Samantha Gallacher, founder of Art+Loom, knows there’s no such thing as a perfect size and color scheme that works in every home. With varying ideas about what is and isn’t right for a client’s space, Samantha has been able to produce hundreds of unique customized rugs for clients all over the country. Her keen eye and knowledge of color has transferred and developed into breathtaking and unforgettable rugs, which have been featured in many publications such as The Wall Street Journal and Metropolitan Home. Introducing this week’s Maker Monday, Samantha Gallacher.
This piece is from Art + Loom’s collection with Lauren Williams Art. Each piece is also available for customization to fit any client’s needs.
Andrew Joseph: What is something you hope to see trending in design in the future?
Samantha Gallacher: I have always been a huge fan of black white and red together. Most people don’t love to work with red, so I am hoping one day bright red becomes the Pantone of the year! Additionally, in terms of design style I love would love to see an emphasis on the juxtaposition of materials and styles. More traditional mixed with modern, lush materials mixed with harsh materials, and so on. We have tried to accomplish this look with our new zipper collection. The idea is to zip the unexpected together. We have mixed a rough colorful shag with a refinished and shiny silk.
Andrew: If you weren’t a designer, you’d be a ….?
Samantha: If I wasn’t a designer I would love to be a ‘Sade’ style singer, but in this fantasy, I also need the universe to give me a good voice! Music can transport and inspire you. The best designing I do is when I shut out everything else and listen to music. So my dream would be to do that for someone else.
Containing muted tones of pink and blue, the scalloped rug is the perfect piece to uplift any room of the house.
Andrew: What’s your favorite cocktail?
Samantha: Aperol Spritz all the way! Nothing better than 4:00 somewhere in Italy and it is time for an Aperol!
Andrew: What was your first job?
Samantha: My first real job ever was making the balloon arches at bat mitzvahs in Westchester New York. At this point I already knew from a young age that I loved design in any form, whether it was creating rooms for my barbies or painting candlesticks for my mother. This particular job allowed me to create something bigger than myself and get paid minimum wage to do it! We would transform the most boring of ballrooms into a wonderland.
Andrew: What’s your biggest fear in life?
Samantha: Jumping out of a plane, never ever going to happen.
Featured in this room is the Halfmoon rug. It was completely handknotted in wool and silk and perfectly compliments the wood features.
Andrew: How would you define your work in three words?
Samantha: I would define my rug design as boundless, evolving, and alternative. I want my rugs to be known as something totally different than what you can find in most showrooms, yet easy to incorporate into a design project. Recently we have been incorporating zippers, playing with what shapes are possible in area rugs, taking fine artists’ work to the floor and making it textural, using photography to create a pattern. With rugs there are few limitations, we are not limited by repeat or having to order hundreds of each better, each rug can be its own masterpiece.
Andrew: If you had one more hour in the day what would you do with it?
Samantha: Paint or do more yoga, I love both but cannot seem to find enough time in the day between kids and work.
Andrew: Best advice you’d give your teenage self?
Samantha: Who cares what other people think, be the quirkiest most different you that you can be and people will follow.
When I began in interior design I thought each space or project had to conform to style or genre, now I realize there really are no limitations (other than what your clients allow you to do).
This past spring, the Formation rug made its first appearance. It is entirely made from wool and silk and constructed in multiple pile heights.
Andrew: What are some of the podcasts you listen to and why?
Samantha: Obsessed with “How I built this with Guy Raz”, every time I listen to it, I feel inspired to start new businesses or just take bolder chances with mine
Andrew: What would you like to be remembered for?
Samantha: My sense of humor (which clearly I find funnier than anyone else does) and my creativity.
Andrew: How do you define beauty?
Samantha: The most beautiful people I find are the ones completely comfortable in their own skin, although they may or may not have the perfect figure, hair, eyes, when they own their look they are gorgeous!
About The Maker | Samantha Gallacher has always had a keen eye for aesthetics and is a graduate of The New York School of Interior Design. Her career began with some of New York’s top designers, Glenn Gissler, Bob Kaner, and Kureck and Jones to name a few.
Samantha’s desire to create new and bold ideas led her to product and textile design. Iconic work for companies like West Elm, Max home, and Raj Overseas followed. Her work has been featured in The New York Times style section, The Wall Street Journal Home Section, Metropolitan Home, and Design Sponge.
Besides designing rugs for her own collection, Art + Loom, she’s co-owner of interior design firm IG Workshop. It was here that Art + Loom was created, due to a need for client demands and specifications that were not on the market. Samantha worked with her rolodex of factories from her prior experiences to custom design rugs that fit her clients needs. The snowball effect grew, and requests for custom rugs began to explode in and around Miami.
Samantha uses her vast knowledge of color and textiles to create Art+Loom bespoke rugs, a unique compliment to any project. From interior design to home textiles and fashion Samantha is one of Miami’s most versatile designers with a portfolio that covers commercial and residential spaces. Currently, Samantha works with incredible designers all over the country, selling her own designs as well as collaborating on custom styles.
Andrew Joseph is a regular contributing editor for ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME magazine. See more of his work here.
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