Transforming Spaces: Lynette Mantooth of Mantooth Interiors

What happens when a career in nursing transforms into a passion for interior design? Lynette Mantooth's journey from the field of medicine to the creative world of Mantooth Interiors is nothing short of inspiring. On this episode of the Good Neighbor Podcast, Patricia Blondheim sits down with Lynette, who brings her unique layering technique to life in her compact yet dynamic Homewood showroom. Lynette's story is a testament to following one's true calling, and her enthusiasm for retail and design shines through every project she touches. She shares how her advisor’s pivotal advice steered her toward a fulfilling career, igniting a lifelong love for transforming spaces.

Listeners will get an inside look at Lynette’s approach to making each room a harmonious blend of style and functionality. From setting up beautiful room vignettes to tackling diverse design challenges across the country, Lynette reveals the secrets behind creating stunning interiors that resonate with her clients' visions. Whether designing a single room or an entire home, Lynette's passion is palpable, and her excitement for each new client is infectious. Tune in to hear about her most rewarding projects and the joy she finds in her daily work, all of which make Mantooth Interiors a beloved local treasure. #GNPBirmingham #MantoothInteriors #BirminghamInteriors #TheBestofBirmingham #TheBestofHomewood #HomewoodInteriors #interiordesign #design #interior #homedecor #architecture #home #decor #interiors #homedesign #art #interiordesigner #furniture #decoration #interiordecor #interiorstyling #luxury #designer 

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Patricia Blondheim.

Speaker 2: 0:15

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. I'm your host, Patricia Blondheim, and today we have good neighbor Lynn Mantooth, and Lynette is the owner and designer at Mantooth Interiors in Homewood. Lynette, how are you this morning?

Speaker 3: 0:29

Good morning, I am great, thank you.

Speaker 2: 0:31

Well, I went in, I saw your showroom and was just so moved by how you design. So would you tell our listeners about Mantooth Designs and you know what makes it unique?

Speaker 3: 0:53

Well, we've been in business now for 52 years and the trick is trying to fit everything into a showroom that is only 30 feet wide, but it's 150 feet long. So we have a process that we like to call layering. So it is you might see a dresser and then you might see a nightstand sitting, maybe sometimes right next to it, and two lamps and a couple of accessories. It's not necessarily how you do it at home, but we layer the process just to give you a really good visual and some options.

Speaker 2: 1:27

Right, it appears like a picture board, like all of your options are right there.

Speaker 3: 1:33

The first four vignettes, we call them. We try to set up as a room setting. Usually we like to have a living room setting, a bedroom setting and sometimes a dining room setting, just to give you a feel for how this can work in your home as well. And I always say if we can fit it in this 30-foot wide showroom, you can fit it in your home.

Speaker 2: 1:53

Well, you must have had some amazing commissions. Can you talk about maybe one of the most rewarding projects or experiences that you've had?

Speaker 3: 2:05

Well, we've done the Decorator Show House for many years and I think that's kind of fallen by the wayside now.

Speaker 3: 2:10

But you know, every day is an experience we have. We never know, when we get here in the morning, who's going to walk in our front door, what we're going to get to experience, whose home we're going to get to go into with them. And being that, we've been all over. You know as far to the West Coast we've been. You know as far as Maine, as far as we were just in Orlando last week. You know we just meet new people. Sometimes it's just a room, but sometimes it's. Here's the house plans. You know, here's the budget. When we walk in, we want it to look like man-tooth interiors. So I don't know that I have one that is more rewarding than others, because each day is a new day.

Speaker 2: 2:55

I want my whole life to look like man-tooth interiors.

Speaker 3: 2:59

Oh, we have a big truck, so come on.

Speaker 2: 3:03

Lynette. What inspired you? To pursue? A career in interior decorating.

Speaker 3: 3:07

Well, I was actually in nursing school and I was working here part time and I just had always loved retail, everything about it. I could not, even as a part time employee. I could not get enough information about how do you do this, how do you buy, how do you advertise. So when I went back to nursing school, my advisor pulled me in her office and she said I'm going to give you a little piece of advice. She said you come in here happy as can be. She goes why don't you take one semester off? And if you come back, great. And if you don't, then you have found your calling.

Speaker 3: 3:40

And that was 37 years ago and I haven't't looked back. My daughter is pursuing a nursing degree and I'm so proud that she's following in mom's footsteps and I always told her if she didn't finish it was okay, because mom didn't either. And I found one, the love of my life, my husband and I also found my heart's desire. I mean I'm every morning I cannot wait to put my feet on the floor to see who I'm going to get to meet that day.

Speaker 2: 4:09

Oh, what a blessing. How do you, over Now, you have to deal with? You know, with a lot of different factors and one of them is that every client is different. So you probably work on a lot of challenging projects, but I suppose that you have a method for approaching and understanding and interpreting right a client's vision. Can you share a little bit about that?

