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Thom Filicia
Thom Filicia Incorporated (TFI)
7070 Lafayette Street, Suite 1001
New York, NY 10012
ph. 212.736.6454
fax. 212.244.9131
info@thomfilicia.com
www.thomfilicia.com
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Many people can attribute their beautiful homes to the talent of designer Thom Filicia: frazzled straight men, Oprah viewers, publishing execs, and even his Fab Five mates... But the question remains, when can we find time for Thom to complete his own space? |
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The number one problem people have in design is never getting the ball rolling. "Clients are nervous about making decisions about what they naturally gravitate toward; instead, they'll come to me with a picture in a magazine and ask for a room to be recreated. We don’t want to work that way. Take the step and it will pay off in the end."
Build a room from scratch; examine the bones of a room, then consider where to go. "I generally start from the floor and move up. Pick a rug that has colors that speak to you and run with it from there."
Do mix antiques with modern pieces. The juxtaposition, when done in a balanced way, can lead to stunning results. For example, Thom’s Hudson Valley home, a Victorian, is furnished with clean-lined pieces, while his NYC apartment, which features a sleek wall of windows, includes a mix of more eclectic and antique finds.
Put your personal stamp on it. Make your home conducive to your lifestyle and interests.
You’re hiring a designer to work for you; the goal should be that when friends enter your newly designed space, they’ll say, "It's so YOU!" Not, "It's so Thom Filicia!"
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With an apartment in New York under construction, and a home in the Hudson Valley gutted to just one usable bathroom in the guest house, Thom Filicia is practically homeless. But he’s OK with that. "I just can't put timelines on things for myself, because it's more important to meet clients’ deadlines," he explains. The clients he’s referring to aren’t the loveable schmoes we’ve come to know through his hit TV series, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, but commissions for Thom Filicia Incorporated (TFI for short), the designer's downtown Manhattan firm.
Founded in 1998, after Thom, a Syracuse graduate, cut his teeth working with such esteemed NY-based designers as Parish Hadley, Robert Metzger, and Jeffrey Bilhuber, TFI has since taken on a diverse group of prestigious clients and strives to expand its reach. Hotels and restaurants are just some of the exciting projects on the horizon. With his pick of projects, Thom's litmus test for interesting work is simple: "Is this something that will be a creative journey?"
Indeed, recent projects have sent the firm globe-trotting. TFI was selected as the official designer of The U.S. Pavilion at the World’s Fair in Aichi, Japan, which opened in late March. The installation, intended as an homage to American design, posed a challenge in that "everyone expected a Colonial Williamsburg theme," laughs Thom. TFI blew the cobwebs off that idea and fabricated a fresh look for the space by focusing on bold and iconic pieces, all designed stateside.
The ability to conceptualize a space and then locate those perfect pieces makes Thom a highly sought-after commodity in the world of design. A well-honed list of resources helps him source product with ease. "My resource is New York as a whole," he explains, "but I just bought a chair from a dealer in Montana. If I'm looking for something specific, we just track it down." But the point is not to just accumulate new stuff. "I definitely try to incorporate as much of what people have that’s personal to them."
While speaking recently as part of the 1st annual Shop Like a Decorator Event, held near the D & D Building on the east side of Manhattan, this message struck a chord with audience members who relayed bad experiences where designers came into their homes and took over. To which Thom replied, "Your friends should walk into your space and see you--not the designer!"
Zany antics aside, Thom's expert knack for teasing the personality out of homeowners and applying it tastefully to their interiors has made him one of the Fab Five's most engaging characters. (For the record: The hour-long makeovers seen on Queer Eye actually take Thom and a team of six 2 1/2 days to complete.) According to Thom, the easy rapport between the guys on the show is genuine; they get along off-screen as well as on.
Between the show and the firm, how does this white-hot designer squeeze it all in? Well, it seems by eating and breathing design—and relying on his TFI staff of 12. "I do a lot of my work at night, on airplanes, in hotels… It's easy to have a portable office if you have the infrastructure behind it to follow up on everything. TFI is my baby, so it's not an option. And I have a dog! My dog travels with me. You know, when you have a situation you want to maintain, you just make it work."
Fortunately, fun works its way into the schedule as well. In a few weeks, the Fab Five will fly to L.A. to attend the GLAAD Media Awards. "We'll get off the airplane and within 10 minutes, we'll be sitting by the pool ordering lemon drops."
All in a day's work.
-written and produced by Wendy Simard
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