Behind the Design: Benni Amadi
Designer Spotlight: Benni Amadi of Benni Amadi Interiors, San Francisco, CA
How did you get where you are today (where are you from, where are you currently living, did you make a career move…)?
I was born and raised in Genoa, Italy. After living over 10 years in New York City I moved to San Francisco in 2014 to follow my husband who works in tech (shocker!). I worked in fashion PR for 12 years for many different brands (including Burberry, Giuseppe Zanotti Design, Marni…) and then I finally took the leap and decided to follow my real passion and went back to UC Berkeley to study Interior Design and Interior Architecture and got an interior design job at Homepolish as well as at a San Francisco residential interior design firm called Wick Design. I opened Benni Amadi Interiors April 2015.
Benni Amadi, Interior Design
DESIGN
The moment I knew I wanted to be an interior designer was when…
I was 5 years old and re-decorating my Barbie doll house.
The most memorable space I’ve ever been in is…
My godmother’s house in Tuscany, a beautiful villa featured in Bernardo Bertolucci’s movie Stealing Beauty, very rustic and simple but just beautiful.
I get to know a new space by….
Learning as much as I can about its owner.
My favorite city for design inspiration is…
Paris
When I design I feel…
Realized.
Benni Amadi, Interior Design
LIFE
Every morning I…
Spend a few hours with my 9 months old son Lucas before heading to the office, it’s been so amazing to see him grow into an exceptional little person.
I treat myself with/by…
Designer handbags, it’s a serious problem of mine!
My personal style is…
Mostly black head to toe (I am still very much a new Yorker at heart) but much more relaxed and casual since I moved to San Francisco
My tips for staying organized are…
I write notes on my Smithson notebook that my best friend gave me as a birthday present all day long, otherwise I just forget everything.
I never leave home without…
My French bulldog Marlo
Benni Amadi, Interior Design – Nursery
BUSINESS
My role model/s is/are…
Kelly Weartsler. These days many of the biggest decorating firms are run by men but Kelly is one of the few exceptions. Our styles are quite different but I deeply admire her vision and hard work etic. She established her eponymous global lifestyle brand, which encompasses everything from furniture, lighting and bedding to jewelry along with undertaking a host of high-class interior design projects. She is a marketing magician!
My business mantra is…
Pride in excellence.
For interior designers new to the business, I recommend…
Not sure that I can dispense any advice since I am pretty knew to the business myself, but I would definitely say that hard work brings success.
I define success by…
A client’s happiness.
The best advice I have received is…
If you are going to excel in the design world, you’ve got to understand volume. When you see a room you like, measure it. How big and how wide is it? What is the relationship of the ceiling height to the rest of the space?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned working in the interior design business is…
Always triple check measurements.
Who is your new favorite supplier? Why?
Studio Four in NY, they have the best textiles and wallpapers.
“Hard work brings success.”
Benni Amadi, Interior Design
WHY IVY
Why did you decide to start using Ivy?
It is a great tool to stay organized and my work is so much more efficient now that I started using it.
In one word, what do you hope Ivy will bring to your work life?
More organization.
What’s your favorite feature on Ivy so far?
The time track via email, just a quick email and it tracks your time, perfect for when you are on the go!