“WHEN I’M AT work, I’m at work. When I’m at home, I’m at home.”
And with those simple words, Sarah Richardson neatly describes how she manages to juggle her life as one of Canada’s most wellknown interior designers and mom to two young girls, aged two and four.
Richardson and I connect over the phone before she leaves for her cottage where she’ll get in some relaxation time with her kids and husband and his and her families.
She’ll need this break as she gears up to begin production on the fourth season of her HGTV show Sarah’s House.
Richardson’s hectic schedule leaves her little room for the traditional pursuit of “me” time. But while most women might feel that’s a source of frustration, it’s OK with her.
“My job is very physical, so I don’t go to the gym. I don’t go in for manicures or pedicures, and I dye my own hair,” she says with a laugh. “There’s no glamour factor here. OK, once in a while my hairdresser stages an intervention, but that’s about it.”
Getting away to the cottage or any trip out of town is the only way Richardson likes to spend a vacation with her family.
She admits to never taking time off at home because she has found (like most moms) how easy it is to be overtaken by the regular domestic chores.
“The errands you do with your kids are not quality time,” she insists.
Growing up in the city of Toronto, Richardson had the benefit of attending both public and private schools and believes that both can work, depending on the child.
She spent her early years (up to Grade 6) in public school and then had the opportunity to attend the private school of Havergal through to Grade 13.
“I had the benefit of a great education plus met all the new friends my junior school friends had made at their new schools. As a result, I know a huge number of “kids” my age and Toronto feels like a small town to me.”
It’s no surprise that Richardson’s self-described “theme song” is Jimmy Cliff ’s “You Can Get It if You Really Want.”
“I love the energy of the song and the concept of embracing your destiny and making it happen.”
Making homes beautiful is what Richardson is known for, renovating and decorating spectacular rooms that can be found in magazines everywhere plus on her own shows.
Part of her inspiration comes from a simple quote she heard years ago.
“Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful,” which William Morris said over a hundred years ago.
“I think it’s sage advice!”
Given the success of the home and career lives she has built, she’s in a good position to judge.