We sat down with writer and new mother Amy Roberts Osni in her new Malibu abode to discuss how motherhood, Los Angeles and her husband influence her personal interior style.
Your new home in Malibu oozes California Cool. Have interiors been a medium that have always come naturally to you? How has your style evolved over the years?
Thank you so much! I love that description. I don’t know that it’s always come naturally to me, but it’s something I’ve been interested in and really moved by. I’m very affected by my space and have a throughline of materials and elements that I’ve brought with me from place to place (namely lots of wood, ceramics and books). I also collect furniture, so I’m always looking for certain “holy grail” pieces, which is a fun and sort of never-ending hobby. My husband actually renovates houses, so meeting him and designing our home together has really been the culmination of all my design dreams.
Our female artisans in rural india draw inspiration from nature when making Enkay's handmade rugs. Where do you tend to draw your inspiration from?
I think I draw my inspiration from Los Angeles, where we live. There's such a rich history of architecture here, and it still blows my mind to be able to take a walk to get coffee and see a Neutra house. I also take a lot of inspiration from Pennsylvania, where I’m from; I grew up a few miles from Fallingwater, so that merging of home and nature really stuck with me from the time I was young.
When styling a room, what guardrails do you give yourself?
I’m very focused on function, maybe to a fault. I’m not a decoration person. We even use the decorative objects in our home: candlesticks, vases, bowls filled with old photos or matchbooks. This also helps to keep things clutter-free, which helps me feel calm and peaceful.
What colors, textures, pieces or homewares are you most drawn to at the moment?
I’m very into red at the moment! I also love natural fibers like leather or wool and anything that smells like hinoki.
You're also a new mom! How has it been creating your son's first room?
Honestly, my husband and my best friend Gabe (who is an interior architect) designed our son’s room without much input from me. I was so pregnant and exhausted at the time, I sort of just tapped out and trusted their process! I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out — I actually think they read my mind somehow. They created such a cozy, functional space with lots of wood shelving and a day bed for feedings. I took a day right before our son arrived to organize everything and style the shelves with gifts from friends and family, and it all worked out pretty perfectly.
What drew you to choosing the Bir rug for your bedroom?
We had been looking for a rug for our bedroom for so long that we almost gave up! My husband doesn’t like most rugs, but I really wanted something that felt plush and warm when I stepped out of bed. As soon as we put the Bir rug down, he actually said “I didn’t even realize this room felt incomplete before we got this.”
How has it been living with the Bir rug?
I love it so much. It’s neutral but has a slightly golden tone that really adds a lot of warmth to our bedroom. It’s so comfortable to step on when you get out of bed in the morning, and our dogs also love to nap on it!