AlumnaeMar 2, 2021

updated Nov 13, 2023

Second Tuesday: Mirror of Design

Discovering ourselves in the spaces around us — a special conversation with designers Alice Butler Burnham ’65 and Lieve Saether ’90

On Tuesday, March 9, MHS alumnae and friends were treated to a discussion between accomplished interior designers Alice Butler Burnham ’65 and Lieve Saether ’90 about the thoughtful cultivation of our environment as a way to discover ourselves and reflect who we are.

Participants enjoyed learning about their artistic styles and practices and peeking inside some of their favorite projects. Highlights included Alice's remarkable work on the Miss Hall's campus, in partnership with Flasnburgh Architects, designing our STEM building Linn Hall and the new Residence Hall which opened in 2016. Lieve impressed attendees with her bold interiors and shared helpful advice with aspiring designers about industry mentors and keys to success.

The gathering - a full recording of which is below - was a delightful way to spend an hour with MHS friends, lifelong and new.

As part of our Second Tuesday series, Mirror of Deaign was open to Miss Hall’s alumnae, family and friends. The event was underwritten with love from the Lily Auchincloss Foundation.

Our designers:

  • Alice Butler Burnham ’65 earned her A.A. degree from Briarcliff College and certification in Interior Design from the Traphagan School of Design. She has worked for more than fifty years in the field of interior design, and founded her own firm in 1985. Alice's first corporate client was in the Chrysler Building, followed by a rock star’s home in CT. The most satisfying work she has done has been pro bono, renovating an old house for AIDS patients and designing the interiors of homeless shelters in Westport and Norwalk for which she was recognized on the front page of the NY Times Home section. Alice is a member of the American Society of Interior Designers and former President of ASID’s Connecticut chapter. She joined the Miss Hall's Board in 2001 and was actively engaged in the design of Linn Hall and the new residence hall.
  • Lieve Saether ‘90 is the creative mind behind Texas-based firm Turnstyle Design, which she founded in 2004. Having grown up in the U.S. and Europe, and having started her career in Brussels, London, and Los Angeles, Lieve is fluent in multiple languages, understands a variety of backgrounds and heritage points, and educates those around her with an understanding of color, textures, and cultures of the world. Selected as one of HGTV’s Faces of Design, Lieve provides interiors that represent a home’s inhabitants at their best. She and her team proudly collaborate with Austin Chamber Music Center and the Andy Roddick Foundation in set and event design.

See more of their work, and follow them at:

@turnstyledesign