'Whether Designing for Elton John, a Kardashian or Mr Smith Down the Road, My Approach Is the Same' – Superstar Designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard Opens His Little Black Book

Most designers arrive at their profession through years of study, carefully planned career moves, and a well-defined creative vision. But LA-based superstar Martyn Lawrence Bullard's path was far less conventional. Before becoming one of the world's most sought-after interior designers, he was a teenager selling antiques from a market stall in Greenwich, London, a drama student funding his acting ambitions through flea market finds, and a hopeful Hollywood actor who accidentally found himself decorating offices, weddings, and eventually the homes of the rich and famous.

Today, his client list reads like a who's who of celebrity culture, from Elton John to the Kardashians, while his exuberant, globally inspired interiors have made him one of design's most recognized names. Yet in this latest installment of our Layered Lives series, Martyn reveals that beneath the glamour lies the same curiosity that first sent him rummaging through junk stores as a child. Here, he reflects on the unexpected twists that shaped his career, his love of travel, and why comfort remains the greatest luxury of all.

Homes & Gardens: Where do you think your love of design comes from?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: My parents lived in Chislehurst, Kent, in the UK, and we had a big old house. My bedroom was at the top of the roof, in what used to be the servants' bit. I was about 12 when I started to decorate it, using a lot of Laura Ashley. My older sisters were all quite a bit older than me and had already left the nest, but they'd always liked Laura Ashley, so it had influenced me. I remember there being a sale and convincing my mom to let me buy some fabric remnants, which I stapled above my bed to make it look like a canopy bed. And then I convinced my dad to rent me a stall at Greenwich Market on Saturday mornings. I would go to junk stores, buy silver spoons or cups and saucers, then go to the stall and make it all pretty and wait for unsuspecting American tourists.

Homes & Gardens: Were your parents similarly creative, or equally entrepreneurial?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: My dad had been an opera singer, so there was that energy in the house already. And my older sister was a fashion designer, so that was always in the mix. By the time I started getting into it, people were amazed by the audacity of this kid to just set up a stall. I befriended the other dealers, one of whom was Will Fisher, a kid like me at the time who went on to found the amazing antique store Jamb London. He's still a good friend today.

Homes & Gardens: Were there any places or spaces that were inspiring your interest in interiors?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Because of my dad's career, I got to travel all over Europe and the continent, and that stuff soaked in. We got to visit opera houses and stately homes, and it was my education. By the time I was 17, I wanted to go to drama school, while my dad wanted me to be more serious. So I took my ill-gotten gains – by that time I was selling antique jewelry in Covent Garden Market – and paid for myself to go to drama school. That was my big passion, but I kept on making money at the flea markets.

Homes & Gardens: At what point did you decide you should move to LA?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Someone spotted me on a beach and got me to do a little bit of modeling, a little bit of commercial work, and so by age 20 I decided I was going to move to Hollywood and become a movie star. I'd done some plays, so I got myself into the Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute in LA and moved here for six months. It was very difficult. I ran out of money, but still signed up for another semester so I could get another visa. I had to find a way to fund it, so I had a wooden bowl and got some little bits of jewelry and sold them at the Santa Monica flea market at age 21.

Homes & Gardens: At what point did you start moving back toward design as a career?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Well, at the same time, I got cast as Eartha Kitt's toy boy in Ed Wood's last movie, called I Woke Up Early the Day I Died. I then got friendly with the producer Victor Ginsberg and told him I was renting this super funky little apartment that Judy Garland had lived in when she was super broke. He was fascinated and came over to see it and loved it.

There were things I had brought over from flea markets, and it was just stuff I'd collected, really. But he asked me to decorate his studios, which were in the 9000 Building on Hollywood Boulevard. They spent $30,000 on it, and I took the job because I thought it would get me another movie role. I used a lot of old leather club chairs, fans, and big palm trees. Then, the day it was finished, the producer Liz Heller called and asked if I would do her offices. I was like, "This is crazy!" but just say yes – I was only 22 and not one to turn down a job. She was in the Capitol Records Building, and her office had formerly been Frank Sinatra's. And I thought maybe she'd give me a record contract if it went well!

Homes & Gardens: How did you know what you were doing?!

