DON'T MISS A THING

When creating a home that truly feels like home, it’s important to utilize materials that embody warmth and authenticity. Anne-Marie Barton believes that artisanal craftsmanship is the key to this, that beauty is more than just what we see—it’s what we feel. 

As a longtime interior designer, Anne-Marie has built up a repertoire of wisdom and knowledge when it comes to timeless design. We had the wonderful opportunity to hear her story in her own words, and we enjoyed learning how love happens each time she designs her next project. Read on and be empowered!

Meet Anne-Marie Barton, the Founder and Principal Designer of AMB Design, The Home of Soulful Artists

Anna: As our name and the tagline of our publisher KOKET denotes, at Love Happens, we are firm believers that you cannot achieve any level of success without love. When did your love affair with design begin? How did it make you feel?

Anne-Marie Barton: There were two defining moments. One was as a 12-year-old; my first project and my first dream was to design my own bedroom. I wanted a safari bedroom with a swing chair—it was the ’70s. Flash forward, and I had parents that built eight homes growing up. They didn’t really have a lot of education in it, but they had a ton of courage. Our cars were filled with samples—they would always roll as you took a turn. It was kind of in my world, my wheelhouse, to think about it. When I met my husband and we married, he had a little house made of concrete. Five years go by, and I said, “I think it’s time we build a home.” 

I was 29 years old. I had just had my third baby. And I went about acting as the builder because we really could not afford a real builder. I proceeded to just figure it out, and I absolutely loved the build. I loved working with the subcontractors. I liked asking questions. We tore down the old house, and six months to the day, we moved into a brand new house. I had no idea that it should take longer. But because of the organization and the money and the budgeting that I had to do, it was extremely intentional. As a designer, we’re so much more interior architects than we are decorators. I love the rigor of a build and the architectural aspects. 

A: Tell us a bit about your past and what led up to your current role as the founder of Anne-Marie Barton, the interior design brand.

Anne-Marie: You know how we think we know who we are when we’re in college? We’re trying to decide what we’re going to do, but in truth, it is an organic process. Let it roll and tumble you into who you are. And so for me, it took courage and being open. It took being prepared. 

I started in a laundry room with one file drawer. No employees. And then as it went, always with an eye toward not taking on too many people, not too many projects, so that we could always remain the principal on a project. And that’s been my goal from day one. Just doing your own accounting, doing your taxes, really knowing how to do things, and caring about those details and asking the questions. I think that’s good for the environment of the reader to realize that it can happen later. And it can happen as long as you’ve given the hard work. You’ve learned something. There’s something real behind you. 

A: You have been working on lots of product collaborations recently! I want to hear about each of them, but first, what led you to decide to expand your interior firm to the product design side?

Anne-Marie: Well, nothing but the enticement of creativity. I cannot believe how much fun moonlighting is with licensing and design. I found that I had the capacity to work my day job, which is a heavy-laden job. But to go from that and have these special bursts of design ideas and be able to use them and take them to people that appreciate design, it’s been so enticing to have an opportunity like that. It started through others asking me. And what a compliment it is, I didn’t know it was possible. When they asked the first time, “Will you do a rug line?” I’m like, huh? But I had done so many rugs with them. My first answer was yes; we’ll figure it out. 

When Visual Comfort asked, it came from having seen the metal works that I love to do that are just intrinsically a part of my thread, my chemistry, which is to create with the hands and have an artisan experience and to be appreciated for that. That’s what I actually just love to do. And then the idea of somebody possibly helping me do it and getting it out there so it’s accessible—those are all very attractive things. Whereas in my daily life, I’m very heavy laden in a long build project of many kinds. This is a very sexy idea to like. There’s nothing so satisfying as when you’re doing pure design that’s going to have your name on it. And it’s oozing from you and not being overly guided by the brand. It’s astonishing. I can’t believe I’ve been so lucky. 

A: Tell me about the collaborations you are currently working on. Rugs, lighting, faucets, furniture?

Anne-Marie: Right now I’m working on outdoor furniture designs with an Italian company. I’m also working on some tubs through Landmade, who I’m doing all the faucet design for in Portugal, which will come out soon. 

A: Is there a moment that you recall that has been the most surprising on your journey into product design? Challenging or exciting.

Anne-Marie: I think the length of time that is involved with licensing is to be respected. It comes for a reason. You want high quality. You want the design absolutely nailed. And I do believe that the length of time is directly related to the reverence toward the final design. I will draw, I will conceive, and then I like the stewing. I like the amount of time that I’ve been allowed to refine those designs and to develop that third eye. So even though I come in with a splash of this and that, I want the opportunity to continue to refine. So the surprise is, wow, you don’t draw one drawing and we’re done. It’s in their hands. 

