"A person's home—what it looks like, where it is, how it's lived in—reveals more about him than absolutely anything else in the world," says New York designer Elaine Griffin. "Think about it: you change clothes every day; you eat a different food at every meal. But you head home to the same house night after night. Feed someone, change his evening. Change his clothes, you impact his day. Change a person's environment, you change his life.

"Stylewise, it's important that your house reflects who you are: where you come from, where you've been, where you are and where you're going. We want your home to be warm, we want it to be inviting, and we always want it to look like you and like nobody else—you are the soul of every room in your house.

"My work as a decorator aims to implement a refined version of the client's own vision for his space, whatever the look, feeling, or style. Dictatorial design is a no–no—the decorator's hand should enhance a client's personality, never eclipse it. Whether classic or contemporary, super mod or timeless antique, I'm about creating elegant, effortless–looking interiors that seem to have naturally evolved over time; warm, richly-textured rooms so delightfully inviting that one wishes to never leave them."

A Yale-educated native of Georgia (B.A., Art History) who studied postgraduate at the New York School of Interior Design, Elaine began her design career in the office of architectural behemoth Peter Marino, following a nine-year career as a publicist in New York and Paris. She is the contributing editor, design, for Better Homes & Gardens, a former contributing and special projects editor at Elle Decor and is ranked as one of House Beautiful's Top 100 American Designers. A participant in the 2003 Kips Bay Decorator Showhouse, Elaine's work has been featured in publications including Elle Decor, House Beautiful, the New York Times, Daily News and Post, Better Homes & Gardens, Southern Accents, New York magazine, and Oprah's O at Home.

She makes frequent appearances in design segments on national TV, including the Today show, and is a sought-after motivational speaker. Elaine's first book, Design Rules: The Professional's Guide to Do-It-Yourself Home Style (Gotham Books), is in bookstores now.