Taylor Swift embraces the modern rustic trend in one of her favorite recording locations – The Long Pond Studios

The isolated recording studio in New York's Hudson Valley is an unexpected source of on-trend decorating inspiration, brought to light by Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift
(Image credit: Neilson Barnard via Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

There's no disputing – Taylor Swift is the name on everyone’s lips. With the drop of her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, the music megastar has reached an untouchable level of stardom. However, despite her unrivaled glamor on stage, Swift’s interior design tastes remain as grounded as ever.

This is best embodied in the design at one of her favorite recording locations, the Hudson-Valley-based Long Pond Studios. The beautiful studio, owned by Swift’s long-time collaborator Arron Dessner of The National, follows a modern rustic design style. It serves as the backdrop for Swift’s documentary, Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions. In the film, which Swift released on Disney+ in 2020, she documents the artistic process of recording her eighth studio album alongside her producers Dessner and Jack Antonoff.

In addition to being the site of musical history, the Long Pond Studios are also an architectural wonder. Built by Erlend Neuman, the A-Frame barn conversion was created with creativity in mind. Their site describes the structure as, ‘an exacting combination of performance control and spatial cohesion.’ In addition to state-of-the-art acoustics and recording equipment, the building is deeply connected to the natural surroundings of the pond ecosystem and biodiversity in the NY forest.

If Taylor’s Folklore album was a space, it would be the Long Pond Studios. The barn is ultra-cozy, stylish, and warmly rustic. Experts say the feeling in the space is in large part due to the strong use of wood. Jennifer Ebert, color expert and digital editor at Homes & Gardens, states: ‘The wood ceiling, wood walls, and large windows flooding the space with light give the studio a grounding feeling that is perfect for preparing for creative expression.’

‘The blue and gray furniture matches perfectly with the rustic color scheme in the music room,' Ebert adds. 

'The cool palette gives the natural wood a more contemporary feel, contributing to the rustic modern design scheme in the studio. In addition to the large windows, this detail makes the space feel much more bright and airy than a typical rustic scheme.’

The modern rustic scheme is one of the biggest interior design trends of 2024. In Taylor Swift’s favorite recording space, it shines brighter than ever.


Shop the modern-rustic edit

Though the trend translates beautifully to the Long Pond Studios, it is just as perfect in a domestic setting, whether we live deep in the Hudson Valley or not. Tapping into the look is possible with the right accessories, starting with these hand-picked goods below. Of course, they look great when paired with our home's architectural assets (where possible), but are just as impactful in a more modern space.

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Sophie Edwards
News Editor

Sophie is a writer and News Editor on the Celebrity Style team at Homes & Gardens. She is fascinated by the intersection of design and popular culture and is particularly passionate about researching trends and interior history. She is an avid pop culture fan and has interviewed Martha Stewart and Hillary Duff.

In her free time, Sophie freelances on design news for Westport Magazine and Livingetc. She also has a newsletter, My Friend's Art, in which she covers music, culture, and fine art through a personal lens. Her fiction has appeared in Love & Squalor and The Isis Magazine.

Before joining Future, Sophie worked in editorial at Fig Linens and Home, a boutique luxury linens brand. She has an MSc from Oxford University and a BA in Creative Writing and Sociology from Sarah Lawrence College.