Aspen Peak - Niche Media - Aspen living at its peak
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/129660
grown up with.… Jane was an amazing role model because she taught me the importance of hard work, dedication, and passion. Even today, when I have meetings with her, I realize that it's so important to love what you do. You can't do what we do unless you're totally in love with it. How this whole concept started was that people would always ask, "What's in your makeup bag? How do you get that sun-kissed look? How do you create that no-makeup makeup look? What are the items you can't live without?" After being in the beauty business for so many years and having Estée be such an incredible role model in the sense of beauty—as well as working with amazing makeup artists and going to fashion shows and being friends with designers—it was a wonderful idea to create this capsule beauty collection that was edited and focused. And from there we conceptualized the other categories. As you know better than anyone, people love buying into a lifestyle and an overall concept. So when they buy a shell-colored lip gloss, they can also buy shells for their house, as well as sunglasses and [items in] other categories [in that shade] to create one consistent image. After being strictly in the beauty world for so long, what let you know it was time to spread your wings and try something new? People were always asking me home questions. It was something I've always loved. I've always—since a young age and still to this day—loved decorating, fabrics, furniture, antiques, and lighting. And for all the articles I've done, a lot have been about beauty and style, but a huge amount have been about my homes. So it was a wonderful next step to go into that world. I'm doing tabletop now. We have quite a large showroom [in High Point, North Carolina] that we're doing with E.J. Victor and Visual Comfort for lighting and Lee Jofa for fabrics. So we're doing [the décor for] multiple rooms. My idea of fun is not to edit the closet, but I love rearranging a room. I could move furniture for hours on end. I think it's so much fun to create a space. As the world has gotten more and more hectic—with these horrible catastrophes [happening]—people are 120 going out less, ordering in, [having guests over]. People love to be in their homes. I think to make your home as comfortable as possible is so important. There's something really interesting about that as a trend, that whole idea of lifestyle and being happy in your surroundings. Who's the AERIN brand customer? It's probably the person who wears Michael Kors clothes. It's someone who loves luxury and style and at the same time has a sense of ease. It's not necessarily an age group. It's a woman who's busy. She loves the idea of everything being edited and focused. And the same goes for the other categories, such as the home. We did all the fabrics so they can be mixed and matched, and the same for the tabletop. All the plates can be used together or separately. Chic, chic, chic, but at the same time simplify it. Exactly. It's like simple style. I was in your store yesterday, and everything was color coordinated. It's easy. People still want style, and they still want luxury, but they want it made simple. When you ask women today what's the one thing they wish they had more of, they always say time. So the idea of being able to shop cross-category to buy the beach bag, the summer lip gloss, and the pillows for your pool house makes it into this very focused, easy life. Your whole family has been going to Aspen for a really long time. What's your first memory of Aspen? I was in my early teens. I went to visit my aunt and uncle, and I absolutely fell in love with it then. There's such a wonderful balance of outdoors and style— such a great energy, great restaurants, and shops. It has absolutely everything you could possibly want, from the most extreme skiing to the most luxurious stores to Nobu [Matsuhisa restaurant] and everything in between. It's just the perfect destination for everyone. It's wonderful because, unlike other ski resorts, it is beautiful all year round. Evelyn and Leonard [Lauder] went not just in the winter? No, they went for the whole summer. I love it there in the summertime. We go almost every summer for a week, but we don't stay out there all summer. We PHOTOGRAPHY BY FRANÇOIS HALARD In her Aspen home, Aerin Lauder employs a palette of white accented with wood. ASPENPEAK-MAGAZINE.COM 118-121_AP_FEAT_CS_SUM_Fall_13.indd 120 5/6/13 11:06 AM