The One Question This Design Duo ALWAYS Asks Their Clients
What do you wear when you entertain? It’s the first question designers Virginia Toledo and Jessica Geller ask when they talk to a new client. “It’s a great way to get to know someone’s real entertaining style, which is so important to our design,” says Geller. “There’s a good chance they’ll say ‘formal,’ even if they opened the door in Lululemon.”
As founders of New Jersey–based firm Toledo Geller, the duo aims to create beautiful homes that are made to be used. “We design for 365 days of the year, turning formal dining rooms into casual, multipurpose rooms that do double duty for homework and multiple other activities,” says Geller. “We want clients to feel like the best version of themselves, which is ultimately comfortable, relaxed, happy, and proud.”
Designing this way comes naturally to both women. Geller started her career as a social worker, so she’s skilled in helping people feel safe in their surroundings. And Toledo began decorating at a young age. “I constantly fiddled around with what I had at home to make things prettier,” the Brooklyn native recalls. “And I would daydream about how the buildings in the neighborhood could be fixed up and improved. I was always hopeful that it could be done-and that I would have the power to do that with creativity.”
Today, the designers specialize in creating livable luxury for their clients: “A little bit country, a little bit rock and roll. It’s a mix we do often,” says Geller. “Imagine a hostess opening the door for a dinner party in a gown-but with bare feet.”
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