Maker Monday: Sarah Lavoine

The daughter of an interior designer and a French Vogue editor, Sarah Lavoine was born to express her personal style. After founding her highly successful design studio in France, she made a name for herself designing the interiors of hotels, office spaces, cafes (one in Tokyo!) and flats. Her proudest accomplishment, however, is her own brand, Maison Sarah Lavoine. With two stunning stores in Paris, she has grown her influence in design, fashion, and culture. Inspired by “Bleu Sarah Lavoine,” one of the 36 timeless colors she has created with Ressource House of Paints, her latest Maison ‘Slavic’ collection, is a velvety, textured line fit for any harmonized modern space.

Join me in chatting with Sarah, and take a peek at her latest pieces!

Sarah Laovine rose pillowSurrounded by clean furnishings and beautifully cool walls, Laovine’s Rose pillow is the perfect burst of color on a cream couch.

Andrew Joseph: Who is your ideal client?
Sarah Lavoine: A client that would challenge me and my inspirations, a client that would take me somewhere I’ve never been and who would follow my path if I take him somewhere he’s never been.

Andrew: How do you maintain a work/life balance?
Sarah: I’m passionate about my work – and I’m so grateful for that. Being a mom of three it’s also very important to keep quality moments just for us. So as soon as I can, I take them away and we travel, sometimes far sometimes not so far just to enjoy good times together. These moments are the essential experiences to help me keep it all together.

Andrew: Dream country to work in? Or dream project to take on?
Sarah: I had the opportunity to start working in the hospitality industry with our first hotel in Paris, le Roch. Now that I’ve experienced such a project I’d love to design one in NY.

sarah laovine ottomanThe Leo ottoman in “Bleu Sarah Lavoine” is a comfortable and colorblocked centerpiece for a practical space.

Andrew: What modern design trend makes you cringe?
Sarah: Total looks! I’ve never been a fan, never will I think. Home decor should be a natural expression of people personalities. And you’re never Ying or Yang. You’re always in between. I’ll always mix pieces from different eras, have a touch of ethnic mixed with industrial post-modern, and maybe some contemporary too. This is what life is about, movement, change. And interiors should relate to that movement.

Andrew: Vintage or new?
Sarah: Vintage and new! I like the idea that you can live with an affordable stool and very chic tableware found in flea markets for instance. In Paris, we’re lucky we have amazing markets where you can find pieces and then transform them so they keep telling new stories for years.

Available in four stunningly simple colorways, the ‘Slavic’ collection chair is a universal piece that fits truly anywhere.

Andrew: How do you define beauty?
Sarah: Beauty is more of an attitude, a generosity to people that genuinely reflects on yourself.


About Sarah Lavoine | With an interior designer mother and a father who was Director of Vogue Paris, Sarah Lavoine grew up in a creative universe with design and fashion in the background. After studying acting, Sarah Lavoine decided to revive family roots and embark on a career in interiors, her true destiny. In 2002, after having improved her talents with Sabine Marchal and François Schmidt, she created her studio and signed numerous private architectural projects. Modern, chic and elegant, she is constantly inspired by her environment, architecture, contemporary art, and vintage furniture. Her expertise of the Parisian apartment quickly became a reference and won the support of the media and fans of decoration. Her style soon evolved from the private apartment projects to the general public with the opening of her two stores: Rue Saint Roch and Rue du Bac.

Sarah Lavoine has now acquired her reputation for excellence and became Maison Sarah Lavoine. The goal is that each client feels at home at the store and comes to draw ideas and to find everything to comfortably live inside their own home.


Andrew Joseph is a regular contributing editor for ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME magazine. See more of his work here

Like what you see? Get it first with a subscription to ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME magazine.

No Comments Yet

Leave a Reply

aspire design and home is seeker and storyteller of the sublime in living. It is a global guide to in-depth and varied views of beauty and shelter that stirs imagination; that delights and inspires homeowners as well as art and design doyens. Collaborating with emergent and eminent architects, artisans, designers, developers and tastemakers, aspire creates captivating content that savors the subjects and transports with stunning imagery and clever, thought-provoking writing. Through lush and unique visuals and a fresh editorial lens, aspire explores what is new and undiscovered in art, interiors, design, culture, real estate, travel and more. aspire design and home is an international narrative and resource for all seeking the sublime.