An A-list client roster and a passion for pooches mark an L.A. stylist’s territory

Back before Cesar was famous,” says interior designer Kari Whitman, “we used to talk about -doing a trade—I’d fix up his office space at the Dog Psychology -Center, and he’d rehab a few of my dogs.” Due to the jam-packed nature of both parties’ schedules, that particular exchange never took place, but looking back, even the thought that it might have was a sign of things to come. These days, notes Kari, a onetime actress and lifelong animal rights activist—she’s the founder and director of L.A.’s Ace of Hearts rescue foundation—opportunities to combine her designing talents with her love of dogs arise with amazing frequency.

“ ‘How can I make my dog’s bed blend with the rest of my furniture?’ is probably the question I’m asked most,” says the decorator, whose clients include Jessica Alba, Kristen Bell, Virginia Madsen, and Don Henley. And Kari—who landed on Hollywood’s home-styling hot list about 10 years back, after prettying up Emilio Estevez’s Los Angeles digs—isn’t short on answers.

“Jessica’s mom loved to cook,” Kari recalls, explaining the birthday surprise she recently created for Alba’s mother. “She’d spend all her time in the kitchen, but her two dogs liked to hang out there with her, and she was literally tripping over them all the time.”

The solution? A small color-coordinated cupboard whose drawers housed a set of “doggie bunk beds”—situated in a section of the kitchen very near the door through which the dogs entered and -exited the house. Because of the strategic placement, the dogs were encouraged to see that particular area as theirs and soon began to gravitate there instead of roving all over the room. “Jessica’s mom was so touched, she started crying,” Kari remembers.

“I do it all,” says the decorator, who has hosted her own show on the WE network and written the forthcoming Design with Paws in Mind, “from carpeting, furniture, and accessories to construction, yard design, and architecture.” But the real key to building a chic but dog-friendly space, she insists, is simply understanding your dog’s needs and behavior: “It’s only then that you can incorporate design ideas that will leave you with the kind of beauty you need to create.”

A self-described tree-hugger whose sleek and sometimes whimsical makeovers are heavy on eco-friendly touches, Kari says that those decor-matching dog-bed -requests have afforded her the opportunity to take her passion for the planet to new creative heights. In 2009, she founded Greener Pup, a line of dog beds, made completely of recycled materials, that are custom-styled to mesh with an client’s furnishings. “Depending on size, each bed contains from 70 to 120 recycled plastic bottles, which would’ve wound up in a landfill,” she says. “They stay fluffier than standard beds, because the filler is more resilient than standard foam—and to clean them, all you have to do is hose them off.” Fabrics covering the beds are remnants, donated by furniture and clothing manufacturers who would’ve otherwise thrown them out, and 100 percent of Greener Pup’s profits go to Ace of Hearts.

Even if Kari’s clients have no need for canine-centric decorating advice when they first hire her, they just might by the time she’s finished working with them. “I sometimes try to convince people to take a few dogs from the Ace Foundation as partial payment for my doing a job,” she admits, adding that Jessica Alba is currently in possession of two former Ace residents.

Kari says that Cesar—who was known in the California rescue community long before he had a TV show—has rehabilitated roughly 25 Ace dogs over the years and also helped her get the foundation started way back in 2001: “He had celebrity clients; I had celebrity clients…. We always saw eye-to-eye on how it was more about training the owner than the dog.”

SEATING ARRANGEMENT
To create a custom dog chair that works with the rest of your stuff, says Kari, buy an old armchair at a flea market or yard sale and cut its legs down to about two inches high. Pick up some fabric-store remnants to recover the chair and some eco-friendly stuffing to plump up the seat; then, using a staple or glue gun, loosely “reupholster,” tucking and shaping as you go along.

PRINTS BE GONE!
Eliminate dirty paw–print trails by keeping a foot-wiping rag near the door where your dog goes in and out. Tuck it discreetly inside a vase or umbrella stand, and the only ones who’ll know it’s there are you and Rover.

GREENER GRASS
Client Jessica Alba’s whole backyard is made of ForeverLawn, says Kari. “It looks like grass, but it’s actually a type of recycled plastic that allows your dog’s pee and poo to go right through it.” (foreverlawn.com)

CREATE-A-CRATE
There’s no reason a dog’s crate needs to stand out like a sore thumb, notes the designer, who covered one client’s crate in glued-on, mixed-size mirrors, and plastered another’s -decoupage-style with wall-paper she bought in Paris. Both now double as bedside tables.

BEAUTIFIED BEDS
To address clients’ nonstop requests for dog beds that don’t look like, well, dog beds, Kari created Greener Pup—a line of eco-friendly sleep spots (one’s shown above) that blend with the rest of a room’s decor. (greenerpup.com)

GRAVITATIONAL FORCE
To get your dog to hang out in one section of a room, on a specific chair, or even on a specific part of your bed, pick up an inexpensive fake-fur or sheepskin throw (available at stores like Target) and arrange it in the preferred spot. “Dogs will gravitate toward anything fluffy,” says Kari.

CUSTOM CUTENESS
Paint your own signature dog-food bowl or water dish at an open-to-amateurs ceramic studio such as Color Me Mine. (colormemine.com)

KITCHEN COOL
Elevated feeding dishes lend a little style to a space that’s often purely utilitarian. A small carpet remnant under each dish can add a bit of textural interest, as can inexpensive place mats.