On Thursday, West Elm debuted a collection of children’s home furnishings and decor created in collaboration with Instagram head of fashion partnerships Eva Chen.
West Elm Kids is “an exciting growth opportunity for West Elm,” the company’s president, Day Kornbluth, told Glossy in 2023. Since launching in 2021, West Elm Kids has debuted several collaborations, including with Pottery Barn Kids, National Geographic and fashion designer Joseph Altuzarra. Kornbluth said West Elm has specifically sought out collaborators who are style authorities with small children. For her part, Chen has three kids under the age of 10.
“I’m not a design savant. I would say I’m an enthusiast,” Chen said, regarding her expertise in the home category. Based on the success of other West Elm collaborations, that unique perspective could spell success for her line.
On West Elm parent company Williams-Sonoma Inc.’s earnings call for the second quarter of 2024, president and CEO Laura Alber said West Elm’s latest collection with a fashion brand — its second with Rhode — is on track to do more than double the sales of its first Rhode collab. West Elm’s sales, as a whole, were down about 5% year-over-year.
Ahead of the West Elm launch, Chen spoke with Glossy about what inspired the home collection, to what extent her personal style is reflected in the pieces and how she balances personal projects with her day job.
What drove your approach to creating this collection?
“I have three young children — ages 3, 7 and 9 —and it’s always been a challenge to decorate their spaces because the [home] offerings out there go in one of two directions: They’re either too cutesy, too young, and very juvenile and practical, or they’re just the opposite: They’re beautiful pieces from Europe, for example, that are never going to be durable enough for my kids. I wanted to bridge the gap and create something I could have in my home with my children at the center. … The collection is also very focused on reading — my family spends a lot of time reading together. And most of the pieces have a reading element baked into them: There’s the bunk bed with built-in bookshelves; the chair-and-a-half, which is the perfect size for an adult and a child; and a crescent-shaped kids’ lounger that invites kids to kick up their feet and read.”
How does the collection reflect the design aesthetic of your home?
“[My family] just moved into a new apartment about a year ago, and this collection meshes perfectly with the aesthetic of that apartment. But it’s also versatile. There are pieces I could see in an apartment in Williamsburg or an apartment on the Upper West Side. And I could see adults using the mirror or buying the chair-and-a-half for their small New York City apartment. The rug is something you could see in a minimalist Scandi-style home, as well as in a kid’s room.”
Is your personal style represented, too?
“When it comes to my fashion aesthetic, I don’t want it to be overly complex; I want there to be a sense of ease to it. … When you look at [iconic] New York designers — like Donna Karan and her collections from the ‘90s or Norma Kamali — they created clothes for women to be comfortable in. And when it comes to home design, that’s very much my core principle, as well.”
Does your expertise in fashion translate to home decor?
“It’s a whole new world. And it’s a different kind of vulnerability when you’re opening up your home to people, versus [taking] a selfie or an outfit picture or a Met Gala red carpet photo. Your home reflects who you are, and it’s a long-term thing. … I’m very much still learning in this space, and that’s why I feel very fortunate to get to work with [talented home] designers and a community of designers on Instagram who I DM and they take the time to teach me things.”
What home experts do you follow on Instagram?
“I love Dan Rosen [@thedanrosen] — he’s so funny. He takes Architectural Digest content and, like, roasts it — he roasted me for [the 2021 feature on our house upstate]. I also follow Arvin Olano — he makes home design very accessible and friendly. And I follow [creative director] Ashley Stark, who posts a lot of home inspo. There’s also @needforbreed, who is a fashion influencer but does breakdowns of iconic home pieces, like the Noguchi pendant lamp, explaining their origins in a very erudite way. And I love following designer Phillip Lim, who is documenting his process of renovating a house.”
In what other ways did Instagram inform the collection?
“For most people in the fashion and design space, Instagram is our living, breathing, constantly evolving mood board. My Explore page is currently a mix of dogs, which I love but am allergic to, plus home design and parenting advice. Take away the dogs, and you’ve got the elements of this collection. This collaboration is like the Venn diagram of my recent life.”
Can we expect to see more independent projects from you?
“It’s very rare that I do a project outside of Instagram. This collection [with West Elm] was two years in the making, and I did [a kids’ collection] with H&M last year that was also two years in the making. This work is very separate from what I do at Instagram, and it’s done during different hours. … There’s so much great product out there and there are so many great collaborations out there, I only want to do things that feel different or additive, or personal to me. Most of [my projects] tap into the world of children and/or children’s literacy. For example, as part of the H&M collab last year, there were donations to teachers and classrooms timed with back-to-school.”
