“The biggest mistake clients make is not trusting themselves to know what they don’t like. Nobody should ever be talked into something that they find distasteful,” advises Alexa Hampton. “I believe the most interesting design is collaborative and incorporates the views and interests of the people for whom I work.” The job of the designer, she adds, “is to be a filter for clients, distilling their best impulses to create beautiful, functional rooms.”

Hampton is doing just that in a house in Montana’s Yellowstone Club as well as in residences in the Midwest and the South and around her home base of Manhattan. “We’re doing more international work too, including the design of another motor yacht.”

In recent years she has added fabric, furniture, trim and carpet lines to the portfolio at Mark Hampton Inc. “Suitability and appropriateness are hallmarks of great design, and I strive to have both in my work,” she explains. Hampton’s regard for notable interiors of the past is evident in the list of some of her favorite houses—Charles de Beistegui’s Château de Groussay and Monticello—and the work of David Adler. But she remains very much a 21st-century woman: “Technology is making my job easier,” she says. “Not having to worry about where computer wires come out, thanks to Wi-Fi, is liberating. On a more practical note, e-mail and computer programs have revolutionized my office—and how I work.”

Alexa Hampton

212-753-4110

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