Talk shop: Kylie Bass // kKb interiors
About Kylie
Kylie Bass has always had a passion for homes and beautiful spaces. This passion, combined with her artistic aptitude and creative foundation, inspired her to pursue a career in design. Before opening her firm, KKB Interiors, in 2018, Kylie apprenticed for a number of prestigious interior design firms in New York City, where she was exposed to a wide network of vendors and artisans and given a chance to infuse her vision and refine her craft.
Kylie gravitates towards clean lines and organic shapes. She loves layering different textures and materials, and integrating contemporary and vintage pieces. She has a natural ability to connect with and understand her client's goals and in turn design timeless, functional interiors that reflect their lifestyle. She truly believes it is so important to come home every day to a place you love. Since the launch of KKB Interiors, Kylie’s projects have included homes in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and the Hamptons. Kylie lives in New York City with her husband and two children.
We love Kylie’s approach to cozy, modern spaces. Follow along as we learn more about her design philosophy in our latest Talk Shop — enjoy!
Describe your style in three words or less:
Thoughtful, functional, personal
What have been the three biggest influences on your aesthetic in your life:
Traveling, my countless Architectural Digest magazines, and taking a drive or walk near the beaches in Bridgehampton and Southampton; looking at traditional Hamptons architecture is my favorite activity.
How did you start your company, and/or what is your favorite thing about what you do:
How I started my company is kind of intertwined with how I started working in design. Growing up I was more of a creative, artistic person, but I always just assumed that pursuing a “creative” career in your 20s meant “creative thinking.” So when I graduated college, I worked in advertising (most recently on the sales marketing team for the Today Show) and I absolutely loved my job. My boss was so motivating and the women on my team were amazing. A lot of people switch jobs or careers because they’re unhappy, but I think being in that positive environment made me realize that that industry wasn’t for me long-term and actually allowed me to figure out what I wanted next.
Separately, I had always been obsessed with homes. Part of my morning routine was (and still is!) reading Architectural Digest articles and looking for homes on realtor.com for fun. In hindsight, it's so funny to think that this career path didn't click sooner for me. After MANY conversations with industry vets, my fiancé at the time (now husband and father of my two children!) encouraged me to take this leap. After working for a few firms, I learned a lot about who and how I wanted to operate as a designer, gained more confidence in the process, and decided to start my own business. I haven’t looked back!
Do you have a mentor in your career, and if so, how have they helped to shape your trajectory:
When I first decided to start my own company, my mother-in-law, Stacy Bass (who is an incredible home and gardens photographer), connected me with designer Jennifer Smokler who was looking for an assistant for a 10,000+ sq. ft. project she had just taken on. Throughout the project, Jennifer and I formed a wonderful, rare relationship: she not only guided by example and taught me so much about the industry (more than she’ll ever know), but also often asked for my opinions and listened to my ideas, all while helping me get my business off the ground in tandem. I will be forever grateful for her guidance and support. When I started in this industry, I didn’t always feel a sense of comradery of designers supporting designers (though my opinion of this has since changed!), and she was the first person who truly made me feel differently. I now try to channel her energy in how I operate both in my business and when asked for career advice.
What does your home say about you:
That my style is forever evolving! Ha! I always joke that one day when I move out of the city that each room in my house is going to have a different theme because every other day I fall in love with a completely different aesthetic. So instead, I feel lucky to have clients who want all different styles because I can channel that energy elsewhere!
Where do you find inspiration:
Where DON’T I find inspiration! Vintage shops, design publications, interiors books, getting coffee in the morning, Instagram, traveling…
Who are your style icons:
Honestly, Diane Keaton and my daughter.
What are your key ingredients for entertaining:
Layered tablescapes, beautiful floral arrangements, and having too much food.
Do you collect anything:
COFFEE. TABLE. BOOKS. It’s a problem…
Favorite Instagram accounts to follow for inspiration:
@amymeierdesign, @jakearnold, @galerieprovenance, @clementsdesign, @moncxiii, @getthegusto, @patrickahearnarchitect, @roseuniacke
What design “rule” do you always follow, and which is made to be broken:
Always use performance fabrics on family room sofas! But don't treat your home like a museum. They’re designed to be lived in and enjoyed.
What are you working on right now:
Multiple forever homes for clients. It’s the best!
Wardrobe staples:
Mock-neck sweaters, high-waisted straight-leg jeans, and anything Jenni Kayne.
Favorite fabric/wallpaper:
It’s hard to pick favorites, but I love everything from Rose Tarlow and Chelsea Textiles.
Best interior advice you ever received:
Design is subjective and also you should design spaces around how your clients envision using them. What you see on Instagram is not always real life!
Best career advice you ever received:
Say yes to every project in the beginning. Even if you don’t like it, everything is a learning experience. It was the best advice I received and I don't regret a single project because of each new experience and the relationships formed.
Types of home purchases you invest in, and save on:
Invest in pieces that speak to you and/or that you will use often. That answer is different for everyone. In this industry, you get what you pay for. Also, buy vintage! Save on accessories.
Your greatest extravagance:
Massages. It’s my ultimate me time.
Favorite places to shop for home:
1st Dibs does an amazing job aggregating vintage and made-to-order pieces. I also love Home Nature, vintage shops, and all book stores for accessories.
Most prized possession and why:
My kids because they are just so delicious and amazing and pure. Every day I wake up and can’t believe they’re mine. It’s cheesy, but the truth. And also my husband because I could not have asked for a more supportive, encouraging partner. He is my biggest cheerleader (...and most importantly, helped make those edible children!)
Your interiors motto:
It is so important to be honest, warmhearted and REAL. It’s the only way I operate and the reason I can continue to grow my business. If there is no trust, there won’t be a successful outcome. Especially in this industry, it's so important because design is such an intimate, personal process.
Your life motto:
Be kind to everyone.
Advice for someone looking to define their own interior style:
DON’T! Lean in to what you love and don’t feel like you need to put a label on it. There are opportunities to connect different styles in ways you may not think of at first. That’s part of why I love doing what I do, because I can help people reframe how they think about their homes and in turn create special, unique spaces.
Take Ten: My Favorite…
Food: Pasta. Any and all pasta.
Drink: Wine. Any and all wine.
Film: The Holiday or Something’s Gotta Give (I see you, Ariel ;) lol)
Hotel: The Ritz Paris
City: New York (AM I CLICHE?!)
Bedding: My sheets right now are Hill House Home and I LOVE them.
Tea or Coffee (and how do you take it): Coffee! Usually iced coffee with skim, but recently I’ve been addicted to iced oat milk lattes.
Playlist: Leon Bridges Radio
Weekend Activity: Going out east with our kids. My husband and I met and got married out there, so any opportunity to be there with them is when I’m the happiest.
Design Book: Interiors: Atelier AM and Houses: Atelier AM – Alexandra and Michael Misczynski are my ultimate design idols. I think their approach to design is absolute perfection.