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John Kelsey
With his keen listening skills and tranquil personality, John Kelsey might have made a wonderful psychologist. In fact, he was headed in that direction before taking his first design course during his junior year in college. He soon discovered that design is what he was born to do.
John’s strong interpersonal skills have served him — and his clients — well over the past three decades. He has a rare knack for asking questions and provoking answers that reveal the client’s personality, tastes, quirks and even foibles. And when questions arise during a renovation (which is practically inevitable), he knows what it takes to maintain a sense of calm and keep the project moving forward.
Lured by the city’s proximity to great skiing, John began his professional career in Boston at a nationally renowned interior design firm in 1972. There, he learned from some of the masters about what it takes to detail a space and make it polished. In subsequent positions at other prestigious Boston firms, he honed his skills in design and project management, ultimately overseeing the daily operations of a 30-person interiors department.
John launched his own business, J. M. Kelsey Associates, in 1987, and co-founded Wilson Kelsey Design with Sally Wilson in 1996. He brings to WKD big-picture skills, such as the ability to plan and coordinate all phases of large, complex projects. But he also possesses an eye for small details that are expressed and shine through in his precise drawings and specifications.
John’s hobbies are diverse, including wine collecting, sports-car racing and gardening. An active fisherman and kayaker, he looks to the outdoors for spiritual and emotional renewal. Within the New England saltwater fishing community, he has quite a reputation as an expert fly tyer and wooden fishing plug maker. And like Sally, he is a classical music aficionado.
Born and raised in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, John holds a bachelor of science (major in human development & family studies, minor in design) from Cornell University. He continued his design training at the Boston Architectural Center in the mid-1970s and has been certified by the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) since 1980.
Sally Wilson, ASID
An active interior designer in the Boston area since 1979, Sally Wilson, ASID, has an impressive breadth of knowledge of both fine-quality residential interiors and commercial design. Her work as an interior designer is marked by attention to minute detail, layering of sophisticated and rich ideas, imagination, variety, and an overall feeling of gracious comfort. Her clients have described her as creative, smart, style-savvy and dedicated. Comments like, “Your home looks so elegant, and yet so comfortable, too,” are common.
Sally began her professional career in Florida in 1977 and in 1979 landed a position with a prominent architectural firm in Cambridge, Mass. In 1983 she founded Wilson Associates, a full-service interior design firm; 13 years later she joined forces with John Kelsey to launch Wilson Kelsey Design. Her years of creating identities for corporate offices instilled a deep understanding of details, project management and construction processes, which enhances her residential design.
With extensive experience in the field, Sally has developed three key strengths that separate her from other interior designers: 1) a deep technical knowledge that allows her to communicate well with architects; 2) an extensive network of furniture and antiques contacts on two continents; and 3) the uncanny ability to adapt to and assimilate the design tastes of each client.
Sally finds inspiration for her work in the art of Italy, France and the rest of Europe, and in classical architecture. An avid reader and museum-goer, she is also a classical pianist with a penchant for Chopin. Other aspects of life she finds important and fulfilling are her son, two dogs, gardening and entertaining.
A native of Memphis, Tenn., Sally holds a bachelor of arts (major in English literature, minor in art history) from Northwestern University and a bachelor of interior design from the University of Florida College of Architecture. She has studied art and architecture in Europe as well as the decorative arts at the prestigious Winterthur Museum in Delaware.
Sally is a full professional member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and holds the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) certificate.
"John and Sally have just completed their first book. Written especially for homeowners, it is called "Planning Your Project: Demystifying Great Home Design", and is available as a free download on their website."
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