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Text by Tony Dimartino •
Styling by Megan Chaffin •
Photography by Matthew Millman
Whether she’s working for a client or making choices for her own home,
interior designer Michael Del Piero’s goal is always the same: “I like to create
stylish, livable environments that express and nurture the people within them.”
When she first walked into this suburban Chicago bungalow nine years ago,
“it was a depressing mess,” she recalls with a fond smile. “It needed a complete
do-over—floors, walls, ceilings, the works. But it felt right.” Following her
feelings, she turned it into a serene home for daughters Jenna and Carrin, now
18 and 14.
Those same instincts eventually led Michael, a former executive
coach, to a career as co-owner of M.J. Spear Interior Design and Intriguing
Artifacts. “Real spaces for real people—that’s what we’re all about.”
(a) Michael’s home office, a former bedroom at the top of the stairs. “We
tore down a wall and left it open. The built-in bookshelf used to be a closet.”
She painted the partners’ desk herself. Behind it is an old Empire-style chair,
refinished and reupholstered. (b) “The porch is
small, but I broke a basic decorating taboo by using oversized furniture and
accessories.” (c) A Turkish oil jar and an antler vessel from the South of France, (d)
filled with wood finials, provide texture.
(e) “I pulled the yard together as if it were a room. We entertain out here a
lot.” On the patio, Michael follows her usual design philosophy of using large
pieces, like a Balinese daybed, in small places. “It can make even cramped
quarters look more spacious, as long as you pay attention to the harmony of
scale.”
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