Diane Eskew is an artist, but instead of hanging her artwork on walls, the walls are often part of her work. Interior decorating is her art form. For 35 years, Eskew has been decorating and redecorating her Camas home as a passionate hobby.
“I think that I’ve always been (a designer), even as a child. I’ve decorated as long as I can remember,” she said. “I’ve just always been interested in décor, in the arrangement and the placement of things.”
Her home will appear in the magazine Romantic Country next spring and a future issue of French Country Style.
They will be the ninth and 10th magazines that have featured her décor. Eskew calls her current style “French Nordic,” incorporating European pieces that have often been repurposed or preserved with their age.
“I just love old things that have a lot of wear, a patina. If it’s something that’s new, I might paint it and distress it. I like to layer — my style is very layered,” said Eskew. While she loves old objects, her color palette tends to be on the simpler side, using creams, grays, taupes, black and shades of green.
For herself, Eskew finds that bright colors give her too much energy, hence the soft and muted palettes. “(Your home) looks different when you’re looking at your house in the magazine. You get a different perspective, see it through different eyes,” she said.
For design magazines, the photos are taken by Portland-based Blackstone Edge Studios’ Donna Pizzi and Philip Clayton-Thompson. The photographer-and-stylist duo will often spend hours in Eskew’s home, just to get three magazine-worthy photos.
“They kind of tear up your house,” said Eskew. To create the right shot for the camera lens, the stylist and the photographer are often moving things around the room, bringing in or taking out pieces, and capturing it from the right angles.
“Getting in magazines is our way of showing our work,” said Eskew. Being able to see how to change the look of a room or how an item would complement the space is a kind of art form, she said.
“It might take a year to find one more thing, it’s always about hunting,” she said.
The mystery and surprise of finding things that work for her designs is the fun of it, she said. Eskew travels to different vintage shops and antique fairs, collecting handcrafted objects.
Her best advice for people looking to change their home? “Really pinpointing what works for you, and follow your heart,” said Eskew. “If I love something, I always find a place for it.”
For example, when you look at homes in magazines, Eskew says it’s important to ask yourself if you would love living in this room. And use that feeling as inspiration.
“I think trying to find your style is important. When people try to decorate but they don’t have a style so it becomes a bit of a hodgepodge, none of it goes together,” Eskew said.
“It’s about being an individual and not caving into a trend. Just because a color is hot this year, doesn’t mean it’s for you. It’s about your feelings, what makes you feel good.”
