Great Design Starts with Storage

I had breakfast yesterday with a new colleague and friend whose company I very much enjoyed. Her name is Jennifer Carrel and she's an executive at Perkins Eastman, the largest architecture firm in New York City. We met at an exciting event at Lord & Taylor where a fellow undergrad alum, Jane Elfers, President of Lord & Taylor, spoke eloquently about the post-sale brand relaunch of L&T. Anyway Jennifer and I talked about the things women talk about: work, families, our wishes and dreams and of course, Jennifer's closets. First we discussed a freestanding wardrobe for clothing and the options, but as the conversation unfolded, the need for a small office area arose. While I made some recommendations, the dimensions of the room arose. We both came to the conclusion that the placement of the wardrobe in the proposed location would make a long narrow room even more long and narrow: not a good idea! Then we considered a window seat and supplemental storage on the opposite wall. While this discussion is to be continued, the important observation is as follows. Storage design, in the sense of both function and form, can define successful interior design! Great design truly does start with storage!