ABSTRACT
The chapter argues that a number of middle- and upper-class women, such as Elsie de Wolfe, Eleanor McMillen Brown, and Dorothy Draper became instrumental in the creation of the field of interior design as it is known today. Starting out by decorating their own domestic interiors, these women created their own economic opportunities by taking advantage of the fact that home decorating had long been a respectable activity for women. They also made use of their positions in high society to establish themselves as people of “taste.” Because they were active in high society, their houses were open venues where their personal styles and design talents could be displayed to a wide range of guests who could afford to pay for decorating services. These women used their social connections as opportunities to generate income when they found they needed or just wanted their own money. These decorators formed relationships with architects due to their social positions and often entered into productive professional relationships with them, which exposed their work to additional potential clients. After Elsie de Wolfe started her decorating career in 1905, decorating for money became an option for middle- and upper-class women. In addition to designing interiors themselves, some the decorators published advice books, such as Elsie de Wolfe’s The Home in Good Taste (1913) to guide housewives in how to decorate their own residential interiors. This further expanded their status and influence, as well as their incomes.
