Talk Shop: Fan Winston and Margot Guralnick // remodelista
ABOUT MARGOT & FAN
Margot Guralnick is the coauthor of Remodelista: The Organized Home, writer/producer of Remodelista:
A Manual for the Considered Home, and a longstanding member of the Remodelista team. Though based
in the Bronx, she grew up outside of Boston, and practices New England thriftiness as a way of life.
Margot has been a vintage collector since childhood, and makes botanical art from fallen leaves.
Fan Winston is a long-time magazine editor and founding editor of the Organized Home, a companion
website to Remodelista. She is thrilled to co-write a book with her fellow Remodelista team member
that champions the same principles—a respect for nature, a distaste for wastefulness—her Chinese
immigrant parents have instilled in her since childhood. In addition to working on this project, as a
library board trustee in her town of Maplewood, New Jersey, she’s helping shepherd the construction of
an all-electric, LEED-certified public library.
Congratulations on your latest book, Remodelista: The Low-Impact Home! Where did the idea for this book come from:
Margot and Fan: Thank you! Our new book came about from an overwhelming concern for the state of the planet and a desire to offer some approachable ideas that we can all adopt at home. Our core mission was to come up with eye-opening, doable options that take both style and sustainability into consideration
How is your latest book different from your first book, Remodelista: The Organized Home:
Margot and Fan: There are actually five Remodelista books, starting with Remodelista: The Considered Home. They all celebrate thoughtful design, natural materials, and the pleasures of living surrounded by things we love—but not being encumbered by too much stuff. In Remodelista: The Organized Home we drilled down on simple, aesthetically pleasing storage ideas, all plastic-free. Our new book, Remodelista: The Low-Impact Home, is a guide to greener living: it’s filled with inspirational interiors as well as takeaway for every room.
What are 3 of your planet-friendly essentials you think our readers should know about:
Margot: Here are three easy-to-adopt essentials: Eat a mostly vegetarian diet. Compost the scraps. Wash your clothes in cold water and hang them to dry.
Fan: Here are three more challenging but important changes: Electrify your life as much as you can to curb your dependence on fossil fuels. Be more selective when it comes to air travel. Rewild your lawn to promote eco-diversity.
Describe your style in three words or less:
Margot: Casual, layered, quirky
Fan: Comfortable, simple, unfussy
What have been the three biggest influences on your aesthetic in your life:
Margot: Marimekko fabrics, Matisse paintings and collages, Alexander Calder’s figural wire sculptures.
Fan: I happen to adore every inspiration Margot listed as well. (I guess that’s why we get along so well!) To her list, I’d add: my parents’ thriftiness, my mother-in-law’s love for interior design, and an intro photography class in college that taught me the importance of composition.
What is your favorite thing about what you do:
Margot: In general, I love finding and sharing things: show and tell was my favorite activity in first grade. At Remodelista that translates as discovering fresh, inspired designs and presenting them to our audience.
Fan: I love championing lesser-known brands and designers for whom any media attention is exponentially more important than it is for well-known ones.
Do you have a mentor in your career, and if so, how have they helped to shape your trajectory:
Margot: My mother is my mentor. She began as a UPI reporter and went on to become New England field editor for the Meredith Corporation, which entailed styling shoots and writing about interiors for Traditional Home and other magazines. I used to fall asleep to the sound of her typing. I worked as an editor at several magazines and ended up following in my mother’s footsteps—with her egging me on every step of the way. I love what I do and feel so lucky.
Fan: I don’t have a single person as a mentor; instead I’d say that my time at Entertainment Weekly back in the early aughts was where I learned that you can write thoughtfully on any topic, no matter how frivolous. I carry that lesson with me to this day. I think one of the most popular posts I’ve written for Remodelista was about a wool dish mat I bought! (More on that dish mat below.)
What does your home say about you:
Margot: That I have a passion for everyday household things, new and vintage, and welcome a lot of them into my quarters: of late, you could call me a maximalist but I like an underpinning of order.
Fan: That I’m a maximalist masking as a minimalist. No matter how much I admire serene, minimalist spaces, I can’t help but muck it up with objects and color.
Where do you find inspiration:
Margot: All over, but particularly from nature: I have a thing for found leaves.
Fan: At thrift stores, where I’m reminded that unique, well-made things don’t have to cost a ton. On the trails in Oregon, where I now live. Two of my favorite things in my home right now—a sprightly tumbleweed and an elegant branch with wisps of foliage—were both found on nature walks.
What are your key ingredients for entertaining:
Margot: Carrot sticks quick-pickled in seasoned rice vinegar. My homemade orange-infused wine.
Table party favors, such as mini potted plants.
Fan: A just-cleaned home, a drinks station, candles.
Do you collect anything:
Margot: I collect a lot of things, including sculptural, useful old wooden clothes hangers–I especially like the ones emblazoned with the names of hotels and ocean liners.
Fan: It’s not a huge collection, but I’ve amassed a beloved selection of beach rocks over the years. I like to display them on windowsills.
Favorite Instagram accounts to follow for inspiration:
Margot: @theapartmentdk, @meiow_mix, @themodernhouse,
Fan: @slow_roads, @brooklynnets, @tat.london
What design “rule” do you always follow, and which is made to be broken:
Margot: I believe in creating rooms over time and not thinking about the rules. But, at this point, when introducing new things, I try to edit out the extraneous.
