11 TV Shows to Binge for Design Inspiration

There’s never a wrong time to turn to quality television as home design inspiration. But now that we’re all self-isolating and social distancing within our walls because of the COVID-19 pandemic, plunging through your streaming queue and gazing at a show’s visual style—one that seamlessly complements its story and characters—is a flat-out essential activity. Beyond the benefit of providing some good old-fashioned escapism, the right series with the right set-design eye candy can spark your own creativity and innovation. And in this current golden age of television, a plethora of swoon-worthy options are just a sanitized finger-click away. Check out these all-time greats, whose aesthetics span from the polished world of 1950s New York City to contemporary white-trim California cool. Welcome home.

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story

Think opulence, and lots of it. The acclaimed 2018 limited series about the late, great Italian fashion designer (played by Édgar Ramírez) was filmed on location at Versace’s mansion on Miami’s Ocean Drive, offering viewers a behind-the-gilded-gates look at his over-the-top architectural philosophy. (To wit: His 10-suite estate features two rooms covered in seashells and a 54-foot-long pool comprised of more than one million mosaic tiles—thousands of which are 24-karat gold!) Because much of the original furniture was sold (the spot is now a boutique hotel), the art department commissioned Italian upholsterers to recreate the original Versace-designed fabric and accentuated his penchant for black and gold. (Netflix)

The Americans

Not only did this cold-war spy thriller about married Russian sleeper agents (Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell) in the 1980s keep us hooked with ultra-suspenseful plots from 2013 to 2018, its decade-of-excess period made for totally awesome retro production design. (Ditto for its costumes, but that’s another story.) As the decade unfolds in the show, set designer Diane Lederman shifted the decor of the pair’s suburban home in Washington, D.C., from the warm colors (notice the soft-gold washer-dryer and kitchen table) of the ’70s to cooler ’80s tones. She and her team purchased vintage furnishings and gadgets via thrift stores, Etsy, and eBay. (Amazon Prime)

Big Little Lies

Author Liane Moriarty set her juicy Big Little Lies novel in her native Australia. But for its small-screen adaptation, which first premiered in 2017, producers chose the airy beachfront world of Monterey, California. Each stunning residence in the show had a personality befitting its owner, from Type A Renata (Laura Dern)’s grand abode with its minimalist furnishings (courtesy of Ligne Roset) to tormented Celeste (Nicole Kidman)’s home of stone and glass overlooking the tranquil sea. (Set decorator Amy Wells picked up the dining room chandelier from Jonathan Adler and chairs from Objects rentals.) As for the house of queen bee Madeline (Reese Witherspoon)? Her lived-in Cape Cod–style beach home is like something straight out of the Martha Stewart design book. (HBO)

Mad Men

Obsessive attention was paid to the production design of this iconic drama, which ran from 2007 to 2015, and served as a time capsule for 1960s New York City. (Creator Matthew Weiner once even switched out apples in a kitchen-set scene because they looked too plump.) For the first half of the series, ad man Don Draper (Jon Hamm) and his family live in a Colonial-style Westchester house decorated in East Coast Danish midcentury style. When he moves out and relocates to Manhattan, his sleek high-rise Upper East Side apartment features a sunken living room with shag carpet, and walnut cabinetry with a built-in television set. Emmy-winning set decorator Claudette Didul said she took inspiration from two 1960s-era books by author Betty Pepis, as well as the 1965 book Decoration U.S.A. It’s still available on Amazon. (Netflix)

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

No joke: Housewife turned comedian Miriam “Midge” Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan)’s dreamy prewar 1950s apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan still looks timeless. The Dorothy Draper chests! The chinoiserie folding screens! The candy-apple-red-and-white kitchen! Production designer Bill Groom, who researched via books, Life magazines, and catalogs, has said he copied the kitchen from a Doris Day movie and sourced the home furnishings from antique dealers. Meanwhile, Midge’s nemesis Sophie Lennon (Jane Lynch) lives in a townhouse dressed in a mix of American and European antiques from Newel. (Amazon Prime)

