Designer Sarah Lederman has quite the resume: She’s a graduate of the New York School of Interior Design, interned with the renowned designer Bunny Williams, and then joined the offices of architectural and interior designer Tom Scheerer Incorporated. Now, her eponymous firm is known for a refined design sensibility, blending classic styling with modern and unexpected touches.
As her firm grew, so did the need for a formal office space. She found a two-bedroom apartment on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and transformed each room into a highly functional—and beautiful—workspace. It’s layered, lived in, and serves as the perfect canvas to further hone her work. She tells us more.
Tell us about your studio. Where is it located, how did you find the space, and what do you love most about the neighborhood?
Our office is located on the upper east side of Manhattan. I love that it’s across town from where I live, which gives me both a reason to walk through Central Park on a daily basis and to get out of the house. I love exploring a neighborhood that’s not my own—I sort of feel like I’m an honorary eastsider now. And it’s convenient to design related shopping like the D&D building and a multitude of showrooms.
We’d love to know about the design of the space—the form AND the function!
We designed the space to be part design studio and part shop. We converted the two bedrooms into our offices, while the living room functions as both a conference room and showroom for some of the unique ceramics and textiles I started selling during the pandemic. We’ve hosted several trunk shows over the last couple of years and it’s always a lot of fun to open the space up for shopping, drinks, and bites!
One of my favorite parts of the office are the wallcoverings and fabrics provided by Thibaut, a heritage textile brand we collaborated with during the decorating process. The addition of grasscloth and Roman shades really allowed us to showcase the type of work we do as a firm and made the space feel more complete and less like a white box rental.
How do you describe your signature style? What are the hallmarks of your designs?
I like spaces that feel warm, personal, and layered. One of my go-to methods to achieve that is by blending patterns through the use of textiles and wallpaper in varying scales.
What is a “typical” day like at the office?
There really is no typical day! Throughout the week we are working in the office, bouncing around to different job sites, and sourcing all over the city and beyond. Several days a month we go out of town to visit clients (we are currently working on jobs upstate and in Boston and Maine) or to review pieces at our various workrooms on Long Island and in Long Island City. The variety in our schedule definitely keeps things from feeling mundane!
