Drama Queen At Home

KELLY WEARSTLER IS the Madonna of the interior decorating world. When it comes to influences and inspirations, she happily steals ideas from the best, readapts them and calls them her own. But she does this so well and so beguilingly that, like Madonna, she's managed to build a design empire out of her carrion crow habits.

The 52-year-old American made her name in the 1990s with a series of West Coast hotels, which saw her blending different styles from different decades in one space. Unlike other interior designers then, Wearstler was not averse to juxtaposing the elegant with the slightly tacky; for instance, placing plush designer furniture next to thrift store bric a brac. According to Christine Muhlke of The New York Times, "her playful, elegantly over-the-top designs for the Avalon Beverly Hills changed the look of boutique hotels around the world."

Wearstler would cement her reputation by decorating the homes of A-list celebs such as Gwen Stefani and Cameron Diaz, and widen her portfolio by designing home accessories, furniture and jewellery for her flagship store in West Hollywood. To date, her pieces are sold in eight countries around the world, from South America to Australia.