I’m surprised how much collaboration is involved to where we can refine and define these licensed items in the very best way and make them intentional. That’s where relationships grow with these brands. I’m grateful for that. I think that my second biggest surprise is how relationship-driven licensing is. They begin to have this level of trust, and then they begin to want more, and then they’re waiting for your voice. And it’s just such an exciting relationship. I love that there’s this mutual appreciation and collaboration. And that’s when you know you’re in good relationships. 

A: Any advice for other designers looking to design products?

Anne-Marie: Have courage. It is not for the faint of heart to show off your designs and to have the competence and the belief in what the world needs now. But that’s a place that is best to come from, where you have a passion and a true faith in your design. And it becomes palpable to those that you present to. It has to be that real, and it has to run through your veins that this is what it should be next, that you know and you feel that this is the type of design that people are hungry for. That is something they’re looking for. I didn’t know that, but I realized that part of the reason, most likely, that these things have gone forward is really my own personal faith in my aesthetic. And that depth is so critical. 

A: If you were to name one thing that you believe contributed most to your success, what would it be?

Anne-Marie: Enthusiasm. Absolute love of the job. I can’t say it enough. It is a blessing to have a career doing what you absolutely love and are fulfilled with. And in this career, you have to love challenges, and you have to believe that sleep is overrated. This job is a special opportunity.

A: Do you have a favorite project to date? Tell us about it!

Anne-Marie: I just did the reveal last night in Pebble Beach. It’s one of the most moving and emotional projects I’ve ever had. It’s because it starts at the drive-in. And the minute the gate opens, you can see all the way through the house to the ocean. We’ve set it up as a sanctuary, and the absolute intent is to bring others to this home and this experience. 

It’s meant to bring that sense of wellness and tranquility that not only do we need, but the ocean gives us. And the way I approached all of the design was more unified and more, I want to say, demure and kind of an internal beauty. The home is meant to deliver that. And I saw it last night in the way that I envisioned it and wanted. The whole reason why we even do our jobs is that moment when they see it and they feel it. And I just had that. So that would have to be my favorite. 

A: What is your favorite part of your job?

Anne-Marie: The transformation from pencil to plans to elevations to tactile finishes and then to a finished product that is completely unexpected. Clients have rarely gone through such an experience. Not everyone in the world gets to have this experience. So, it is sort of sacred that you can create and you can deliver something that actually affects the way they live. So I believe the beauty that we give does change lives, and it does change the way people feel. And that is my opportunity—that’s why I do it. 

A: Do you have a favorite material?

Anne-Marie: I’d have to say that working with bronze and brass materials and cultivating, integrating, designing finishes on those materials and then indulging in them to create designs where they’re highly bespoke and integrated. And that is probably my differentiation from others. I’m kind of a metalsmith. I’m at the fabrication shop in the mornings. In those hours, we’re spurring new ideas. I’m touching things. I’m deciding things. I’m leaving myself open. So I think the metalsmith is probably the most unique about my skills or my love affairs. 

A: What empowers you?

Anne-Marie: Experience. And frankly, I am so grateful for the years behind me that give me a place now of complete confidence and a ton of knowledge that I’m using daily, whether I’m in the middle of architecture or building a house or design. I love that I have all of that behind me and that it’s taught me that I can speak with confidence. I can talk about budgets, and I can nail it. Because guess what? It’s cool to have that wisdom. And I think that’s something I’m really proud of—I really want to give that. 

When I’m doing my Instagram or my reels and these things, I’m most of the time trying to give people some kind of knowledge that they can take away and use themselves. It would be so selfish if I didn’t share it. And I mean, ideally, my goal is really to do a master class for these younger designers and even architects. I want to share it.

A: Do you have any mottos you live by? Or favorite quotes?

Anne-Marie: “Surround yourself with beauty, and you will live a more beautiful life.” The other for me is that I’m very often saying my team and I firmly believe in the 50/50 Rule. And that is that anything practical can be beautiful. Even your laundry room can look beautiful. Anything—we can get around practical. We can serve it up in a beautiful way. 

I think another might be that the career of interior designers is filled with two qualities—grit and grace. We’re in a man’s world in a lot of parts of our job, so how do we remain the voice and the advocate with the client? As an interior designer, we’re the umbrella. We’re the one who makes sure that it goes from start to finish. Well, we’re with all of these men, shall we say. And we must, in order to retain the voice, have grace. 

A: What is next for Anne-Marie Barton?

Anne-Marie: I’m looking forward to designing furniture that I’ve always designed, but making it accessible. I’m hoping to be in a position where I can share more and inform more for those that are coming up, that are just beginning, so that I can provide shortcuts to this wonderful world of interior design. And I think what we’re seeing is we’re going to be doing more hotels, more lodges, more restaurants. I’m loving that part of my world, as opposed to just high-end residential. I love affecting more people and doing more experience-driven design. 

Find out more about Anne-Marie Barton and her brand at annemariebarton.com.

Interview by Anna Bimba
All Photos Courtesy of Anne-Marie Barton

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