At Home with Natasha Holstine-Rao

by Japs Medina June 21, 2019

Natasha opens up her home in the Botosani top, Derince skirt, and the Capri mules

A feast for the eyes: Natasha's dining room is full of beautiful patterns and textures

We met Natasha Holstine-Rao and her daughters for a Mother's Day feature, but there was something about her home that had our team wandering about to take snaps in between layouts. Not only was the house full of little trinkets that showcased Natasha's attention to detail, but it exuded something else with it: warmth.

Naturally, we couldn't help but ask to do a home feature on the Rao's "loved-in" space.

Natasha opened up her lovely space to the STU team and even shared a few stories about her family. Our conclusion: chic can possibly be genetic.

After living in Delhi for several years, Natasha was able to amass a collection of unique furniture

The Rao home could be described in one word: warm

How would you describe your overall aesthetic?

My fashion and home decor all have a connection to places we have lived. I love collecting unique items from everywhere.

Name your design muses.

I have been following Justina Blakeney, from the Jungalow forever! I love how she connects her travels and relaxed LA style to her home decor. I also love that she makes everything livable for people with children.

We totally enjoyed your hilarious stories about your mom and grandmother. Growing up, how much influence did they have on your style?

It’s pretty funny because my mom, my grandmother and I all wear the same size shoe so my grandma is always asking if I’ve taken her shoes when I leave. I always take a few shoes from my mom.

Daughters Sahara and Harper incorporate their art into their mom's interior design

A wall of photos tells a thousand tales

Lttle trinkets gives the Rao home a lived-in feel

Your home looks polished yet it still possesses that warm, lived-in feel. How do you strike a balance between the two?

We have been collecting pieces from everywhere since we got married 13 years ago. We have also been lucky enough to get pieces from family members which adds to the collection even more.

Name a favorite home item you’ve purchased. Is there a story behind it?

We just bought our sofa and I’d say it’s made our movie nights cozier. The previous couch set we purchased was gorgeous, but, definitely pre-kid time so it’s nice how this fits our family now.

What’s your favorite city/country to visit when it comes to shopping for interiors?

India! We bought so many amazing pieces while we lived in Delhi. So many amazing treasures. I still want a few more.

A balcony full of greens serves as a mini getaway from the city

The shelves capture the "messy organized" look beautifully

When designing your children’s rooms, do your little ones get to participate in the process?

Right now, the bedrooms are more of a mishmash...the kids are looking forward to new bedroom sets when we get back to the States. But, we definitely like include their favorite toys and treasures from our travels. Like, right now we are collecting kids hats from our travels and hanging them on their wall. It’s a fun way to remember trips we’ve been on.

What are the rooms that you spend the most and least time in?

Since we are in a condo and usually live in homes I feel we use every room a lot. In the States they have extra rooms like lofts, formal dining and living rooms that don’t get used a lot. Here, I feel like we have exactly what we need and really use every room.

Intricately carved furniture dot the Rao couple's bedroom

Natasha puts the fun in functional with select wooden pieces

A balance of earth tones and jewel colors sum up Natasha's aesthetic

What’s your go-to interior styling hack?

I’d say my sister in law is my interior design hack! We always go back to her when we want to move something or add a new item;)

You’ve moved around the globe quite a bit. How do you decide which interior pieces go with you and which ones to part with?

The couch set I was sharing above is an item we really loved so we’ve decided to get rid of the larger sofa and keep the loveseat and recover it which I’m excited about giving it new life. We left a few pieces when we came from the states and it was hard but, we really had to decide what would really use rather than statement pieces alone.

Accesories hanging along the hallway serve as a mini art installation