Designer Ariene Bethea Shares the Secret to a Bold, Soulful Home: “It’s All About the Layers”

Today Ariene Bethea is an interior designer renowned for her bold designs. But for years she worked in human resources — until the day she redecorated her boss’s office. “Hey, maybe you should do this for a living,” her boss told her. And she certainly took that advice to heart. 

Bethea has mastered the collected interior look with her deeply personal approach to the design process. While sentimental details and personal touches might be the “cherry on top” to some, for Bethea they’re the foundation of every space she touches. “I’ve never believed the goal is simply to create a beautiful room,” says the founder of Dressing Rooms Interiors Studio. “The goal is to create a room that couldn’t belong to anyone else.” And that philosophy not only sets her apart, it’s also why she’s one of the five designers chosen for Apartment Therapy’s New/Next List for 2026.

Bethea describes being “surrounded” by collected objects and treasures filled with precious memories when she was growing up in her mother and grandmother’s homes. From a young age, she knew that “spaces carry stories” — and from there, her passion for collecting old objects was born. In 2011 Bethea founded a vintage home furnishing shop, Dressing Rooms Interiors, which eventually evolved into a design studio. Today, her design philosophy remains rooted in both her love of sourcing antiques and her early corporate career. 

Her design process always begins the same way. Before deciding on colors, fixtures, or furniture, she reads the flow of the space — “how people move, where a space pulls you in, and where it quietly loses you.” She credits that instinct to her experience working in HR. Bethea reads a space “the same way others read people: by how [it] makes you feel.” That perspective gives her work a sense of authenticity that feels lived-in and deeply personal.  “Whether I’m styling a room, curating a collection, or exploring design through travel, my goal is always the same,” Bethea says. “I want people to walk into the space and feel like they’re learning something about the person who lives there.” 

Given the deeply personal nature of her work, it’s not possible to sum up Bethea’s style in a single term. Words like “vibrant,” “dramatic,” “maximalist,” “eclectic,” “warm,” and “inviting” all come to mind. But Bethea describes her own style simply as “layered, soulful, and collected.” Many often think of “layers” in design as something tangible and textural, but Bethea thinks of a layered home as something built gradually over time. “I’m drawn to interiors that feel like they’ve evolved over time instead of [having been] purchased all at once,” the designer explains. 

For Bethea, decorating isn’t about reaching a finish line — it’s about allowing a home to evolve alongside the people who live there. No room is ever really “finished,” no matter how much you may want it to be. So take the time to curate — and collect — pieces that carry meaning and tell your story. “Real homes aren’t perfect,” Bethea explains. “They’re built through travel, family history, chance discoveries, and changing tastes. Those layers are what make a room memorable.”

Like the spaces she crafts, Bethea’s design influences are diverse. She’s inspired by fashion as much as interiors. Museums, flea markets, architecture, boutique hotels, and editorial photography all impact her work. But what truly sets Bethea’s work apart is her mastery of the balancing act between personality and aesthetics, color and texture — even just from room to room. After all, a collected home could easily feel cluttered without curation. 

Bethea trusts her gut, and always keeps the big picture in mind. “Instead of asking whether something matches, I ask whether it adds to the story,” she says. With bold, maximalist designs such as Bethea’s, it’s important to keep a sense of connection between each space in the home. “Every room should feel connected, while still having its own personality,” the designer explains. Her signature style pairs such bold, unique pieces with even bolder patterns, textures, and colors — but in the end, Bethea pulls it off by staying grounded in the way the space feels, as opposed to how it looks.

In the immediate future, Bethea plans to expand her signature lacquered lampshade collection, The DRIS Shade Shop, with a new drop coming very soon on July 31. She’s excited to share more educational content around styling, as she believes it’s one of the most overlooked parts of great design.

Bethea’s made a name for herself by prioritizing authentic personal narratives, and her layered aesthetic reflects her belief that a soulful home is built over time. It’s a philosophy that continues to shape everything she creates — and one that’s clearly resonating with homeowners looking for spaces that feel as personal as they are beautiful.