Our Approach

We believe the most memorable homes aren’t the most perfect—they’re the most loved. They feel collected rather than decorated, layered rather than designed, and alive rather than staged. We create interiors that invite curiosity: rooms that reveal themselves slowly, where every antique, painting, book, textile, and flower feels as though it arrived naturally over time.

Our work is deeply rooted in the romance of everyday life. We design for morning coffee in the kitchen, muddy boots by the back door, flowers gathered from the garden, long dinners with friends, children building forts in the living room, and evenings spent by the fire with a stack of books. Rather than chasing perfection, we seek warmth, character, and a sense of abundance — homes that feel generous, personal, and effortlessly lived in.

We are inspired by layered English country houses, old European interiors, artists’ homes, and storied American family homes that have evolved over generations. We love the dialogue between refinement and playfulness: an antique portrait beside a striped lampshade, an unexpected pop of color in an otherwise restrained room, a towering arrangement of wild branches, or an oversized stack of books that becomes part of the architecture. These unexpected moments bring joy and make a home feel unmistakably its own for the people who live there.

Like a well-tended garden, the best homes are never truly finished. They are cultivated over time, season by season, layer by layer. The home evolves alongside the people who live there—growing richer, more personal, and more beautiful with each passing season. Our goal is not simply to create beautiful rooms, but homes that feel fully lived in, endlessly interesting, and impossible to mistake for anyone else’s.

ARDEN WRAY

Arden Wray is the Creative Director of Byrd Studio, where she leads the studio’s residential design practice and guides each project from its earliest idea through final installation.

With a background in photography, Arden brings a strong editorial eye to the design process, considering not only how a space functions and feels, but how it is composed, layered, and experienced from every angle. Her work is known for its collected quality — bringing together antiques, expressive color, pattern, natural materials, and unexpected details in interiors that feel personal, lived-in, and entirely specific to the people who inhabit them.

Rather than adhering to a fixed formula, Arden approaches each project as its own unique story and a world unto itself: shaped by the architecture, setting, and story of the home. Since co-founding Byrd Studio with her mother, Eliza Clark, in 2021, she has built a devoted roster of clients throughout the Catskills and Hudson Valley, NY, Litchfield County, CT, and beyond.

Arden lives in the Catskills with her husband and daughter.

ELIZA CLARK

Eliza Clark is the co-founder of Byrd Studio and leads the studio’s hospitality and special projects, bringing decades of experience in creating atmospheric, character-rich spaces that feel both transportive and deeply grounded in place.

An accomplished novelist and television producer, Eliza brings a storyteller’s instinct to every project. Her approach is intuitive and highly personal, shaped by a lifelong interest in collecting, restoring, and reimagining old buildings and objects. She is drawn to spaces with history, patina, and a certain sense of mystery, layering antiques, textiles, art, and natural materials in a way that feels relaxed, immersive, and entirely original.

Alongside her work with Byrd Studio, Eliza is the creative force behind Foxfire Mountain House and Lost Fox Inn, two distinct hospitality properties known for their soulful interiors and strong sense of atmosphere. Across each project, she brings a rare ability to create spaces that feel memorable from the moment you enter them.