Janie Molster

Janie Molster believes good design should delight, inspire, and embrace her clients. With a portfolio that ranges from family homes to boutique hotels, urban apartments, restaurants, and retail stores; the Richmond, Virginia designer is equally adept at transforming public and private spaces. Her 25+ years as a design principal and her diverse portfolio of acclaimed projects has established her firm as one of the Southeast’s design leaders. House Beautiful, Traditional Home, Southern Living, Coastal Living, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal have featured her work. “I like to think my rooms inspire Southern graciousness, whatever the region. Even the most sophisticated designs, when handled thoughtfully, should infuse a space with warmth and personality.”

Known for her masterful use of color and passion for antiques, some of her most successful spaces are quiet, monochrome, and decidedly contemporary. A review of her portfolio confirms that every project is approached with an ‘outside the box’ methodology, reflecting creative customization and attention to detail. Clients appreciate her well-honed discovery process, which focuses on their ideas of what's possible and expands on them. "We're translators. We invest in good communication up front to transform a client's ideas into a cohesive workable plan," she explains. "The most satisfying compliment I can get is, 'you understood what I wanted better than I did.'"

As a mother of five, Janie understands that good design must be intertwined with comfort and functional practicality. “Even in formal homes, there are no cordoned-off rooms in my designs…a beautiful room should be a gathering place, beckoning people to sit down together and talk." While a Janie Molster design defies easy categorization, a common thread of authenticity runs through her work. "The most inviting rooms look like they've evolved naturally over time," she says, capturing her design sensibility. "I'm not guided by genre, period, or pedigree. I am guided by good.”

Recent projects include a luxury condo-conversion of a 32-unit historic building (former Stuart Circle Hospital) on Richmond, Virginia’s famed Monument Avenue; renovation and redesign of the Sayre House at The Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.; redesign of Early Mountain Winery and Tasting Room in Madison, Virginia; a private lodge and entertaining pavilion in the Allegheny Mountains in Warm Springs, Virginia; a historic 18th-century plantation home in Powhatan, Virginia; and a Floridian bungalow in Palm Beach County.

Janie’s book, House Dressing, debuted in September 2021. In House Dressing, Janie showcases a range of projects while giving a master class in working with color, pattern, and texture to make spaces that are in turn bold, serene, glamorous, and comfortable, but always personal.