Speaker 3: 4:37

Well, we do, and a lot of times it starts with just the customer walking in having no intentions. Or sometimes they'll say, yes, I'm this, you know, we're here from out of town, we've heard about you. But we usually we approach it as a team. Uh, myself and I have two other lead designers and uh, that we just sit down, we just talk to them. You know it's all about listening and hearing what they need, how they want the room to function, whether it be you know the window treatments, you know. Do you do you want blackout? Do you want to sleep late? Do you want, you know, the morning sun? How you want the room to function as a family. And then we just kind of take it from there. We do some storyboards, like you mentioned. We can show you. This is our ideas. We sometimes ask them why don't you pull up, you know, pictures in magazines, show us your inspiration and then as a team, we put it together and then we build your room.

Speaker 3: 5:33

Probably 50 of our business is in stock, can go with you right out, you know the door, or we can deliver it within a week. But the other 50 is special orders where you get to come in, pick the fabric, the nail trim, the seat cushion, the trim, the trim on the pillows, the pillow fabrics, the pillow feels. If you don't want down, we can do poly feel, you know. So it's very custom to you. You won't see you know another one like it, so it's just it's. You know. Each again, each customer is so different. You know, sometimes we're stumped and sometimes we have to go outside of our normal what we have on the floor. If we have a customer that wants modern, you know we'll have to dig a little deeper and find those resources. But never say never, you know we will always find something that works for you.

Speaker 2: 6:24

You know how do you do what you do, which is you incorporate trends, but you also have timeless design. How do you balance that you know trends and ensure the timeless design that I think is the trademark of man Tooth Designs?

Speaker 3: 6:40

It is. You know, we originally started as the Brass Bed back in 1973. We changed the name, probably 15, 18 years ago, to our last name, but it was always, even back then it was. You know, it was butcher, block and white, and then we transitioned into a little bit more warmer colors back in the day when we were doing jewel, tongue quilts and linens.

Speaker 3: 7:04

And you know, we, we try to stay trendy with the things that are disposable, whether it be, you know, lemons, maybe a rug, maybe some art, but the, the core, you know, being the. You know, if I could sell you in a way, I would sell you the mattress first and then I'd sell you the sheets and then I'd sell you the bed, because that's what you're going to sleep on. You know, the the pretty stuff is, is for looks, but the core is what you're sleeping on, what you feel on the sofa you're sitting on every day, you know. But we try to keep things not as trendy as far as colors on the bigger pieces like the bed or the sofa or the dining room chairs, and then you can add the trendy stuff to that that you can always replace when you get tired of it the trendy stuff to that that you can always replace when you get tired of it.

Speaker 2: 7:53

Well, Lynette, what do you do for fun? I mean what? What is the other? What is the thing that fills your cup? You know what I mean.

Speaker 3: 8:01

Well, I have a new grandbaby and he is 14 months old and he is the love of my life. I lost my husband about two and a half years ago, and so he has just filled this spot beyond. I think that's why they call them grandchildren, because they are so grand. But other than that and you know, my son works for me, my daughter's in nursing school at Auburn, so life is great, you know, it really is great right now.

Speaker 2: 8:34

Lynette, what would you like our listeners to take away about Mantooth Interiors?

Speaker 3: 8:39

I guess just come in. If you haven't been in, come in and just stroll through, have a conversation with us. You know we're not here to sell you something, unless you're ready to buy something. We're just, we're just meeting friends every day. It starts with a conversation, it usually ends in a friendship and that what you see on the floor is not necessarily everything we offer. You know it's's. It's so much more than that we can do from you know, help you pick paint colors and flooring, wall window treatments. You know we can do the whole thing. So just just come in. It starts with walking in and having one of our fabulous candles or one of our beautiful necklaces or one of our fur throws just something simple. And we think you will understand our mantra that we want you to be our friend. You know we want our customers to become our friends. At the end of the day, if that happens, we're successful.

Speaker 2: 9:39

Yeah, if you want a friend and also possibly a home that just embraces you in the most warm and loving way. How can our listeners learn more and how can they find man Tooth Interiors?

Speaker 3: 9:58

Well, we're downtown Homewood. We've been in this location now for 32 years and we have a big presence on Instagram and Facebook. And then just call us or stop in. Like I said, stop in and shoot us your email and we'll add you to our constant contact. But on our social media pages we try to do live videos or at least pictures in the showroom to show you updated what we're doing weekly. Our website's great mantoothinteriorscom. It's got a lot of information in there, but the social media is going to be a little bit day-to-day information.

Speaker 2: 10:30

And I will link to everything inside of the description that follows this podcast. Lynette, it's been great speaking to you. Thank you so much for coming by and sharing your wonderful space, Mantooth Interiors, with us.

Speaker 3: 10:45

Thank you for the invite.

Speaker 1: 10:48

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpbirminghamcom. That's gnpbirminghamcom, or call 205-952-0148.