Meet theDesigner - Cristina Saralegui

to fabulous.

By Patricia V. Rivera / CTW Features

Posted from 10/29/06:

Spanish-language TV talk-show queen Cristina Saralegui grew up in an ultramodern home in Cuba, wishing she really lived in the more traditional hacienda down the street. She calls that conflict schizophrenic. But really, even at a young age, she had a well-defined taste for the more the comfortable and rustic look that blends style with culture. As an adult, years after her family exiled her homeland, she built an island refuge in Miami inspired by her grandparent's Mediterranean-style home. Inside, she made the space hers with folk art that reflected her European and Latin American roots. Life, she says, is eclectic, vibrant and full of contrast. Her home reflects her life.

These days, when she's not entertaining 100 million viewers worldwide with "El Show de Cristina" she's expanding her home-furnishing collections that include furniture, rugs, linens and accessories. Known as Casa Cristina, the pieces blend designs from Mediterranean, Afro-Cuban and pre-Colombian cultures. "I have little lines within lines so that it doesn't become something from one country of origin that everyone else won't be interested in looking at because it doesn't have anything to do with them." The 58-year-old executive producer turned designer shares insight into her inspiration and the importance of personal style.

Homestyle: How did a television producer start creating a home-furnishing collection?

Cristina: Two years ago, my husband, who is my business partner, said 'Baby, we have license. We have a TV show. We have our own studios. Would you like to try your luck at product?' I was 'Yeah, why not, an adventure.' The first people that the agents brought to the table was Pulaski Furniture and it worked out very well. All my life I've known the importance of having a personal style. They gave me the chance to explain about my style, my people and my market, and they taught me about good furniture and good price points. When we started this adventure, I was living in a 1932 Mediterranean house in South Beach, which was inspired by my grandparents. That's what I base this collection after.

HS: How is personal style important in your life?

CS:I have a daughter who is a banker. She just got married two years ago. We always joke about having your personal style and having the guts to have your home be a reflection of you. We talk about how good taste is an educational process where you file away at your rough edges as you age. Often women are afraid to show that personal taste in their homes. They may have it in their hair or wardrobe. But they have a hard time surrounding themselves with what they love in their homes.

HS: What did your family surround itself with as you were growing up in Cuba?

CS: It's so funny because in Cuba my parents lived about a block away from my grandparents. My grandparents' home was the center for the family. They live in a Mediterranean-style home that I loved. It was the place everyone would go to on Sundays. We'd eat with the grandparents and then go into the pool. My parents built their own home, a very modern one with two floors, glass ceilings and a pond in the middle of the house. I grew up in a very modern house lusting for the Mediterranean house in the corner.

HS: What do you enjoy the most about your role as a designer?

CS: I'm not really a designer. You know what I am? I'm a great editor. I worked as an editor-in-chief for many years. I have an eye for design. Always I had this creative part of me that I had to hold back on. I tried to create a certain environment in all our houses. But I've also been working my tail off since I was 16. Being in exile, I wanted to make sure I could do best for my kids. For me it has been like a process, like when you really love something but you can't pay attention to it because you're a producer, a writer, an editor. Finally, I'm in my third career, and I'm so fulfilled because I can do it all. I feel like I'm playing. I enjoy the thought process. I do a lot of research. When I work with my partners, like, let's say we're working on lamps. We may talk about Afro-Cuban musical instruments and then they use that information to figure out how create something different. I love that.

HS: How would you define your personal style at home?

CS: Eclectic, no doubt about it. My husband used to play with Gloria Estefan in Miami Sound Machine. He traveled the world with a conga tour. He's also 11 years younger than me. I'm a baby boomer and he's a baby boomer wannabe. We're pretty picturesque. You see stuff from everywhere. But it all has a reason and flavor. I decided that if I was going to be an eclectic I wanted to live in a certain way with a message. You can't throw everything together and hope it fits. It doesn't work that way.