The Politician

In modern-day Santa Barbara, ambitious high school student Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) is seeking elected office—and he wheels and deals from a bedroom that would make a POTUS drool with envy. Indeed, production designer Jamie McCall told AD that she referenced President John F. Kennedy’s stately quarters when creating Payton’s lair (see: a canopy bed with a tufted silk headboard, antique cane bench, and several first-bound editions of classic books). The rest of the Hobart mansion is a study in ornate decor, from a chinoiserie-tinged sitting room to a well-manicured California lawn. Set decorator Amber Haley sourced the interiors on Chairish and 1stdibs, and picked up an assortment of ashtrays from eBay. (Netflix)

Succession

If you’re Logan Roy (Brian Cox) and you’re trying to run a global media conglomerate while your children wrestle for control, you may as well plot in the most luxurious environment possible. That palatial 20,000-square-foot estate in the Hamptons used to belong to Henry Ford II, and is valued at $175 million. Production designer Stephen Carter told AD that he and his team placed a desk from Newel Antiques and kept the homeowner’s rug in the office. For Logan’s Fifth Avenue apartment (filmed at Silvercup Studios in Queens), set decorator George DeTitta Jr. shopped at high-end sources such as Newel Props (an offshoot of Newel Antiques) along with 1stdibs, John Street Antiques, and The Antique and Artisan Gallery in Stamford, Connecticut, as well as antique shops in Westport, Connecticut. (HBO)

Billions

That’s billions with a B. And that means brash hedge-fund shark Bobby “Axe” Axelrod (Damian Lewis) must connive and thrive in a two-story Tribeca penthouse befitting an actual Wall Street mogul. Wood gleams and metals shine from the light beaming from 18-foot floor-to-ceiling windows. The showstopper is an Italian blown-glass chandelier, which offers a soft counterpoint to the sharp angles and stark-white furniture. For the sprawling Connecticut estate in the show, production designer Mike Shaw and set decorator Christina Tonkin designed the spacious kitchen and living room to look functional for the Axelrod family. The master bedroom, with sheen-coated fabrics draped over an oversize, elevated bed, is a reflection of the main character’s troubled marriage. (Showtime on Hulu)

The Crown

Though production designer Martin Childs has never been allowed to shoot at Buckingham Palace or its royal apartments, he recently told AD that he’s become an expert on its layout and the lavish furnishings thanks to years of research deep dives. And just as Queen Elizabeth (Claire Foy in seasons 1 and 2; Olivia Colman in season 3) has evolved her personal taste throughout her monarchy, Childs and his team have switched out period-appropriate props such as ornate sectionals, clocks, and candelabras. Depending on their needs, they rent (from prop houses), buy (from England’s slew of antique shops and flea markets), or build from scratch. And yes, they did construct the iconic coronation chair, complete with lightweight plastic to replicate the Stone of Scone! (Netflix)

Gossip Girl

Though young and fabulous Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) resides in a stunning high-rise NYC apartment, set decorator Tonkin didn’t completely break the bank to achieve the ritzy aesthetic. The teen’s funky yet casually elegant bedroom, for example, features $60 metallic throw pillows from Bloomingdale’s and a polka-dotted headboard upholstered with $25-a-yard fabric. (Serena’s white desk from Poliform USA is considerably pricier, not that she ever studied.) The living room is more modern: To attain a clean-lined look, production designer Loren Weeks included a sleek wall sconce by David Weeks Studio above the fireplace, custom-made Ralph Lauren chairs, and white Desiron sofas to contrast with the bold Jessica Craig-Martin artwork on the walls. (Netflix)

House of Cards

In this political drama, two power players-turned-POTUSes deviously scheme on the Beltway for years, but at least estranged spouses Frank and Claire Underwood (played by Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright) do so in style. Production designer Steve Arnold and his team constructed the clutter-free White House private residence on a soundstage and sourced furniture from both eBay and estate sales in New York and Washington, D.C. (Note that Frank’s desk is actually from Kittinger, the company that has furnished the White House since Nixon was in office.) The couple’s Georgetown abode was patterned after a traditional townhouse with interiors based on Victorian architecture. Most of the furniture arrived from consignment shops and an in-house fabricator, while an upholsterer created drapery for each room. The pointy, sharp tables are apt metaphors. (Netflix)

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest