Jeff Lewis Dishes About Working With Celebrity Clients On Hollywood Houselift - Exclusive
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By Louisa Marshall/June 27, 2022 1:38 pm EST
Working with a large roster of celebs, Lewis collaborated with the talented A-listers to fulfill their home desires. From “Black-ish” star Anthony Anderson to “That 70s Show” alum Wilmer Valderrama to the iconic Melissa Rivers, Lewis’ clientele is anything but ordinary, and we sat down with him for an exclusive interview to get the 4-1-1 on what it’s like being a designer to the stars.
He fulfilled the unmet wishes of celebrity clients
There’s nothing more frustrating than working with a collaborator, only to have them not fulfill their side of the deal — from elementary school group projects to professional relationships and everything in between. Some of Jeff Lewis’ clientele featured on “Hollywood Houselift” found themselves in that boat. Lewis shared that one such client, Anthony Anderson, had been let down by a contractor, presenting the opportunity for Lewis to step in.
“[Anderson] had a contractor, he had what was supposed to be a one-year budget, a one-year timeframe for the remodel, [and it had] been three,” Lewis told us. “He was very frustrated with contractors, subcontractors, bad experiences, and didn’t really have too much trust in people … I came through for him, and as I came through, he trusted me.” Lewis further shared that he and Anderson still work together to this day, but he had to “prove” himself in those earlier collaborations. “With a lot of these celebrities, they didn’t know what to expect, and then I work directly with them,” Lewis said of the process.
“[Anderson] had a contractor, he had what was supposed to be a one-year budget, a one-year timeframe for the remodel, [and it had] been three,” Lewis told us. “He was very frustrated with contractors, subcontractors, bad experiences, and didn’t really have too much trust in people … I came through for him, and as I came through, he trusted me.”
Lewis further shared that he and Anderson still work together to this day, but he had to “prove” himself in those earlier collaborations. “With a lot of these celebrities, they didn’t know what to expect, and then I work directly with them,” Lewis said of the process.
What sets celebrity clients apart from the crowd
“The celebrities that we worked with are actors and musicians, so these are creative people,” Lewis told us. “I’ve worked for attorneys, and doctors, and when you’re working with these actors, and these musicians, they’re very creative, they’re artists. I found a lot of them much more involved and invested in the renovations and the remodels than my non-celebrity clients.”
Calling it a “fun process,” Lewis shared that working with creatives pushed him as a designer, as he was more willing to pick up out-of-the-box design choices that the celebs themselves were interested in.
“It was more collaborative than what I’m used to. I’ve learned things. They would point to things that I wouldn’t normally pick for myself and I thought, ‘Okay, let’s see if that would work,’ and it did,” Lewis shared. “It really was a fun, creative process for me.”
