The Taste Report™: Marissa Cox

A chat with the writer and interior designer about how history influences outlook, the influence of Parisian design, and making room for a baby.

Welcome to The Taste Report™, an interview series exploring and explaining taste from people who have supremely good taste.

Marissa Cox has lived in Paris for over a decade — but you may not believe me. As a Paris-based friend of mine said after I shared her Instagram over dinner, “she’s so French.” This was a comment on how effortless Marissa looks, that she has a very specific and very timeless style. Lots of creamy coats, elegantly distressed jeans, and gold earrings: she’s not exactly a Chanel girl but she is definitely in conversation with Francophone workwear. She’s someone you encounter, in person or online, and are struck by how put together she is, that everything snaps into place, more like a design than a performance: she is practically Parisian.

But here’s the thing: she’s technically not French but British, having moved from London twelve years ago. Her background is in journalism and publishing, spending time in Penguin Random House’s publicity world before eventually going freelance. She came up through the 2010s blog and Instagram school of internet jobs, a rare exception who has been able to continue to maintain not only a successful career but point of view while building a business that goes beyond the simple or obvious “lifestyle influencer” trap: she's an interior designer, a career she transitioned into a few years ago after being asked by friends to revamp their new rental apartment, creates content for brands, and looks after partnerships for Substack in France. She’s well versed in being a local, with an accent in the language that many a listener (myself included) would be fooled into thinking was from being born and raised in the city.

Again: that’s Marissa’s trick, in that she has come to represent what the modern Parisian is. This is in ways out of fandom and deep love for the city as she’s the author of a book on this exact subject, Practising Parisienne, a patchwork of advice and interviews that defines the modern gestures of the city with expert opinions from locals like Anne-Laure Mais, Ellie Delphine, and Deborah Reyner Sebag. She’s continued this work in her newsletter, Rue Rodier , where she’s gone on to share how Mélanie Masarin of Ghia, Mathilde Lacombe of AIME, and Bénédicte Burguet Journé of Vanity Fair live their lives informed and within the city. In a way, it’s an ongoing localized Taste Report™ that maps the city now — and this is obviously why I wanted to speak with her, to understand how someone with such a specific and unwavering style in both clothing and interiors arrived at this moment. Everything in her world is so perfectly poised, so perfectly Parisian. How does she do it?

At a small café in Bastille, she and I chatted for well over an hour. She was very pregnant, entering the final trimester and clearly in a crunch of wrapping up projects and trying to squeeze in moments of rest before she adds another hyphen to her already multi-hyphenated identity. She was a vision in layered whites: white pencil jeans, a a blue and white-striped oversized shirt, denim jacket, with a cream field jacket atop, all tied with a bow via a cream weather around her shoulders. It was a masterclass in layering, in being prepared for further dips into cold and rain, embodying the need for utility in dress even this late in April. Between sips of tea and decaf coffee, we spoke about expressing taste through interiors, the importance of history, how imagined French style often cannibalizes actual French style, and how one balances a clear point of view with a new baby (or the impending arrival of one).

KRF: What defines your taste and how do you express it? You have a very specific point of view, a specific style, a specific aesthetic that is both timeless but is also very personal, both in dress and interiors. What goes into that?

MC: Taste to me is a way of considering objects, like clothes to the cover of a book or a magazine. It's a sensibility. For me, it’s a part of how I live: something is always aesthetically pleasing — or not aesthetically pleasing. I very much see through glasses of what really jumps out at me or appeals to me and it's been a combination of the way that I developed into my taste.

I had an education in the history of art from early on, as my parents, especially my dad, were always really interested in art, taking me to galleries from a young age. His apartment is very much like a bachelor's but there’s interesting art on the walls, art books, all this kind of stuff. My dad used to dress me, buying these really lovely outfits, and he's still pretty well dressed for his age. My mom's from a scientific background but she's been doing ceramics for many years: she has an artistic eye. Both of them have a sensibility so I think I've developed that from a young age. Taste was very much part of my upbringing — and I’m an only child so I think I was given some choices, maybe more than other children who have siblings. Each time we moved, I would redecorate my bedroom.

My mom coming from a scientific background pushed me toward academia, to a university, where I studied English literature and Hispanic studies. Living in Spain for a year widened my horizons so much more too. Plus, I grew up in the UK and my mom’s American, my dad’s English: I’ve had a melting pot of difference, of being in different cultures. I'm curious. I want to learn. I grew up reading a lot so I suppose these kinds of different things informed how I see the world now and my aesthetic choices. I mix a lot of old and new: I really like the juxtaposition. I haven't done any formal training in interiors but I was asked a few years ago to help a couple of older clients who were moving apartment — and that’s how I found myself in this career.

