I really like cool people who do cool stuff. Even better when they do it with style.
Sag Harbor interior designer Shea Keating fits that descriptor. When I learned freelance writer Lauren Parker was going to do a story on Shea, I was excited because I knew who she was (Shea graduated a few years ahead of me from the same high school) and I knew she did cool stuff.
Not only did the story end up perfectly describing the ethos behind Too Shea Designs — Shea’s barely-a-year-old interior design business — the story highlighted her playful personality, like her easy-to-recognize, no-fear attitude toward using bold colors, textures, prints and aesthetics most people in the Hamptons design world would never dare to consider.
It’s clear Shea’s canvas is her every day life, whether it be the red-lipped wallpaper in her home (which she designed herself and inscribed with “let’s not ruin this with words.” Like, come on! How could you not go gaga for that!), her décor (which include numerous pop art designs, disco balls, glowing neon signs and hand-painted rainbow murals) or her appearance (fuchsia-colored dresses, cobalt blue suits, her trademark and wonderfully wild red hair).
Photography by the great Doug Young truly brought Shea’s style, sparkle and shine to life. His work gave us our first cover for 2024 which not only encapsulated Shea’s personality to a tee, it effectively jolted us into the new spring season. It was fresh, colorful and something the South Fork had not seen yet.
Lauren’s story is a heartfelt homage not only to Shea’s flamboyant, eclectic and joyful design choices, but to her sentimentality (like her childhood piano bench that she reupholstered in leopard print or her grandmother’s armchair now adorned with zebras and chartreuse pom-poms). All serve as a clever reminder to not only make old things new but to remember where you came from and to always be yourself. For the East End could never have too much of the too cool Shea.
