications. They must be preserved. I love the quirkiness of old houses and the propor­tions of the rooms that are smaller. They’re more conducive to conversation. It’s natural to crave refreshing your home, and it needs to change over time. I want to be respectful of the past but also mindful of the evolution of life.

There are flowers throughout all your projects—in the fabrics and wallpapers and in arrangements. How do you like to use them? Is there such a thing as too much?

I love flowers, of course, and I always have them in my house. I prefer a simple arrangement—the simpler the better—in a beautiful container. I wish we could get gorgeous flowers right outside the door, but the Dallas heat means that some seasons are better than others, so we are limited here. Thank goodness for all our amazing floral designers.

Your clients’ houses are so lovely. Is there a must-have luxury that you like to add every time?

No question: lacquered ceilings. They create sparkle. If my client can’t afford to do it everywhere, I suggest doing it in the dining room. It adds something so special with candlelight and the table. It’s one of those things that people don’t notice right away, but it will transform the room.

You have a clear affinity for antiques, and especial­ly antique ceramics. How do you like to use them? What are your favorites?

I have always collected ceramics. I hung cheap blue-and-white transferware in my bedroom in my first house. But I do feel you can get too many plates on a wall, and I work that out with my clients. As far as favorites go, I have a few pieces of Hatcher [Jingdezhen blue-and-white porcelain recovered from a 1640s Chinese junk by Michael Hatcher in 1983] that are really special to me, and I love tulipieres.

I can’t help but think of the house fire you had almost 20 years ago. Your work is so about beauty and collections; the trauma must have been profound. And then I see this book and your contagious affection for memories, objects, and family and friends. How did you weather that storm?

It was devastating. I did not rebuild. It just seemed right to start fresh. So I rented a house at first and lived with the bare minimum—and my three dogs, three cats, and two chickens. It was at that time that I learned that you don’t need as much as you think you do. And that idea was kind of freeing—especially when I bought a house that needed to be remodeled, and I lived in the back house, which is now my office. I loved it because it was so simple. Of course, I’ve gone right back to having more things than I really need, but I’ll never forget that as long as you have those closest to you and your pets, you’ll be all right.