Francesca Grace has quickly become the go-to interior designer for Hollywood’s elite. Her client list boasts names like Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber, Hilary Duff, and Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz. However, her journey to success wasn’t an overnight phenomenon. Grace spent years honing her craft behind the scenes before achieving widespread recognition.
In 2020, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Grace found herself running a Los Angeles staging company. Tasked with furnishing empty homes to attract potential buyers, she was forced to work with what she describes as a limited selection of uninspiring furniture. This experience, while initially frustrating, proved to be a pivotal moment in her career. The uninspiring aesthetic of the company’s warehouse, filled with chrome furniture and generic art, fueled Grace’s desire to create something more authentic and visually appealing.
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Leveraging the real estate boom during the pandemic, Grace took a leap of faith and started her own staging business. She contacted top real estate agents, offering her unique design sensibility, which blended feminine, vintage-inspired pieces with custom-designed furniture. Her bold move paid off, and soon she was staging homes for a clientele that included a growing number of celebrities.
These celebrity clients recognized Grace’s talent for transforming spaces. Homes she staged became highly desirable, often leading to buyers wanting to purchase the furnishings along with the property. This organic recognition propelled her career forward. One such client was Sabrina Carpenter, who hired Grace after purchasing a home the designer had staged.
Grace’s design philosophy resonated perfectly with Carpenter. The two share a similar aesthetic, fostering a strong sense of trust and collaboration. Currently, Grace is designing Carpenter’s Los Angeles mansion, a project that showcases their shared vision. Carpenter recently offered a glimpse of the Grace-designed breakfast nook on her Instagram.
While working with Carpenter has been a dream, Grace admits to being starstruck by another client: Hilary Duff. Staging a home for Duff and her husband, songwriter Matthew Koma, was a particularly memorable experience for the designer. Though she didn’t interact directly with Duff, working with Koma and subsequently being followed by the singer on Instagram were significant moments for Grace.
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Grace’s growing reputation led to larger commissions, including designing Justin Bieber’s Drew House, the hub for his clothing brand. The project allowed Grace to embrace a “grandma’s house” aesthetic, incorporating vintage wallpapers and monochromatic rooms. It was a significant milestone in her career, solidifying her ability to execute large-scale projects with a distinct vision.
Another career highlight was designing the bedrooms for Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz in their iconic Razor House in La Jolla, California. Grace describes the experience as incredibly welcoming and family-oriented, further emphasizing her ability to connect with clients on a personal level.
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More recently, Grace staged the Los Angeles home of singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson. Grace acknowledges her good fortune in having positive experiences with her celebrity clientele. With several upcoming high-profile projects on the horizon, Francesca Grace continues to solidify her position as a leading designer in the world of celebrity homes. Her journey from staging uninspiring spaces to crafting unique and personalized environments for A-list celebrities is a testament to her talent, hard work, and unwavering vision.
