Ella Scott Design

Ella Scott Design

Sister and brother Sandra Meyer and Scott Turpie, owners

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About the name: She said: It's my oldest daughter's name. She was named Scott after her uncle.

Timeline: Opened December 2005.

Background: She said: It was a gradual process. I helped a lot of people with their house. I couldn't help but to move a piece of furniture at a friend's house. I helped people with colors, then moving furniture, then doing rooms. I had zero intention of doing this. He said : I was an artist: pen and ink, oil and canvas. I was creative, fell in love with architecture at age 12.

Ella Scott style: He said : Not traditional. Not contemporary. Clean. We pick forms that are timeless and a little hip without being trendy. Things you can live with forever. She said: He's more contemporary; I'm more funky. The store is a combination of our tastes, and they are not exact at all. That seems to work.

What you stock: She said: Furniture, accessories, lighting and original art. We also have a new line of Tibetan rugs we really love.

Services offered: She said: Full design services. Anything from color consultations to doing a full house.

Typical customer: She said: We get young professionals settling down in their 20s and people in their 80s scaling down and simplifying. We get a lot of designers, too. He said: The largest group we get are men and women in their late 30s.

What is it like to work with your sibling ? She said: It's awesome. It's different than working with a spouse: We don't take anything personally. We're good at different things. I do design services; he's drafting and dealing with designers. He said: We communicate very well. I don't think we've ever had a fight. We've developed a task-sharing technique, and we have the same amount of vetoes.

Paint colors used in the store: She said: We are obsessed with gray and orange these days. We use gray like people used brown a few years ago. It goes with everything. He said: And pink and purple. A play on gray -- with a touch of lavender or touch of pink.

Business philosophy: She said: We want to give customers good sources, good options and reliable information. We want to help customers make good choices and decisions.

Favorite local shops: She said: I love Sixteen Fifty Nine in Georgetown. I've watched stores come and go in that space and used to think it was just the space. But he's killed it. He's done a great job. And Good Eye in Northwest. I love mid-century stuff. He said: Artefacto in Georgetown.

Basic design advice: She said: If you have a big piece, don't cover it in something you'll tire of. He said: Instead of doing two rooms at once, do one really well with good pieces, then do the other room next year. Buy things that you really want.

What's next: He said: We'd like to design and sell our own furniture line. She said: To be constantly on the lookout for new vendors, better form and companies we believe in. That's what I think our job is: Find great stuff and bring it to the store.

Ella Scott Design, 4910 Cordell Ave., Bethesda; 240-395-0885, http://www.ellascottdesign.com.