Beantown Boudoir: TV Exec Heather Hazelton gets her glam on at home

Life is pretty much one big party for Heather Hazelton. As the local sales manager for CW56 Boston, Hazelton is out on the town practically every night, whether wining and dining clients at restaurants and sporting events or hitting hotspots with girlfriends. So looking good is a way of life, high heels included.

One would imagine Hazelton’s home to be as fabulously turned out as she is, but it just wasn’t so — at least, not until interior designer Kristine Mullaney got a hold of the keys to her Commonwealth Avenue condo. Mullaney explains: “Heather is a fashionable girl, with a great sense of style, so I was surprised when I saw her apartment.” Of the grayish-green walls and mammoth brown sofa, Mullaney says, “There was a disconnect.” In Hazelton’s defense, she travels a lot, so decorating was never a priority. But she admits, “My place definitely didn’t match my personality.”

Upon their first meeting, Mullaney delved into Hazelton’s closet, which was, at the time, an IKEA cupboard stuck in the corner of the bedroom. Hazelton remembers, “She asked me what my favorite dress is, and I pulled out a colorful Diane von Furstenberg print.” Hazelton’s style is tastefully bold, tending toward strong pattern and color. In addition to DVF, she favors Herve Leger, Theory, Black Halo, Gucci, and Chanel. It was, in fact, a Herve Leger bandage-style dress that inspired the color of the entryway. Mullaney recalls, “Heather pulled out a gorgeous orangey coral dress on which I based the color scheme. I try to pick out colors that my clients wear, colors they look good in.”

Mullaney painted the entry in Benjamin Moore’s “Bird of Paradise.” She says, “We took that Leger dress and kicked up the color about five notches.” It’s a strong statement, especially with the existing black-and-white marble floor tiles. To illuminate the narrow space, which gets no natural light, Mullaney hung a crystal chandelier that she found at an estate sale in Beacon Hill.

The sexy look is elaborated upon in the bedroom. Mullaney envisioned boudoirs of “1930s glammed-out actresses” as she designed the space. The shimmery wallpaper is Schumacher’s “Kyoto Flower.” The Osborne & Little silk-charmeuse drapes, which blend perfectly with the paper, are meant to evoke a satin ball skirt. Hazelton’s mirrored bureau and oversized chandelier, both purchased from Domain, lend additional shine. “It’s the one thing I did right,” Hazelton jokes. She purchased the Donna Karan silk-charmeuse duvet on sale at Bloomingdale’s — after she got Mullaney’s approval. Raspberry and pink pillows were custom-made from Jane Churchill fabrics, and the area rug is Stark’s “Leopard Rose.”

Mullaney nailed the desired vibe with the Hollywood Regency–style sensibility, but there was another very important directive: to create closet space. So Mullaney built out an empty section of wall into a large closet that reaches the full height of the 15-foot ceiling, with double doors trimmed in the style of iconic interior decorator Dorothy Draper. Mullaney transformed the tiny existing closet into a shoe-and-accessory cupboard inspired by a picture in a magazine of Sex and the City actress Kim Cattrall’s shoe closet. “I get a lot of clients asking me to redo their closets now, based on the photo of Heather’s that I have on my website,” says Mullaney.

On the other side of the entry hall, in the living room, are more rosy accents, the most prominent being the round “Jeanie Chair & 1/2” from Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, covered in Duralee raspberry velvet with contrasting leather piping. Two Gainsborough-style chairs from Schumacher are upholstered in the lively “Chang Mai Dragon” print, and another mirrored piece, a buffet from Horchow, is used as a media cabinet. Hazelton says, “Kristine made my place me. It’s how I am, what my life is like, how I dress. I feel like I am more myself here, and I love it.”

Marni Elyse Katz is a freelance writer in Boston who blogs about style at www.stylecarrot.com