Ashley Stark Kenner Transcending Style
Ashley Stark-Kenner, the Creative Director for Stark, recently debuted her e-commerce brand Ashely Stark Home. Stark is the legendary carpet and fabric company founded by her grandparents, Arthur and Nadia Stark, in 1938.
For some, they are just born with style and Ashley is one of them. We had the chance to speak with Ashley and learn a little bit about her personal and professional style.
WHAT PROMPTED YOU TO LAUNCH ASHLEY STARK HOME AND HAS IT EVOLVED FROM YOUR ORIGINAL CONCEPT?
I have been the creative director of Stark for numerous years and have been constantly asked to design my own line. Once my Instagram took off I was continuously approached by a variety of great companies to do my own line. I finally felt like, “maybe I should, but I want to do it myself and do what I know best; everything home!” My original concept was rugs, but now it’s so much more and will continuously evolve.
TELL US WHY NEW YORK IS A GREAT CITY TO LIVE IN?
New York City is the best city. You can walk everywhere. You are surrounded by so much cultural diversity and amazing high energy. There is so much to explore and keep you interested.
A fun fact that most people may not know is that Iris Apfel is your great aunt. It would be hard to imagine she did not have an impact in some way.
WHAT WAS HER GREATEST INFLUENCE?
Iris Apfel and her husband Carl actually trained me in the fabric industry. She would take me to all the buying meetings and tell me to follow my instincts. She always told me to be who I am and trust my own judgment. She was always a source of Inspiration for me.
YOU ARE SCROLLING THROUGH INSTAGRAM, NAME YOUR FAVORITE STYLE ICONS
OF TODAY.
That’s such a hard one since there are so many amazing tal- ented people. I love Joseph Dirand, Kelly Wearstler, Vincent Van Duysen, Rose Uniacke and so many more!!
WHO IS THE PERSON YOU ARE CREATING FOR?
I create for myself and design lovers. Ashley Stark Home offers carefully curated pieces that come together for a truly individualistic point of view.
WHAT DO WE NEED TO SEE MORE OF AND LESS OF?
We need to see more individuality and less sterile interiors. I want to empower my cus- tomers to take chances and have fun!
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIECE IN THE COLLECTION?
That’s so hard to say!! I love it all, but there are a few rugs I especially love. The Danika has an Art Deco inspired design, the Fergie rug has creams and whites with soft, playful patterns and a low relief in the background weave, and the Dex rug is Scandinavian at heart and has this soft handspun boucle tex- ture I’m a big fan of.
DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN 2 WORDS?
Rebellious Traditionalist
WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING ON NETFLIX?
“Persuasion”
WHAT IS ON YOUR NIGHTSTAND?
Pictures of my family and my Kindle.
WITH BUSINESS AND A BUSY FAMILY LIFE, HOW DO YOU LIKE TO SPEND YOUR DOWNTIME AWAY FROM WORK?
I love to take long walks and do yoga.
WHAT WILL WE BE SEEING ON ASHLEYSTARKHOME.COM FOR FALL/WINTER?
AshleyStarkHome.com will offer more amazing rug options throughout the fall/winter season, and I’m excited to expand our offerings here. We’ll also have new throw blan- kets that are perfect for a cozy fall evening, more tableware options, a new peel and stick wallpaper collaboration with NuWallpaper, and more handmade faux florals as part of my ongoing collaboration with Diane James Home.
