Oh the Stories I Could Tell

Due to the lack of progress on the Manor, I think it’s time to start telling client stories, the ones that when you tell people they say, “You should write a book.” I’m never going to write a book about them, but it is a good way to fill in the spaces when there isn’t much to blog about.

Let’s start with Mr. and Mrs. X. They came to me many years ago at the start of my professional career. Mr. X just started to climb up the Wall Street ladder. He had future star written all over him (probably tattooed somewhere on him rather painfully by Mrs. X).  I did their first apartment and first house in the Hamptons. They have since gone on to bigger houses, bigger apartments and bigger decorators. By the way when Mrs. X decides not to use your services anymore she doesn’t bother to inform you… you just find out.

Their first house, although on a prestigious street in The Hamptons was not what one would call an acceptable one, just like the Mercedes Benz her parents had bought them. It was a Mercedes, but as she put it, “a piece of s— Mercedes” meaning not the expensive model. My instructions were not to do much work on the house except decorate as they didn’t plan on living there too long – and they didn’t. They were there just long enough for me to furnish and publish the house. Her second house by her second decorator made Architectural Digest and her apartment by her third decorator, appeared in Elle Décor. I’m sure she has Peter Marino’s number penciled somewhere on her future call list.

When I told Karen Fisher about my intention to write about client experiences she told me not to be mean so hopefully I haven’t been. Of course it would have been a lot funnier if I had, but, after all, I am a professional. More about the X family later.