For designer Dylan Sanders, style is about comfort and creating the right atmosphere.
Her Tribeca loft, which she calls “modern country”, is home to an array of rescued and unusual pets who seem to love the easy décor. With her two dogs, Monroe, a Rhodesian Ridgeback, and Blaze, a Dalmatian; her cat, Max, a Black Angora; her Moluccan Cockatoo, Leeloo; a grey pigeon named Phoebe; and two prairie dogs, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Sanders has created a virtual shelter in her apartment along with boyfriend and New York City firefighter, Timothy Haskell.
For a woman who is always picking up strays anc casting longing glances at ever more potential pets, the search for more animals is not over yet. Sanders may not have room for more animals in her loft, but she is looking into horses which she hopes to stable in Long Island near a country home.
Maybe her affinity for the four-legged (and feathered) variety stems from all the good fortune her Rhodesian Ridgeback, Monroe, has brought into her life. It may have taken four years, but after enough turns around the local firehouse on their daily walks together, Sanders and Monroe managed to get the attention of Sanders’ now boyfriend, Haskell, and his Dalmatian, Blaze. The two pups struck up a fast friendship, and their two-legged friends made contact as well. “The dogs really facilitated the relationship,” Sanders says. Today, the foursome live together along with the other animals Sanders has along the way.
Sander’s home is definitely animal friendly, and so are the products she designs. “My cat loves to use the pashmina blankets as little love toys,” she says. The mood of her fall collection is fresh and upbeat and the pieces are designed for lounging at home. “People like to be comfortable at home,” Sanders says. From robes and men’s shirt to decorative throw pillows and long dresses, Sanders has created a simple and elegant line that any pet would be happy to cuddle up to.
By Dylan Norman
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