Design Changemakers 2021: How Interior Designer Aurielle Jones Is Reimagining the Throw Pillow

Who: Aurielle Jones, an interior designer turned pillow maker
Nominated by: Carmen René Smith, an Oakland-based interior designer
Where to follow her: Instagram and Pinterest

Why Jones is part of the Class of 2021: “Aurielle has such a fresh, edgy, and literally ‘VIVID’ approach to design. Her new pillow line is FIRE. It is SO Grace Jones meets Lady Gaga fierce, and I am absolutely obsessed with the originality, confidence, and power that exudes from her design style (both interiors and pillows). When I think of changemakers, I think of someone who is a fearless leader, a bad ass — you know? I think this defines Aurielle, her designs, and her pillow line 100 percent.” —Carmen René Smith, an Oakland-based interior designer

Aurielle Jones’ affinity for beautifying her environment became obvious to her and those around her when she was about 14 years old. “I always loved design, and I would watch HGTV religiously,” Jones recalls. During summers, when she would head to Atlanta from Alabama to visit her aunt, she would take along an entire additional suitcase packed with decor from her room. “I knew back then that I caught a bug,” she says with a laugh.

After studying interior design at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta, Jones completed design internships and worked at a few design firms, all while picking up her own freelance clients on the side. In 2016, Jones quit her full-time job to jumpstart her own interior design firm, Vivid Interiors. Her goal: to infuse both residential and commercial spaces with a laid-back sense of glamour — and a little bit of an edge, too. “[The name] is kind of an oxymoron, because I love using back and white,” Jones explains. “But I find the juxtaposition of black and white in the same space to be very vivid.” Running her own business was “terrifying,” Jones says, especially at first. “Some months were great, where I was like, ‘Oh, my god, I’m doing it. I can pay my rent and my bills,’ and other months I’m like, ‘Help, I cannot do this.’ It was up and down, and that kind of forced me to go back into a full-time job,” Jones says. 

These days, Jones has stepped back from her own company to work full-time as an interior designer for Atlanta-based firm Dana Lynch Design, while also focusing on a growing endeavor: her throw pillow brand called Stud. Jones designs and sews each piece herself using fabrics like alligator-embossed faux leather and embellishments including studs, fringe, chains, and zippers. “I created my line out of a selfish need,” she says. “I felt like I wasn’t really able to get my creativity out there. I wanted to put my heart and soul into something without any interruptions or budget restrictions.” 

Jones estimates she’s sold upward of 100 pillows since embarking on her venture in 2013, and is beginning to take on wholesale orders in addition to selling her wares on her own website and on Etsy. “It’s exciting,” Jones says. Still, the designer believes she’s just getting started, adding, “I think home fragrances will be the next step, and I would love to go into small furnishings.” We chatted with Jones about revamping her own apartment this past year, the A-listers she’d love to work with, and her plans for 2021.

Apartment Therapy: What were your design inspirations growing up? What is your inspiration now?

Aurielle Jones: Kelly Wearstler. Oh my god. If I met that woman I probably would cry. She’s the Beyoncé of interior design and I absolutely love her. I also love Kelly Hoppen. She was someone I wrote about in school that I really liked. 

AT: What’s your favorite project you worked on in 2020, and why?

AJ: This has been such a blur of a year! 

At Dana Lynch Design we just did a Make-A-Wish project for a little girl with sickle cell disease who wanted a fashion room. She sews patches and designs jackets so we set her room up and got her a sewing machine and supplies. It was probably the most fun thing I’ve done all year. Just seeing her be so excited about it was the icing on the cake.

I also finished designing my studio apartment. That was one goal I had for this year, because for the longest time I had “stuff,” but I hadn’t fully finished my apartment. My vision was calm but with an edge, so it’s very monotone with a lot of off-white and cream and texture and pampas grass. I also have a black canopy bed and a bunch of black leather, so everything is very light and bright but with pops of black.

AT: What makes you feel at home in your own space?

AJ: Is it weird to say candles? Just lighting a candle and bundling under very warm wool blankets is how I feel like I really decompress. There is this candle I love that’s sold by Sugar Paper called Crisp White Linen, and it smells like the Delano hotel in Las Vegas. I’ve been searching for that scent forever and it smells so good. 

AT: What three words would you use to describe your work or style?

AJ: I always say edgy-minimal as an adjective, and maybe a little androgynous. 

AT: Is there a specific piece or design of yours that you think is particularly indicative of who you are or what you’re trying to do?

AJ: I would probably say our Noir Crocodile Embossed pillow. With the center zipper, that one just reflects the entire aesthetic that I’m trying to go for. It’s glam and makes a statement. There’s that quote from Rachel Zoe that says, “Style is a way to say who you are without having to speak.” That’s what I want to do with the pillows I produce.

AT: How do you think the past year will impact the design world moving forward?

AJ: There have been a lot of people sharing about Black-owned business, especially in the home decor sector, and I’ve found so many people that I didn’t even know existed. And from that alone I’ve gotten so many sales too. So I think that is going to uplift a lot more businesses.

I think this year is also going to put a lot more people in the mindset of being an entrepreneur, because we’ve seen how at the drop of a dime we can lose our jobs. A lot of people are looking for backup plans. 

AT: How has 2020 changed your perspective on or approach to your work?

AJ: It’s not really changed that much. I’ve kind of focused a bit more. I don’t know if it’s necessarily 2020, but before this I was more scattered and trying to do everything at once. I feel like I’ve homed things [in] and focused more on doing things step by step.

AT: Any big plans for 2021 or beyond you can share with us?

AJ: I’m always planning. That’s the one thing I’m always doing, whether I have the funds to execute on my ideas or not. I do have big dreams. In my head from the beginning of Stud, I’ve had this huge photo shoot idea in mind that I haven’t seen anyone do. It’d be a very editorial approach to pillows. I’m excited to try it and hope I can do it in 2021. That, as well as continuing to grow and expand what I’ve already been doing with packaging and creating more designs. Just upping everything. 

AT: What, in your mind, is the power of good design?

AJ: It makes your life easier without even realizing that your life was made easier. It soothes your soul. It uplifts and calms frustrations. Good design just does so much. 

AT: Is there a celebrity or public figure you’d love to design for?

AJ: Oh, let’s manifest this right now. I would absolutely go gaga if I could ever design anything for Rihanna. I would lose it. I’ve literally DM’d so many people from her management because I think it just would be a perfect match. Or Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, or even Ariana Grande. But Rihanna is number one.

AT: What kind of legacy do you want to create with your career?

AJ: I want to set my own lane. Just like how when you see a Kelly Wearstler piece you know who it’s by. That’s the type of legacy that I want to leave, especially with my pillows. I want to be able to have that type of mark on the world with design.

Interview has been edited and condensed.