The interior design firm Mabley Handler Interior Design may have New York City roots, but in 2002 transplanted out east to a converted former barn in Water Mill. Once the studio of Warren Brandt, the modern realism painter, the barn walls still bear paint marks, left intact in honor of his creative spirit. Known for its unfussy and elegant designs that evoke both classic themes and a modern casualness, the firm combines the talents of Jennifer Mabley, an established interior designer and her husband, Austin Handler, a former graphic artist-turned-design pro.
They moved to the East End to focus on a new clientele market and raise a family of two sons (and now four rescue dogs and two cats). Working together, they have left an imprint on Hamptons’ interiors with their “beach chic” aesthetic and, in October 2023, opened a design studio and home furnishings store in Palm Beach. They spoke with Southforker this week about design style, “going organic” and Pantone’s Color of the Year.
Southforker: What have been some of your design influences?
Jennifer Mabley: My father was heavily into decorative arts, but as a child, it didn’t really sink in. I was instead attracted to settings and my father used to take us to The Greenbrier in West Virginia—a family tradition. I remember walking in there and seeing the bigger than life rhododendrons on the walls and the over-scaled plaster mirrors in the Regency style. I didn’t know what I was looking at, but I knew I liked it. Then, as an adult, I became fascinated with Dorothy Draper (The Greenbrier’s original designer). She was such an innovator and a very strong woman in design and in business.
SF: Today, what would you say is your design philosophy?
Austin Handler: We are not maximalists and we’re not ultra-modern minimalists. We like to be comfortable and we like a nice, clean design aesthetic that has layers and textures of comfort.
SF: Do you have a signature style?
AH: I think people describing our style use terms like beachy or modern organic, and it’s true. We love the color blue and it appears in a lot of our work, but we also like balancing that with earth tones and working in a pallet of natural organic colors that evoke the sky, sand and driftwood.
JM: But, you have to integrate that warm organic element—it doesn’t have to be super casual. You can bring that into more formal design and have this curated, eclectic feel and I think people really appreciate that sort of daring combination of elevated spaces but still in touch with nature.
SF: What do you think about Mocha, Pantone’s recently announced “Color of the Year”?
JM: Any color can look great when it’s tastefully applied. Mocha can look like garbage in one setting and it could look like the chicest thing that ever hit Paris in another backdrop. But, if you put it on the ceiling with a high gloss and you have white plaster walls, and you make a green and white accessories story, it could look like the most incredible and beautiful thing.
SF: What does a relaxing day look like for you?
AH: When you find out, please let me know.
JM: We were recently at the Florida home and had a day off. We went to a couple’s brunch—it felt like we were on our honeymoon. Then we came home and sat by the pool and a friend came by. I had leftover birthday cake out of the box with a Corona and it was one of the best days of my life. It doesn’t take much.