Obviously living in Paris has also been a huge eye opener in terms of aesthetics, because the buildings are beautiful. The history, the art, the culture: there is a heritage of beauty. Paris is steeped in it! I also had quite a lot of friends working in publishing and fashion and music when I was living in London, which exposed me to so many different things on a daily basis. I curated my life.

KRF: That’s lovely. How are fashion and interiors different when it comes to expressing oneself? Or are they the same?

MC: A big difference is that you can change your style on a daily basis, depending on your mood. You put on an outfit to feel comfortable, to change how you feel. Whereas, obviously, interiors have much more longevity. That can impact your happiness too but also your approach to work and your relationships. Changing your clothes can make you more confident whereas interiors work more on a longform basis.

I keep a foot in the fashion world but I’m moving much more into interiors. There’s a huge link between the two. I like working with clients because, unlike fashion, you’re not going to redo your interiors on a daily basis. You have to have a sensibility about your space, to make sure it reflects your personality.

KRF: An interior designer is definitely a stylist of the home but it’s less about picking out items to furnish and more about helping to develop a person and their home’s point of view. At least that’s what I think!

MC: Exactly — what do you want to wake up and see? How do you want it to make you feel? That’s one of the most important things I ask. Do you want to feel calm? Inspired? Do you need it to be neutral? You may have a busy lifestyle and need to come home to more minimal decor. It’s a mixture of a lot of factors.

KRF: That makes so much sense and, for a lot of people, that’s probably very helpful.

MC: It’s very interesting. I’m constantly sourcing items that are vintage, from placed like Etsy, from France and from different second hand websites, I now have my list of designers I love. It’s all a blend. And, obviously, when I’m working on projects I want to bring in my taste — but you have to be sensitive. What does a client want? I have some whose decisions I don’t always agree with, but at the end of the day they have to live with those items: I’m not going to say you have to stick with this tiling or wallpaper.

KRF: A lot of that has to do with personal history, I’m sure, which has to be even more pronounced in interiors. That personal history really molds you and, in this cultural economy, there’s the feeling that you can overnight your taste but that’s not true. You can shift an aesthetic, sure, but an aesthetic is not a point of view, nor is having nice things. A lot of this is lost on people because things move so fast that you forget that you have to take time to develop a skill, to learn a language, to read a book: these things are all process-driven which, in the process, make you. You’re baking your point of view, your culture.

MC: My taste has changed hugely over the last ten years because I moved to Paris and mixed up my style. This city is much more minimalist and monochrome while London is very colorful. They have very different attitudes and I would stick out like a sore thumb — and I didn’t want to do that at the beginning.

I wore a lot of black in my first year here. I’ve gone through phases and, at some point, became obsessed with interiors magazines and looking at books and, I suppose, developing my taste which brings with it a sense of maturity. I’m definitely still influenced by things but, working in interiors, the way I dress has become more inspired by spaces. Because I’m interested in preserving buildings — obviously in Paris they’re old — and how I can preserve history. My taste for interiors has become much more colorful and interesting and I’ve been using patterns a lot more, which has seeped into what I wear too. Three years ago, I wouldn’t wear much pattern at all but, now, I’ve become much more interested in it, which comes from interiors — and I find that fascinating. It’s a different way around, whereas I have friends who are quite minimal in their dress sense and their interiors express that. It’s about picking up these little things that make you excited, mixing fabric and colors. I go down rabbit holes and I find it absolutely fascinating.

KRF: I definitely relate to preserving history, which is so important — especially in interior design! It has to do with celebrating what you have and getting to really build relationships. So many people just throw away objects but, say, when my shoes get worn I take them to a cobbler. Those were a part of me and, as long as possible, I try to keep them a part of me.

MC: There’s something so beautiful about restoration. It’s unique. No one else can upholster a chair you have in the fabric you pick! One client I had, we upholstered an old armchair that was red velvet that they had for twenty years. It had just been sitting in their bedroom. We redid it with beautiful tapestry from Dedar — and it’s now the client’s favorite chair. She sits and reads in it every morning. I want to create that feeling with what I do!

KRF: And something like that takes just a little bit of work and the results are sensational. Reupholstering, tailoring, embellishing, painting: do whatever you can to make something your own. I do that all the time to my clothes and people are always like woah. All it took was some time. Same for a home!

