Founded in 2007, Karen Kimmel Studio is a creative consulting powerhouse – specializing in marketing, branding and design services for a wide range of private and corporate clients. (You know we love to name drop… and it’s absolutely worth mentioning the client roster is filled with the likes of Splendid, Nike, Target, Ella Moss and Cole Haan.) The Studio is also home to Crafting Community, an annual family retreat that cultivates creativity and imagination. This December, Crafting Community is treating Los Angeles to a holiday extravaganza! Attendees will be able to join their expert crew of celebrated designers for a series of festive workshops, including an ornament bar, custom cards, a wrapping station, succulent gardens, nail art… the list goes on! (Psst…Tickets can be purchased here.) We stopped in to visit Karen in her new headquarters – a bright and cheerful space that inspires creativity to no end. 

Tell us about the space – how did you find such a cool location?
I’ve always been a big believer in Atwater Village – I’ve had my art studio here for ten years, and it makes me so happy to see what a creative hub the neighborhood has become. We moved into our current office about a year ago, once we accepted the fact that we’d completely grown out of the studio where we’d been working for years. These snazzy live/work places opened up down the street and we pounced.

Love it! When designing the new studio, what was the number one priority?
Having an office door that closes for starters! We wanted enough private spaces to meet in small groups for our projects, balanced by a large, communal open space for big creative brainstorming sessions… Our four flights of stairs make for great cardio, so that’s a perk, too!

Did you work with a designer or do it all on your own?
We designed the space and worked with our long-time collaborator, David Alvarez, to make all those built-ins, desks and inspiration boards a reality.

That explains all the beautiful furniture! Any other favorite pieces?
Our meeting table is my childhood dining room table! It’s a testament to my mother’s amazing, totally wild decorating style. It’s a massive wooden table with this wonderful Northern California 70s vibe – a little bit nautical, a little bit J.R.R. Tolkien.

What is your favorite part of the office?
We haven’t utilized it as much as we would have liked (maybe it’s the neverending, atrociously hot summer’s fault), but I love the roof deck. We keep threatening to have a party up there – it has such a pretty view! Rue party?

We’d never miss it! So, design gems aside – what does a typical day look like in the Crafting Community offices?
There really is no typical day, which is part of the charm and the challenge. You can count on your to-do list being a good deal longer than you have time for, and there’s always a pinch of creative chaos and problem-solving going on in some corner of the office. Even when things are absolutely insane, I leave the office feeling grateful for having the best team and the funnest job on earth.

That’s the dream! Thanks, Karen – you always leave us so inspired.

Rue Readers: be sure to check out Crafting Community’s December event! You can purchase tickets here.