A Life of Beauty: Natalie Myers

When Natalie Myers was laid off, her first thought was: “Wonderful!”

It was 2010—the tail end of the economic downturn—when her corporate interior design firm had to let her go. Guided by her optimism, know-how, and undaunted sense of confidence, Myers took the change as an opportunity to start her own firm: Veneer Designs.

Grounded in the technical, yet guided by the creative, Myers has since honed her signature “Scandifornian” style. The technique, which she coined herself, is inspired by Nordic and Japanese sensibilities, but infused with a West Coast earthiness—and it draws her clients right to her. With every project, she strives to craft a space that not only delights her clients, but makes them feel proud. “Their pride is my pride,” she says.

What drew you to interior design?

Interior design is such a unique trade. You have to be very artistic, have a vision, and be super creative to stand out from the pack. You can’t just regurgitate the same trends and styles over and over again. But you also have to be very organized, very detail-oriented. You dig deep into the technicalities of materials and details and how things connect and layer. 

It really does require somebody that's adept in both the right and the left brain. A lot of people say they're designers, but I think that to do it successfully, you really have to have prowess in both realms. But if you do, you really will succeed.

What do you love most about design?

I find that working with families and homeowners to invest in their homes and make them truly special, truly bespoke to their lifestyles, is so satisfying. It’s very rewarding to see the transformation, and to see them just loving the new environment.

What do you most enjoy about the process itself?

The first part is when you're doing the design development or the conceptualization, and it's very focused, heads-down work. It's just you in the zone. You're in this other space and time, just locked in and developing the designs, the concepts, the packages.

That’s what's really cool about design: that ‘aha’ moment where everything clicks. It's special, but you're in it by yourself. It's a very self-absorbed practice in that way. 

The other part is months later, when you're working with a builder and actually seeing it come to life. That’s also a really satisfying moment in the process: the project becomes a real thing that somebody's going to be living with for years from now.

 

What's your design philosophy?

I bring a level of confidence to the table. I like my own work. I think it's really pretty, and I think it's nice that I approach my clients with confidence. If we're going to work together, it's going to be awesome. Your house is going to be amazing. You're going to love it. I'm going to love it. It's going to be great.

What are the core principles behind your work?

If you have your own company or your own brand, I think it's important to develop a very specific point of view that sets you apart from everybody else. There's so many people doing really beautiful work, but it just becomes very same-y. I want to create spaces that I personally think are cool rather than follow trends. It just looks different from other people's work. But even in doing that, there was a common thread through all of my work. So I coined it the “Scandifornian” style.

And what is Scandifornian style to you?

It’s influenced a lot by Nordic design: minimalism, neutral palette, natural materials. But also by the Japanese, who have their own version of that. It’s inspired by both of those aesthetics. But then being in California, I feel like we're a little crunchier and earthier. We like things a little more rustic. All of those styles together created this look that I call Scandifornian. And now, people will come to me specifically for that.

How do you invite sustainability and wellness into your work?

Our industry is so, so wasteful. A lot of projects are just fast, gross flips: everything’s full of plastics and polyesters. When I work with families with young children and pets and we bring in new materials, I try to educate them on why they want everything to be natural. And yeah, it might be more expensive. But it’ll last forever. It’ll patina and weather nicely, and you’ll be healthier. That way, I feel good about leaving people to live in their spaces.

How do you empower your clients through design?

I love it when a client says “actually, I don’t know what my style is.” I’ll ask them for images and I can see a common thread between everything they pull, even if they don’t see it. Then we’ll create a mashup of their style and mine—something that I never would’ve gotten to on my own, and they would’ve never gotten to on their own. Together we’ll create a healthy, beautiful mix of both our styles. 

I still put it through my filter, through my lens, so it still looks like something I designed and feels like part of the Scandifornian framework. But together we make this really unique thing that would not have existed if the two of us hadn’t gotten together to work on it, which I love.

Can you tell me about the value of detail in your work?

For designers, keeping all the details interconnected and in play with each other is so important. We pull it all together and make sure all the details are harmonious, that there’s a common storyline connecting everything.

When I use plumbing fixtures like the Brizo portfolio, I think it’s cool to stick with a style or a family. I don’t like it when people use the exact same fixture for every single bathroom, but I do like it when there’s a certain family of fixtures or profiles or silhouettes that weave their way through the space. And I think that’s really important. Whether you’re doing plumbing fixtures or lighting or furniture, there has to be a common language that connects everything together.