‘Every great room tells a story’: University of Richmond alum writes about interior design’s power to reimagine what exists
ALUMNI
Elizabeth Swartz Lawrence remembers her fascination with a large doll house that her parents gave her and her sister one Christmas.
“We were able to decorate it,” the 2001 alum said. “I was always taking scraps of fabric from my mom’s sewing room and re-covering furniture and taking pieces of paper and wallpapering. I almost did more of that than actually playing with the dolls in the dollhouse.”
The gift was a glimpse into her future. Today, she is a partner at the interior design firm of Williams Lawrence in New York, where her partner is Bunny Williams. The pair have a new book, Decoration, published this fall by Rizzoli. It includes thematic essays written by each designer and lush photographs of their projects from New York to Palm Beach, Florida, and around the world.
“Every great room tells a story about the people who live there, what they collect, what they love, and its history,” Lawrence writes in the book.
Lawrence enjoys helping clients tell their stories through interior design. The process often involves hours of conversations and lots of trial and error.
“I always tell a client, you can’t hurt my feelings,” she said. “I'm going to show you things, and if you don't respond to it, you need to tell me because we've got to make sure that this is your home and reflects you.”
While she enjoys shopping for clients, she said it’s important to integrate items that already belong to the client because they make it feel more like a home.
Exploring setting is a part of the design process. Lawrence and Williams’ design for a breakfast room with pink plaster walls and décor was inspired by the bougainvillea climbing up the walls just outside its doors.
Sometimes the firm works with architects before a home is built or remodeled.
“Working with the architect from the very beginning to craft this entire vision, it's pretty amazing,” she said. “I'm so grateful to work with so many of the country's best architects and have that collaboration.”
Stylish beginnings
One of Lawrence’s earliest design memories was from her childhood bedroom. She vividly recalls her wooden, four-poster bed with a canopy and a crocheted overlay.
In the book, Lawrence often talks about her childhood and growing up with a businessman father and an artist mother. Her mother often took her daughters hunting for antiques.
The sisters often teased their mother about the “linen lectures” she gave on how to iron linens and build a collection of them. Now, Lawrence admits, the advice has come in handy.
After a year at another college, she transferred to Richmond for her sophomore year.
“It's hard not to arrive on the campus and just be enchanted,” she said. “It’s so beautiful and so beautifully maintained. I really fell in love with the University of Richmond. I felt at home and made great friends.”
She majored in sociology and American studies and took photography classes. Fittingly, her roommate often led campus tours to their room because of its chic décor. Much of her social life revolved around her sorority, Delta Gamma, where she also developed business and organizational skills planning events.
After graduation, Lawrence went home to Wilmington, Delaware, and taught photography to high school students. She thought for a time she might be a photographer, but after taking some interior design classes at a local art school, she recognized her true calling — one she realized she’d been doing her whole life.
Designs for life
Lawrence attended graduate school at the New York School of Interior Design. While a student, she interned with Thom Felicia, a noted designer who appeared on TV’s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. There, she worked on projects including one for Jennifer Lopez’s home and for W Hotels.
She also interned with Bunny Williams Interior Design, eventually joining the firm in 2003. After many years of working there, she told Williams in 2017 that she was thinking of going out on her own. Instead, Williams asked her to stay on as partner — something unusual in the world of interior design. In 2023, the firm was renamed Williams Lawrence.
“There are law firms that go on, there are architectural firms that go on, but you don't hear that very often with interior design firms,” she said. “I'm hoping that this firm will be a legacy and that it will continue beyond me.”
Lawrence is grateful for Williams’ mentorship. While they don’t always agree, she said Williams always wants to hear her opinion.
“I'm so fortunate. I have learned from one of the greatest in the business, and I have benefited from what she has learned through her career,” Lawrence said.
Once she landed on interior design, she never looked back.
“I feel very grateful to do something I love,” she said. “It’s creative but it’s also a lot of coordination and details and running a business. To use both sides of my brain is great.”
Look inside
Here are a few of the rooms featured in Decoration.
