SCHOELLER + DARLING DESIGN
 Home.  A place of peace and beauty, a place to unwind. A place you share with friends and neighbors, and a private sanctuary for you and your family.  A space to recharge, to reawaken. Design partners Michael Schoeller and Joanna Darling are committed to helping clients realize their ideal homes.  Whether it be in the heart of New York City, a country estate or a beach house,  Michael and Joanna offer a unique approach to contemporary design. They invest time in individually getting to know their clients in order to understand their style, sensibilities and lifestyle requirements, before embarking to create a bespoke environment that creates a sense of well-being.  

Michael and Joanna met in New York while working with an interior design and custom furniture studio.  Finding great synergy in their working relationship and style, they joined in partnership to create Schoeller + Darling Design.

Collectively, Joanna and Michael bring to the table an aesthetic range that can be masculine, dark, sexy, or lush, light, bright — with the common thread of a luxurious approach. They are knowledgeable and current regarding the latest in furnishings, fabrics and innovative techniques. The two offer a complementary vision, which they take great care to tailor to the benefit of their clients. 

At the core of every Schoeller + Darling Design project is a dedicated team approach, with thorough planning and attention to detail that seeks to marry a stunning visual palette to the practical use of space — creating thoughtful environments for living that are each equally a place of beauty, balance, and heart.

" … I determined to do no less than to transform the world with Beauty.  If I have succeeded in some small way, if only in one small corner of the world, amongst the men and women I love, then I shall count myself blessed, and blessed, and blessed, and the work goes on.”    — William Morris

JOANNA DARLING loves finding beauty in any space. “It’s so meaningful to know, that someone loves their home, because of what you created for them.”

For Joanna, who studied Interiors at Parsons School of Design, getting to know her clients is paramount — tapping into what gets them excited, and then taking it to another level. “I like to see what inspires them, and then add something special to it ... to explore all possibilities, and then zero in on a style or mood that is beyond their imagination, but still feels uniquely their own.”

A native of Calgary, Alberta, Joanna’s career began in LA, as an A-list Make Up Artist to celebrities, athletes, dignitaries, as well as former Presidents. “It’s a creative expression to find beauty in each face.” The transition to interiors was a natural one for Joanna. Her signature style is peaceful elegance, with a dash of glamour. “I am drawn to rich, luxurious textures, that are thoughtfully placed.” After designing her own home, she moved on to the homes of colleagues and friends, who were taken by her vision, and her attention to detail.  She went on to head the Interior Design division of Designlush, a luxury showroom in the NYDC, where she strengthened her bond to a modern aesthetic. 

Joanna has designed for a wide range of clients. Notably she has helmed a project on the Yale Branford Campus, as well as the staging of the Stan Allen House – a Richard Meier and Coco Brown Modern Living venture in the Hamptons. “ It was an honor to be a part of such a meaningful project.”

With a mainstay of projects in the Hamptons and Manhattan, she embraces the difference in approach that each location informs: a relaxed sense of style at the beach, and a bit of glamour in the city. Her goal? Create an aesthetic that is a most elegant expression of each client, and create a place where they are at peace, and at home.  "I want every client to feel that theirs is the most amazing space, that every day it leaves them feeling transformed ..." 

 MICHAEL SCHOELLER spent his childhood in the Midwest, where he came to appreciate the freedom of wide-open spaces on his uncle's thousand-acre farm.  Michael began his career in high fashion, after studying at Parsons School of Design.  He developed his own women’s wear collection, which sold in top stores such as Bergdorf Goodman and Barney’s New York. Eventually, Michael turned his focus to Interior Design and Residential Landscape Design.  "It was a natural transition," he reflects.  "The clothes we inhabit, the spaces we inhabit... they're all connected, don't you think?  It's about our environment, and the way we present ourselves to the world — the way we wrap ourselves in the fabrics and colors that make us feel most alive."

His objective with each new project is to capture the essence of his clients.  "One flows from the other.  Some designers will tell you they look first to get a feel for the room or the property — but for me it starts with the client.  Some want to their homes to make a statement.  Some want to kick back.  Some want bold or sexy or confident touches.  It's still all about feel, but it comes from the people."

The great outdoors offers the biggest canvas of all, and one of Michael's great joys (and, singular talents!) is finding ways to integrate the design of an exterior space into an interior environment.  He's drawn to beach and country properties where the natural environment helps to inform the dwelling — with projects of note in Amagansett and Bermuda.  His goal is to leave clients with a warm, welcoming home that seems to call to them, even when they're away — a place of belonging that suits their every mood. 

Michael finds himself drawn to the work for the intimacy of the transaction," he says.  "I love to make people happy, and if I can help create a beautiful home for someone, it leaves them with a richer, more meaningful life.