CASE STUDY

Throughout her Seattle condo, interior designer Michelle Dirkse has peppered in artwork by some of her closest friends and colleagues, including Jeff Gerber’s sculptural glass pyramids on the coffee table and a large, ethereal photograph by Jessa Carter. The black-and-white Sketches wallpaper is a pattern from Dirkse’s collection based on work from Gerber.

case study Interior and textile designer Michelle Dirkse’s creative force is at play even in her own print-opulent home. By AMANDA ZURITA Photographs by HARIS KENJAR

In the entryway, a vintage chandelier, sourced from 1stdibs and rewired at Harold’s Lighting in Seattle, and an oblong mirror from CB2 are minimal additions against the Rorschach-like wallpaper. Vintage chairs, also sourced through 1stdibs, bring a hint of Art Deco glamour to the dining area, and Mya Kerner’s art is the basis for the curtain fabric seen at near left.

Walking into Michelle Dirkse’s home is like stepping into a maximalist’s dream. A mix of rich texture, bold patterns, and saturated color, the interiors are the antithesis of the oftenpraised Northwest minimalism, but are elegant nonetheless. After purchasing a 1960s-era condo in Seattle, Dirkse—whose eponymous interior design firm is known for its sumptuous, layered, and sometimes quirky deliverables—set out to remodel the dated space, embracing a project with no limits (on time or aesthetics) and infinite opportunities to explore the nuances of combining furniture, art, and various design styles into a cohesive, livable space. “When you present clients with samples, it can be so intimidating for them,” she says. “Walking through my home, they can discover how fun—and genuinely livable— bold prints can be.”

At the time of the move, Dirkse was in the middle of designing her first collection of wallpaper, textiles, and rugs, so the condo became the ideal testing ground to play with the bold looks. “I never get to do maximalist pattern on pattern, and I want to show clients that that kind of mix doesn’t have to be scary or overwhelming—it actually can be really fun,” she says. For the line, Dirkse reached out to a handful of favored regional artists about a potential collaboration; subsequently she used work from the likes of Dana Mooney and Mya Kerner, among others, to create patterns for the collection.

One such pattern—the bold, black-and-white Sketches wallpaper based on work by Seattle artist Jeff Gerber—holds court on the anchor wall in her living room. Minimalist artwork and a lush green velvet custom-designed sofa, opposite a soft petal-pink lounge, provide balance. “Oftentimes, you see solid-colored walls with a more intense painting, so I did just the opposite,” she says. As with the artists chosen for her textile »

and wallpaper line, Dirkse leans local when it comes to her personal art collection, curating paintings, photographs, and objets from Seattle-area artists, including Jody Joldersma, Mike Duryea, Corrie LaVelle, and Jennifer Gauthier. Peeling back the asbestos popcorn layered over her concrete ceilings revealed an unexpected pattern that works beautifully into the design— a series of black stenciled numbers applied when the home was initially constructed. “It wasn’t exactly my plan to have a concrete ceiling,” she reflects, “but I thought to myself, ‘When am I going to have this opportunity again?’”

In the kitchen, Dirkse chose black oak cabinets with a cerused finish that draws out the detail and character of the grain—a dramatic move she has always found hard to sell to clients, who often fear that dark cabinetry will be too harsh. To keep things light and provide a sophisticated tonal contrast, she topped the cabinets with book-matched Dekton Aura countertops from Cosentino. This look carried over to the bathroom, where, true to her predilection for a good quirky element, Dirkse kept the vintage periwinkle tub and added new wall tile with pale pink grout to complement the tub’s unusual hue. In the bedroom, a softly feminine wallpaper from her own line is toned down with the addition of a gothic-style black Anthropologie bedframe that had been on her personal wish list for some time. Ceramic lamps commissioned from local artist Sarah Stokes sit on a set of nightstands she designed and had built at Plank & Grain. “I don’t get to commission lamps from artists I love for every client, so this feels like such a luxury,” she says. “I have a personal relationship behind almost every piece in my home. They’re not just random objects I went shopping for. Everything feels special and has meaning, rather than filling a space just to fill it.”

While her home is a shining testament to her work, it’s far from a stark showroom. It feels alive and conversational—and, for Dirkse, altogether complete, with everything in its place. “There’s another thing I tell clients,” she says. “I say, ‘Yeah, you’re going to love the look of your home, but you’re also going to love how it feels to live there.’”

Living in a space replete with multiple patterns and eyegrabbing colors might seem jarring to some, but for Dirkse, it’s just another day at the office. Her home is an honest extension of her client work—youthful and fresh without veering into trend-driven territory, it’s a testament that a balanced, maximalist look is actually easy to live with and, once you’ve embraced it, hard to live without. h

THIS PAGE: A nightstand designed by Dirkse and built by Plank & Grain holds a commissioned lamp by Seattle ceramist Sarah Stokes, while a black bedframe and Lucite-set scorpion bring an electric edge. OPPOSITE: Black kitchen cabinetry serves as proof of concept for client that the moody option can be elegant rather than overwhelming. Open shelving against the Dekton backsplash by Cosentino balances the deep hue.