Laura Krey Design

Laura Krey Design Founded in 2008, Laura Krey Design (LKD) transforms overwhelming renovations into thoughtful design journeys.

Specializing in residential and hospitality design, LKD turns each home into a piece of livable art.

05/29/2026

The built-ins were always good. The lighting made them great. A picture light over art and a little shelf illumination, that’s the edit most rooms like these are missing.

05/28/2026

A boutique hotel has been living rent-free in my head for a while. The interiors, the details, the whole experience. Thinking out loud here…

Built-ins get a lot of credit for storage. Mine get credit for the art. Two works on paper, a pair of small red vases an...
05/22/2026

Built-ins get a lot of credit for storage. Mine get credit for the art. Two works on paper, a pair of small red vases and a recessed light doing exactly what it’s supposed to.

Quiet corners can have a little whimsy too ⭐️

A room I keep returning to. Partly because the vintage quilt and the art still make me happy, and partly because it's pr...
05/14/2026

A room I keep returning to. Partly because the vintage quilt and the art still make me happy, and partly because it's proof that giving a kid design agency doesn't have to end in cartoon characters. He picked navy. I handled the rest. We both won.

05/07/2026

Never have I ever followed a design trend. This isn’t entirely true, but I now consciously try to avoid it, and as a practice, I ask myself before I presenting to clients if anything I’ve selected is trend-driven.

What holds up is when a space is based on proportion, light, and curated choices. A trend-free space feels free of any particular era yet can still be stylistically part of design history – a la anything by Mies van de Rohe. His interiors are pushing 100 and are from the “High Modernism” era, but their design “bones” are part of a design aesthetic still employed today, and one that looks timeless.

One of my favorite games to play with my family when we’re out and about is to ask them what they think I, as a designer...
05/05/2026

One of my favorite games to play with my family when we’re out and about is to ask them what they think I, as a designer, would find wrong with the space we happen to find ourselves in. Usually these are either restaurants or hotels, and 99% of the time they get it right when they answer, “Lighting.”

Lighting is the most frequent design mistake I see, and it drives me bonkers. I find spaces equally over lit or just lit in the wrong ways. I’m not against low lighting at all, but it must be done right and too often lighting hasn’t been layered enough.

Another mistake I see on the residential side are interiors that are lacking in personality. Everyone loves a good hotel interior, but few of us really live in them. Bring in visual displays of life of the inhabitants. Trying to view your home from an anthropological perspective, ie: what do your interior say about what you and your partner/husband/wife/family love?

Finally, too often I see clients waiting to invest in their interiors because they have kids, pets, etc…which is a shame. Your life is now, your interior is now, and patina and scrapes are part of it.

Not all inspiration comes from gallery visits and design events. Sometimes it's a sunset, a monkey, and a resort cat wit...
05/04/2026

Not all inspiration comes from gallery visits and design events. Sometimes it's a sunset, a monkey, and a resort cat with absolutely zero interest in your presence.

Grenada, you were amazing!

05/01/2026

I always have a go-to mental list in my head that I run through while shopping, particularly when I’m sourcing pieces that don’t have a known provenance or come from a designer’s oeuvre.

First - does the piece or any of its parts wobble? If so, how badly? I have a 15th Century Spanish table that I love, with drawers that aren’t the smoothest anymore, but the table itself is still structurally very sound. Second - joinery details, glued or dovetail? Glue can be ok when used on a piece, but not as its primary means of joinery. Third - any visible signs of repair? I’ve purchased repaired pieces but the price was right.

What’s always on your mental list when sourcing vintage pieces?

Yes, I treated a rental apartment like a purchased condo. It’s always worth it if it’s a long-term rental as the payoffs...
04/30/2026

Yes, I treated a rental apartment like a purchased condo. It’s always worth it if it’s a long-term rental as the payoffs are immense.

There are so many semi-built in pieces on the market now that feel like built-in millwork but can move with you. Atlas Industries (Atlas Industries) and USM (USM Modular Furniture) are two that I frequently spec and both help to provide an aesthetic lift and organize your stuff! Win, win!

04/27/2026

Koi fish in Grenada, Abakanowicz at MAD, the Jellicle Ball, tulips on Park Ave, .studio at AIPAD — spring is fully coming for my inspiration file and I am not complaining.

What’s inspiring you lately?

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1 One Wall St
New York, NY
10005

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