Sara Demartini Interiors

Sara Demartini - An Antiques Dealer Brings Italian design to Texas.

Provenance: Born to a chemist dad and an accountant mom, Sara Demartini grew up in a 110-year-old house in Pavia, Italy, near Milan. She attended the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera, where she studied all periods and styles of art and decor. When she came to Dallas in 1998 with her husband, she put her design background to good use buying Italian antiques for the Mews. Shaken, not stirred: Demartini loves to mix it up by combining a variety of styles. That’s exactly what she’s done in her creekside Coppell home. The outside is classic contemporary, but inside, she mixes 17th and 18th century Italian, classical, and modern. Her favorite piece? A 17th century Venetian chest with a soft green patina. The grass is always più verde: “People want whatever their country isn’t offering,” Demartini muses. That’s why Dallas customers frequently come to her asking for delicately painted Venetian pieces—the older the better (a change from the rustic Tuscan style popular a few years ago). “They want a sense of history,” she says. Conversely, contemporary style is popular in history-rich Italy. And while Demartini misses the coordinated charm of Milan streets, she appreciates the blank slate Texas offers. “Space is so limiting in Italy,” she says, “but because of the open space, Dallas is a great setting for all different styles.” Buon appetito: Arcodoro & Pomodoro has Demartini’s number—she loves the cheese ravioli and the wide selection of wine. But when cooking Italian at home, she makes gnocchi with ragu sauce. That is when she’s not celebrating her newfound love of mayonnaise.

MEG WATKINS

D Magazine - September 2007