MC: That’s why interiors totally inform my style.

KRF: Well, to the point of spaces and history and the city and Practising Parisienne, how do you feel that the design approach of the city as far as spaces has reshaped your taste? Have you been able to pinpoint anything? You mentioned pattern and color but how else does it come to life?

MC: Hm. Last time I went to Musée Rodin for example I noticed that the museum had this very classic Parisian floor, these big, white tiles with little, black squares — and we put that into our Airbnb renovation, in the bathroom, because I wanted to have a little bit of inspiration, something classically Parisian. I want that taste there, the history of the city, which is probably one of the reasons why I decided to do interiors. There are so many interior design agencies who I have admiration for, who do an amazing job — but there are so many who do really bad renovations too. They take out the fireplaces for example! And put in these super modern Ikea — not to bash Ikea — but they put in Ikea items that don’t reflect the bones of the building. Americans have this idea that French design and style is so wonderful, and a lot of it is, but not all of it of course — and I’m like, “Actually it’s your perspective of what it should be that is great.” A lot of French modern design is really bad and it depresses me. I want to go around and save these apartments from being modernized!

KRF: We have the same issue in Barcelona, where people knock down the walls and you can tell the original floorplans by where the tiles fall on the floor. I get trying to maximize space and make a buck but…you really robbed a place of its life by “modernizing,” by doing a “gut reno.”

MC: When I was hunting for apartments, I saw so many that were just really, really cheaply and badly done.

KRF: I think the loss of the fireplace, in general, is a great expression of that.

MC: We recently installed one! It’s a 150 year old building with original wooden beams in Rouen, Normandy and it probably would have had a fireplace. That was one of my main criteria: a focal point. So many apartments now just rip it out.

KRF: For what? To make more kitchen space?

MC: I think because the French have grown up around so much history, they often reject it. I find it totally depressing. I want to rescue them.

KRF: It’s funny that fireplaces have become a statement of keeping history. It does have a technical utility now as, say, you can use it when the power goes out or in the winter. They can be quite useful. I don’t think that’s a local thing either! Even if it’s not in use, a fireplace can be a space to decorate and innovate.

MC: Another thing I keep seeing are sinks on countertops. Drives me nuts. It’s completely different taste from me and they’re not practical for washing your face in or for cleaning

KRF: That’s everywhere. It’s a reflection of a style but not necessarily ours. I don’t think it factors in the future or past, even if it is “the present.” You have to think further with interiors.

MC: It's interesting. I started doing interiors after Brexit and COVID and I never really missed the UK before that point: I started to get nostalgic for English design, that cosy, traditional design. It’s been influencing what I do! I wouldn't do, like, a whole English house but there are elements that I bring in, especially the comfort elements. English design does comfort really well. I think it’s an age thing as well. You spend your whole youth trying to get away from where you grew up and then, once you get older, you want to go back, you become nostalgic for it. That’s been coming into my aesthetics too.

KRF: I think a lot of people feel that. That’s aging, right? And also becoming parents means being able to cherry pick and curate your life and history to make someone else’s life even better. Ideally that’s what we’re trying to do!

MC: My boyfriend works in advertising: he does creative direction. We're always just like, “We want our kids to be really creative, or at least have some really creative hobbies.” For example: he’s been going to life drawing classes recently, trying to get as much in as he can. We’re both quite obsessed with interiors, but he’s obviously not as obsessed as I am. We both have a good eye for things. We’re currently creating the nursery, and we want to make a space that actually could inspire the baby too. We’re mixing patterns and vintage objects and baby stuff too. And the objects! That’s a whole world I’m being introduced to. What’s interesting for a little kiddo to grow up around? We’re constantly saying we don’t want our kid to be spoiled with a ridiculous amount of toys: the baby has to fit into our lifestyle. We’re not going to sacrifice life because it already takes a toll on your work and body. Everything can’t become about the baby. I don’t think that’s a hundred percent healthy. You have to look after yourself too! It’s gonna be an experience.

KRF: Have you done a nursery before? Or is this a new avenue?

MC: It’s the first time. We’ve painted it Cooking Apple Green from Farrow & Ball.It’s also our guest room, and was my study, but I’ve had to relinquish my desk, sadly. My boyfriend was like, “The desk is going.”

KRF: Who says a baby can’t use a desk? Talk about history.

MC: I know, I thought I could fit it into the baby room, but the baby has to take precedence here! Luckily the green paint works really well in a nursery too!

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