Classic & Curious

How do you create a layered home that feels personal, collected, and comfortable?
Benjamin Raynaert joins Anne Kokoskie on Classic & Curious to explore the art of decorating with personality. An editor, stylist, and creative director, Benjamin has honed his discerning eye at some of design’s most influential publications, including Martha Stewart Living, Architectural Digest, House Beautiful, Veranda, and Domino. Today, he serves as the US editor for House & Garden UK, alongside leading his own creative studio.
Drawing on that editorial experience and his debut book, The Layered Home: Inspiration for Crafting Cozy, Collected Rooms, Benjamin shares why the most compelling interiors evolve over time—and why perfection is overrated.
From grouping objects in threes to photographing a room for a fresh perspective, he offers approachable ways to develop your eye. Anne and Benjamin discuss mixing antiques, embracing unexpected finds, and allowing meaningful objects to tell your story.
They also explore The Ticking Tent, the antiques, vintage, and artisan market Benjamin co-founded, where discovery and community go hand in hand.
A conversation for anyone who loves interior design, collecting, and creating a home that feels unmistakably their own.
Connect with Benjamin:  @aspoonfullofbenjamin
Connect with Anne: @classicandcuriouslife, classicandcurious.com and on Substack: Curiosities by Anne Kokoskie

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What happens when fashion and interiors share a creative vision?
For designer Marla Mullen, the answer takes shape in the Nantucket Rose—a floral brooch created in collaboration with Helena Simon, whose handmade brooches were commissioned for the Met Gala. Blending beautiful fabrics, a tassel inspired by interiors, and a personal connection to Nantucket, their collaboration celebrates how a small detail can carry a meaningful story.
On Classic & Curious, Anne Kokoskie welcomes the Boston and Nantucket-based interior designer and contributing editor for Boston Home, whose work has been featured in New England Living, Modern Luxury, and The Boston Globe. Raised among antiques, fabrics, and her father’s upholstery craftsmanship, Marla brings a lifelong appreciation for artistry to the spaces and objects she creates.
Together, they explore the relationship between fashion and interior design, the power of creative collaboration, and Marla’s invitation to give yourself “permission to embellish.” From accessorizing a room to navigating AI in design, this conversation celebrates personal style, things made by hand, and the courage to stay true to your creative voice.
Connect with Marla @marlamullendesigns and marlamullendesigngroup.com
Connect with Anne: @classicandcuriouslife, classicandcurious.com and on Substack: Curiosities by Anne Kokoskie

What if the secret to a beautiful life is collecting small moments of joy?
Alexander Widener, founder of Widener Company in Wiscasset, Maine, joins Anne Kokoskie on Classic & Curious for a conversation about design, craftsmanship, curiosity, and starting over. Recently seen alongside Meredith Hayden on Netflix’s Wishbone Kitchen, the decorator, collector, and storyteller shares how leaving New York led him to create a shop and guest cottage rooted in beauty and personal discovery.
From handmade pottery and Maine-made glass to handwoven baskets and vintage finds, Alexander celebrates objects with a story—and the craftspeople who bring them to life. He shares how he chooses pieces for his shop, why beauty belongs at every price point, and how letting go of perfection helped him find the confidence to build something of his own.
Whether you’re decorating your home, discovering American craftsmanship, planning a coastal Maine visit, or imagining your next chapter, this episode invites you to trust your instincts, stay curious, and notice what brings you joy.
Explore Widener & Company at widenercompany.com, Follow Alexander @alexander_widener and @widenercompany
Connect with Anne: @classicandcuriouslife, classicandcurious.com and on Substack: Curiosities by Anne Kokoskie

What happens when a love of mahjong meets a lifelong devotion to Halloween? Anne welcomes writer and actress Jill Kargman and Center & Spring co-founder Sandi Drucker-Wright to talk about their delightfully spooky mahjong tile collaboration.
Jill and Sandi share how a vacation game sparked the idea, and how artist Kelly Lillian brought it to life with skulls, snakes, fanged lips, and jokers designed to make players smile. Sandy also tells the story behind Center & Spring’s beautiful game tables and reflects on the friendships and connections that form around mahjong.
Then the conversation turns to Halloween: favorite candy, memorable costumes, beloved movies, and the guests they’d invite to the ultimate spooky party. It’s a playful celebration of creativity, gathering, and making room for a little mischief at the table.
Explore the Halloween tiles at centerandspring.com, and follow @centerandspring
Follow Jill @jillkargman
Follow Anne @classicandcuriouslife

As summer draws to a close and we reflect on America’s 250th anniversary, Americana is having a moment—and no one has defined it more beautifully or enduringly than Ralph Lauren.
My guest today, interior designer Javier Burkle, knows that world firsthand. After working with Ralph Lauren, he founded the Dallas-based firm Burkle Creative. A two-time featured designer at the prestigious Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas, Javier has also been recognized by Architectural Digest, Veranda, ELLE Decor, Vogue and Homeworthy. His interiors are timeless, collected and deeply personal.
After working with Ralph Lauren, he founded the Dallas-based firm Burkle Creative, known for interiors that feel timeless, collected and deeply personal.
Together, we explore what gives Ralph Lauren style its unmistakable feeling—not one particular period or palette, but the layering of old and new, polished and timeworn, personal history and beautiful craftsmanship.
Javier shares how we can bring that sensibility into our own homes through inherited pieces, patina, unexpected modern touches, lighting and fabric. And because this style is as much about living as decorating, we also talk about gracious hospitality and creating a welcoming home bar.
This is a conversation about bringing layered American style to life—and making it distinctively your own.
Connect with Javier Burkle @burkle creative and burklecreative.com
Connect with Anne: @classicandcuriouslife, classicandcurious.com and on Substack: Curiosities by Anne Kokoskie

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