When people ask Kathy Fielder what she does, she doesn’t quite know what to say.
“I’ve starting telling people I’m a lifestyle expert,” she says, seated comfortably on a textured couch in the back of her boutique on Greenville Avenue in Dallas. That doesn’t quite give the full picture of her vibrant career though.
Fielder owns and runs a bedding and home goods line—from concept through manufacturing—and she’s getting ready to launch her own branded furniture line. She is the lifestyle correspondent for “The Fielder Report,” a segment on Designing Texas. She’s a lifestyle blogger with book publishing on the horizon. She’s also a philanthropist, serving on the board of Equest, an equine therapy organization, as the development chair and chairing the gala this coming April.
Certainly, it’s hard to find one title that captures all of her varied experiences and all the exciting endeavors she has on the horizon.
About a year and a half ago, Fielder really became a household name in Dallas when she was invited to host “The Fielder Report.” After what was scheduled as a one-time interview, Designing Texas hostess Jocelyn White told Fielder she was a natural, and within six weeks, Fielder was hosting the regularly recurring segment, during which she shows Dallas residents what’s trending in design and lifestyle and how to make their lives a little more comfortable and a little more fabulous.
Fielder will soon be making appearances in living rooms across the nation with her own program and exclusive line on QVC.
She is also currently revisiting her design roots, working on a large-scale private residence project at the Ritz Carlton in Dallas.
This July, Fielder will debut Kathy Fielder for Atlantic Furniture at the Las Vegas Market, targeting big box retailers with an elevated lifestyle line.
“It’s furniture based on storage and functionality, designed to be beautiful and elegant at a great price point,” she says, flipping through a folder of sketches and computerized designs to an image of a cart that can function as a kitchen island or a buffet while also offering storage space.
While furniture itself is a new venture, Fielder has plenty of experience designing products and bringing them to life. After 10 years as a designer, Fielder launched her own soft goods line, the Isabella Collection by Kathy Fielder, named after her daughter. The collection was immediately embraced by Neiman Marcus and has also been sold in Horchow and boutiques across the country for the last several years. Subsequently, Fielder launched IC Linen Co by Kathy Fielder as another collection of soft goods housed underneath her KF label. Fielder also manufactures a line of clutches and faux fur products— vests, throws and pillows—at her studio and sells them at her retail and online boutiques.
“Everything is cut, sewn and shipped out of here,” Fielder says, standing in a large workroom in the back of her boutique. Fielder’s mother serves as the pattern designer and workroom manager.
“Family is really important to me,” she says.
Near her own desk is a desk where her daughter regularly sits to do homework, and next to that is a small table and chairs with colorful scribbles done by her five-year-old son.
“My kids come in to work with me regularly,” Fielder says. “I think it’s good for my kids to see a mother who is working, to see a struggle, see solutions being implemented and know that it’ll be OK. Life works out. You keep working hard, and it’ll be OK.”
Fielder’s positive, upbeat spirit translates well to her lifestyle blog, where she posts daily with tips and tricks for women with a goal of making their lives a little easier. “All of us girls are just trying to figure out how to get lunch packed and figure out where we are supposed to be, with two shoes on and two earrings,” she says, laughing.
Krista Franks Brock is a Dallas-based freelance writer and editor who enjoys writing about art and design. For more information, visit kristafranksbrock.wordpress.com.
