“I was notorious as a child,” Darci Hether begins, immediately laughing. “My parents would come home, and I’d have rearranged the entire living room. But they didn’t mind—they were fine with it!”
Hether has a fantastic laugh, and she uses it generously. Her crisp white shirt, chic blonde pixie, and stylish hexagonal glasses perfectly embody her design philosophy: clean and serene.
“I’d do the same with my bedroom,” she continues. “They’d come home to find the furniture all flipped around. I was always changing something in the house—even my Barbie Dream House wasn’t safe!”
Originally from Alaska, Hether moved to Southern California for college, where a straightforward career path eluded her. She tried a variety of subjects each semester, hoping one would resonate. Then came a moment of revelation.
“I had a friend in design school and he came to my apartment to show me his first-semester project,” she recalls. “He was excited, but also nervous. I made so many suggestions, ‘What if you did this? Or moved that there? Have you thought about doing this?’ Finally he looked at me and said, ‘Why aren’t you doing this?’ To be honest, I didn’t know design was a profession. I thought it was something everyone knew how to do!”
The next semester, Hether enrolled in design classes—and she’s never looked back.
After graduating, Hether stayed in Southern California, settling in Newport Beach. While undeniably beautiful, the relentless sameness—of the weather, the landscape, the lifestyle (“Every day is like Groundhog Day!”)—eventually wore thin.
In 2002, Hether swapped the Golden State for the Big Apple, a move she approached with equal parts excitement and trepidation. The post-9/11 economy was shaky, and the city was unfamiliar, but she quickly landed a role as the sole staff designer at a prestigious architecture firm.
“I was the design department! They really helped launch my career,” she tells us. “I learned so much from them. I call it my alma mater because working there truly refined and elevated not only my design aesthetic, but also my obsessive attention to detail in ways that school never could.”
The firm started referring clients to Hether for smaller projects they couldn’t take on. After building a steady client base, she launched Darci Hether New York in 2007. Shortly after, she married her husband, and they welcomed their daughter. Now, nearly two decades on, her firm has grown to six employees operating in two locations: the flagship office on West 30th Street and a home office in Ridgefield.
Hether’s transition from coastal to city living, and eventually to country life, was both gradual and deliberate. A few years ago, while working with a client in Chappaqua, she became drawn to the idea of moving out of the city. The housing market was booming, with bidding wars leaving buyers frustrated—including Hether and her husband. After losing out on their dream home, they decided to pause their search—until her husband came across a property that seemed too good to be true.
“He showed me the listing, and I immediately thought: That house has been photoshopped! My second thought was: And anyway, where is Ridgefield, New York?” Hether recalls. And now we’re both laughing.
Spoiler: the house was not photoshopped. And Ridgefield—a decidedly Connecticut town—proved an even more pleasant surprise. After touring the house, Hether, her husband, and their daughter, now a student at East Ridge Middle School, explored the town.
“We were all like, ‘Where have we just landed?’” Hether says. “My husband and I still drive around, trying to get lost on roads we haven’t explored. Our heads are constantly on a swivel. And we’ve met the best people—I cannot get over the friendships we’ve formed. We couldn’t be happier!”
Since moving to Ridgefield, Hether has been expanding her client base in Fairfield County and building relationships with local trades and industry partners. She tells us of a serendipitous meeting with a fine painter at an event, only to discover the painter lived two miles up the road.
“She’s incredible,” Hether says. “She creates stunning faux finishes using a range of techniques. Right now, she’s working on an ombre gradation on the living room walls for a Greenwich project, and there’s almost movement. When sunlight streams in, there’s this gorgeous reflectivity—it’s truly beautiful.”
Hether’s design philosophy centers on creating cohesive, transformative spaces that evolve with her clients’ lives. Her projects frequently involve whole-home designs, minimizing disruption while ensuring harmony throughout.
“Renovations or facelifts can be disruptive,” she says. “Our goal is to minimize that impact. But cohesion is key—once you change one thing, it’s a slippery slope. It’s like getting a fabulous new haircut and realizing your wardrobe doesn’t match!”
Hether’s sourcing process is highly curated, with most pieces coming from trade-only vendors or custom workrooms, whether the client is based in New York City, Florida, Colorado, or beyond. From bespoke lighting fixtures (“There’s a lighting designer in Colorado whose fixtures I am dying to use!”) to hand-selected fabrics and finishes, every detail is chosen to create a space that feels distinct and personal.
“We have a wide network of vendors,” Hether says. “We’re able to source pieces that are incredibly specific and thoughtful, opening our clients’ eyes to things they wouldn’t otherwise have access to.”
Hether’s designs meet clients where they are—and where they’re headed, striking a balance between livable luxury and timeless elegance. “We create spaces that make sense for who our clients are now and who they’re becoming,” she explains. From empty nesters redefining their homes to those seeking effortless sophistication, her thoughtful approach ensures each space feels personal and functional.
“I want anyone to feel like they can put their feet up on a chair, even if the chair is white!” she says with a smile. By incorporating unique materials, textures, and custom elements, Hether crafts spaces that truly wow—without sacrificing comfort.
Visit darcihether.com to learn more and follow along @darcihether.