Designer Debrief: Allison Handler

The interior designer tells Style Editor Julie A. Palm that warm finishes, cordless rechargeables, and a deep relationship with her local lighting showroom allow her to create stunning lighting packages for her clients.

By Julie A. Palm

Lighting is one of interior designer Allison Handler’s favorite categories to source.

“We truly treat it like the jewelry of the home, and we definitely don’t skimp on lighting,” says Handler, founder of Allison Handler Design, a seven-person, high-end boutique design firm based in Bergen County, New Jersey.

But that doesn’t mean Handler wants to spend a lot of time dealing with individual vendors — ordering, tracking shipments, and handling delays, broken items or other problems.

So she relies heavily on her local lighting showroom, Krell Lighting in Park Ridge, sourcing as much as 90% of her lighting from there.

“I’m very loyal to my vendors because they’re a huge resource for us. When somebody proves to me that they’re an asset and they handle things correctly, I stick with them, even if something goes wrong, which happens all the time, right? How are you resolving that? How easy are you making it for me? That’s so important as we run our business,” Handler says. “… Having that partner who I can literally just pick up the phone and call, and they handle it on our behalf is priceless for me.”

And she’ll pay for that level of service.

“Maybe I’m paying an extra 5% to 10% but she’s ordering everything for me, storing it in her facility and delivering it white glove when we’re ready versus everything shipping either to my office or straight to the job site.”

Founded in 2021, Handler’s design firm specializes in residential design — new builds and full-house renovations, but also takes on smaller projects, including furnishings updates. The firm works across the U.S., with projects concentrated in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

For most projects, Handler also relies on Krell Lighting for lighting design expertise. Because while she loves choosing fixtures, she likes having that extra expertise when she can.

“They’re the true experts,” she says. “We consider our vendors kind of an extension of our team. … When we need that true expert advice, we lean into our vendors, so we definitely work with a lighting designer who helps figure out the recessed lighting placement — how many, what temperature, what type. It’s very helpful.

“We’re doing full homes,” Handler adds. “It’s a luxury product and we want to make sure that everything is correct from the get-go.”

Her approach to lighting

Handler often concentrates on lighting selections after choosing tile “because we really feel like tile sets the tone of the house,” other finishes and plumbing fixtures. “Lighting comes shortly after that because when we’re picking plumbing finishes, we can figure out what color, what metal and what aesthetic we’re using for lighting,” she says.

“Lighting is super-important to our design,” she adds. “It’s meant to be both functional and, as I said, the jewelry. We’re very strategic about where we place lighting and how we use it to create the vibe we’re looking for.”

That vibe, for many of her clients she says, is “a little more edgy, a little more kind of California coastal.”

Handler regularly sources from some of the best-known luxury brands in the marketplace, including Currey & Company, but she likes exploring niche brands, too. “We just discovered a new lighting brand called Konekt and we’re obsessed. Their lighting is just so gorgeous,” she says. “SkLO is another one that we love. They’re just innovative, different.”

What’s catching her eye

Handler is not a fan of linear lighting. If feels too modern and cold, she thinks. But she is a fan of the move toward more traditional silhouettes, details and finishes, such as aged brass, which has a warmth she appreciates. Instead of chrome, Handler will go for polished nickel; instead of matte black, she tends toward bronze.

“We’re seeing a lot of decorative shades on sconces and lamps, even pendants with linen or silk, which I love, as well,” she says. “And there’s some really great chain detailing on light fixtures right now.”

When it comes to technological innovations, Handler says, “obviously, the smart home is a huge, huge thing for everybody right now. Lutron is in every house [we do], or a version of it,” she says. “Everybody wants to be able to access their lighting from their phones or an iPad on the wall.”

Clients may want connected homes, but Handler also appreciates the growing number of cordless lamps and fixtures that free her from the constraints of outlet locations.

“Cordless rechargeables for me are an absolute dream, and I love that we’re seeing more of them from all different vendors at all different price points and styles. Who wants an ugly cord in the way? Nobody, right? I have one on my desk right now. … It’s such a win,” she says. “And we’re definitely using a lot of integrated LED inside cabinetry, in shelving, in closets, for under-cabinet lighting.”

Allocating budgets

Priority spaces for her lighting budgets – roughly 20% of the furnishings budget – include the kitchen, primary bedroom and bathroom, dining room, entryway and powder room, she says.

Other than noting a particular room or space where they want task lighting, clients generally don’t think much about lighting, Handler notes. But she knows its importance to the overall design and how the clients will use and enjoy their homes.

“I want to make sure we’re spending appropriately on lighting,” she says, “because I feel like it’s so important to the finished product.”

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