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: I didn't! But it gets crazier. About a month into the job, she was getting married, and her wedding planner had OD'd and was in recovery, so I said I would help. I went downtown to LA and bought rose petals and rolls of tulle, went over to her house, and dressed it. It looked insane, but she loved it as I'd saved the day. Her father was Seymour Heller, and their family was Hollywood royalty. Gregory Peck and Elizabeth Taylor were at the wedding, as was Cheryl Tiegs, who I was seated next to. She had been one of the first supermodels, and I only vaguely recognized her, but we got on, and by the end of the day she'd hired me to do her Balinese-style mansion in the hills of Beverly Hills. Neither of us had been to Bali, neither of us knew what we were doing, but it ended up on six magazine covers. Being young and crazy and full of ambition, I just went for it.

Homes & Gardens: Did you get nervous working for such big names while winging it?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Being young and crazy and full of ambition, I just went for it. I never had any training, I just fell into design. I didn't know what was going on or what was going to happen. It's been an amazing journey. I ended up in Hollywood with a desire to be an actor, but my life turned into design projects instead.

Homes & Gardens: Did you move out of Judy Garland's old place as your career took off? What did your own home look like at this time?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Actually, I just took over the bigger part of Judy's old place and stayed there until I was 30. I had gotten Edward Norton and Christina Aguilera as clients, and so then I bought a house up in the hills that had belonged to Gloria Swanson and was built by Rudolph Valentino. I decorated it theatrically, using Italian antique furniture, shopping for myself while shopping for my clients. Then I bought a midcentury house in Palm Springs that had belonged to Hugh Hefner and got to play out my '60s fantasies. And now I have another house in Hollywood, which is a Mediterranean villa, and it's a real mix. I love eclectic.

Homes & Gardens: What do you want a home to feel like?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: The very first thing I want is comfort. And to me, modern luxury is about making sure there is comfort. So for all my clients, be it Elton John or a Kardashian or Mr. Smith down the road, my approach is the same. I want to make sure a home is a sanctuary. Because I work for so many celebrities, you realize their homes have to be sanctuaries. They can't run down the street and get milk. Their only privacy is at home, which is where they need to come to recharge and to get re-inspired. The best way to do that is to focus on function. It's important that everything in the house feels easy and makes life feel easy, too.

Homes & Gardens: You've often talked about your love of Moroccan design. What lessons can designers learn from North African interiors?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: I love that Moroccan flavor. There is something very sexy about it. The decorative history of Britain is a combination of everything – we brought so much back from the countries in our empire – so in a British house you'll see a Moroccan table, and that, to me, is the essence of interesting decor. A taste of the exotic is embedded in our culture. I've done everything, from modern homes to restoring a 12th-century castle, but I do always like adding something Moroccan. It gives a twist.

Homes & Gardens: Your new project is a YouTube series called Live, Love and Decorate – what's it about?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: I love travel. It's the biggest inspiration for me. But you never know a city until you know the people who live in it. And my great passion in life is getting to know people. So in the series, we go in and talk to them about how they decorate, how their surroundings have influenced them. The series shows you how people live in the cities. It gives you a feeling of wanderlust for travel. And then I'll show some things I love to do in whichever city we're in.

It's like an Anthony Bourdain series, but about design and people and how they live. I interview interior designers, fashion designers, antique dealers, aristocrats, a cross-dressing life coach, and people from all different walks of life. It's a wonderful cross-section, and that is always inspiring. In London, I speak to the swimwear designer Melissa Odabash, and we spend most of the time in the kitchen as it's the most inspirational place. It's all filled with '60s and '70s pictures of beaches in the south of France.

Homes & Gardens: Is Live, Love and Decorate your mantra?

Martyn Lawrence Bullard: Yes, I suppose it is! I don't believe that you have to have rooms full of expensive art, just things you love. If you love something, it doesn't matter if it's $1,000 or $10, but when you put all these things that you love together, it becomes a window to your soul. And that's the number one thing to putting together a unique interior that looks and feels like you – by making it unique.

Watch Martyn's Live, Love and Decorate series on YouTube here

What becomes clear when speaking to Martyn Lawrence Bullard is that his success has been driven as much by instinct as expertise. While many designers talk about design trends or aesthetics, he returns repeatedly to people, places, and the objects that tell their stories.

Whether drawing inspiration from a Moroccan market, a Hollywood mansion, or a flea market find, his approach remains rooted in creating homes that feel deeply personal. It is perhaps why his interiors feel so alive. For Martyn, decorating has never been about perfection or status; it is about surrounding yourself with things you love and allowing your home to become a reflection of who you are.

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