Gigi Hadid Calls This Bold Hue “My Happy Color”

Gigi Hadid deals in images that resonate, poses that pack a lasting punch, looks that stop you and linger. As one of the most prominent muses of a generation inundated with far more of said imagery than any prior, thanks to the advent of the internet, the model’s impact is essentially indelible. But with her hit knitwear brand, Guest in Residence, she’s not all that concerned with personal legacy. In fact, she ponders its antithesis: transience.

“We’re guests in residence of the homes that we live in, of this planet, of the clothes that we wear,” Hadid says of her label’s backstory. Her offerings are billed as “future heirlooms,” crafted with a high-quality cashmere and a timeless look that work in tandem to serve their hand-me-down aspirations. “I wanted to encourage people to invest in the pieces that come with them through life. [The concept] has a universal feeling to it. When I think of that in design, I think of wood,” she says. Guest in Residence’s new LA location—the first brick-and-mortar outside of its NYC flagship—features warm timber in droves. (A classic move, but it’s also on-trend, if you ask us.) The store, which was designed in collaboration with Yaoska Interiors, eschews the stereotypically high-fashion fussiness of a sterile, minimalist boutique for a homey coziness befitting its knitwear wares. It showcases Hadid’s loves for “tchotchkes, handmade stuff, beautiful art, and florists,” and she hopes a chessboard, books to flip through, and some comfy seating encourage “a feeling that you’re walking into someone’s house. I want people to be able to sit down and hang out!”

The store shares some similarities with Hadid’s vision for her own homes in Pennsylvania and New York: wood as an organic, grounding “base,” as she puts it, for layers of eclectic decor that deliver the texture and color she craves. In fashion as in home design, she’s gotten more confident in letting those layers sing as she grows into herself.

“The way I designed and decorated my homes or apartments at first and the evolution of my fashion style are similar,” she explains. “When I first moved to New York, my style was very on trend all the time and the way I decorated my apartments was safe and quite simple. I had that want to express myself through tchotchkes and things, but I didn’t have the experience or means to be more creative. Once I got to a place where I could buy my first apartment and have more of a creative hand print on it, that was also the time in my [fashion] style where I was just like, ’F it; I get to wake up every day and express myself and it’s not for the opinions of others.’ And I think that I’ve gotten there in expressing myself in my living spaces.”

Below, Hadid sits down with AD to discuss some special spots in her home, the colors she’s been most drawn to lately, and the quintessentially New York problem she’s getting to the bottom of at her Manhattan residence.

Architectural Digest: What city do you live in?

Gigi Hadid: I live between New York City and Pennsylvania.

How would you describe the style of your homes?

My general style through and through is eclectic, industrial farmhouse.

We love all conversation about color palettes and trending colors. Is there a color for the season that you want to be seeing around or wearing?

For me, it’s always yellow. Sunflower yellow is my happy color. So you can see me in yellow all the time, in any season. But this season, let’s see…. I love a cherry red. I know that’s kind of obvious, maybe because we’re going toward Christmas, but I just think a really poppy cherry red, in even the littlest detail, is so cute.

What’s your favorite gadget or appliance in the home?

I guess the one that I use the most is my Nespresso. And I need the milk frother situation. They’re a couple.

What’s one kitchen item that you use every single day?

I just got this Caraway set in yellow. A new set of pans feel so good! I use them every day.

What’s your bedtime ritual?

I think of my bedtime ritual as the time after my daughter goes to sleep. I love quiet and I enjoy being by myself and getting stuff done, like emails and whatnot that I didn’t get back to that day. So just kind of unwinding.

What is one thing you wish you could change about your house?

My outdoor space in New York is getting a little update because we had a rat problem in New York, and some of the original designs of the space didn’t help that problem. So that’s what I’m looking forward to.

Looks like we have the same problems as you here in NYC! Can you describe an item in your home that you brought back from a trip?

I went on a UNICEF trip to Senegal and when I got back, my security came into my house and was like, “I brought you back something.” And he had bought me this [drum] and flew it back with us. Sorry, I can’t fully reach it to bring it down from this shelf to show you, but it’s really beautiful! Such a nice, thoughtful thing and a nice memory of that trip.

What room in your house is your favorite and why?

I like for my kitchens to be my living rooms, so either that space, or [my daughter] Khai and I have an art room that’s really special to us.

For crafting or like a gallery?

A crafting room. There’s one wall in there that’s the wall she’s allowed to paint on in the house. And we do all sorts in there like clay and shrinky-dinks and obviously a lot of drawing and painting. It’s good for both of us. We love it.