Fan: I follow the rules when it comes to rug sizing (e.g., living room rug should be big enough so that at least the front legs of the sofa and/or armchairs rest on the rug). A too-small rug really can ruin the look of a room. Another must-abide rule: when hanging art on the walls, make sure the center of the artwork is 57 to 60 inches from the floor. Other than that: there are no rules!
What are you working on right now:
Margot: We’re always working on Remodelista features for the weeks ahead—and right now, new year, fresh start ideas are on our agenda. I also moonlight as a botanical artist–I make flatlay designs with branches, and leaves, and berries gathered on walks and preserve these daily assemblages by photographing them. I’m having a show of my large-format prints at garden furniture store Munder Skiles’s new location in Madrid this winter.
Fan: In addition to contributing to Remodelista, I’m also the editor-in-chief of Gardenista, its sister site. I’m a gardening enthusiast, not an expert, so I’m learning a ton editing the site. I’m looking forward to this spring when I can put some of those lessons to action.
Wardrobe staples:
Margot: Tunic dresses from Layla in spring, summer, and fall. Merino t-shirts and Bill Cunningham-style blue canvas work jackets and jeans in winter.
Fan: Patagonia fleece, jeans, wool socks, Birkenstock Boston slides.
Favorite eco-friendly home products:
Margot: Vintage glass refrigerator containers from Etsy sellers for storing meal leftovers. Auntie Oti natural-dyed cloth napkins. Alpaca throw blanket from Area. Our all-electric Chevy Bolt.
Fan: Sonoma Wool Company’s simple wool dish mat: it’s crazy how a small thing like a dish mat that’s not ugly and synthetic can bring me such joy. An area rug from Goodee, a well-curated eco-conscious site that is one of my favorites. Our energy-efficient tankless water heater—we moved into a new build recently and were thrilled to learn it has one—so far, it’s worked great for our family of four.
Best interior advice you ever received:
Margot: Live in your place before doing anything drastic.
Fan: Less is more.
Best career advice you ever received:
Margot: It’s only a job—I tend to take things very seriously!
Fan: Don’t be afraid to admit when you don’t know something.
Types of home purchases you invest in, and save on:
Margot: Splurge: We installed new, energy-saving windows. Solar panels, a heat pump, and induction stove are all in the planning stages. Save: We kept our 1950s kitchen with its green linoleum counters, even though everyone assumed we’d immediately rip it out. We’ve even preserved our two tiny midcentury bathrooms. Paint and a few new fixtures have very cost-effectively made these rooms our own.
Fan: Our mattress and sofa are splurges for obvious reasons. We saved on our rugs, which are mostly jute or sisal—natural materials that are far less expensive than pure wool rugs.
Your greatest extravagance:
Margot: Sheepskin slippers: I have a wardrobe of them, including No.6 fleece-lined clogs, and always wear them as house shoes.
Fan: Fruit. I don’t think twice about splurging on Sumo oranges or Asian pears.
Favorite places to shop for home:
Margot: I like online browsing at Labour & Wait, Casa Gonzalez y Gonzalez, Objects of Use, and Utilitario Mexicano
Fan: Goodee, DWR, Nickey Kehoe, Food52, and vintage stores.
Most prized possession and why:
Margot: A gold signet ring with a family crest—I found it while snorkeling in Greece when I was eleven. I’ve been on a treasure hunt ever since.
Fan: Paintings by my dad. We moved to the US from China when I was six, and he had to work two jobs to sustain our family of five. Now that he’s retired, he has become an avid painter. It’s never too late to become an artist.
Your interiors motto:
Margot: Let comfort and beauty rule.
Fan: Form AND function.
Your life motto:
Margot: Don’t throw that away!
Fan: Do you really need that?
Advice for someone looking to define their own interior style:
Margot: Read Remodelista!
Fan: Take your time. Sure, you can buy everything you need for your home in a weekend but my favorite homes are the ones with unexpected moments—an artful chair anchoring a corner, a sculptural houseplant thriving in a sunny spot, a collection of vintage spoons—and those take time (and luck) to find
Take Ten: My Favorite…
Food:
Margot: Chocolate mousse
Fan: Persimmons
Drink:
Margot: Hard cider
Fan: Anything with grapefruit
Film:
Margot: The Lady Killers and The Red Balloon
Fan: Anything with Daniel Day Lewis.
Hotel:
Margot: Hotel Santa Fe in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, where I got married
Fan: Los Poblanos in Albuquerque, NM
City:
Margot: NYC
Fan: NYC
Bedding:
Margot: Eiderdown comforter
Fan: My linen duvet cover from Quince.
Tea or Coffee (and how do you take it):
Margot: Milky tea
Fan: Coffee with cream
Playlist:
Margot: Kwela, South African penny whistle jive from the 1950s
Fan: Wilco, Alabama Shakes, Fleetwood Mac.
Weekend Activity:
Margot: Making botanical art from leaves, watching High Maintenance.
Fan: Pancakes in the morning; hiking one of the nearby trails; rooting for my son’s basketball team; dinner out.
Design Book:
Margot: Marimekko: Fabrics, Fashion, and Architecture
Fan: Remodelista: A Manual for the Considered Home and Leslie Williamson’s Interior Portraits