52 www.CharlestonWomenPodcast.com | www.ReadCW.com | www.Instagram.com/CharlestonWomen boss we can get behind, even if we end up with a little paint on our skirts. To know this show is to first know Gray Benko. My first clue into her personality was that she invited me to her quintessential Southern home for the interview. She didn’t ask to answer questions over email or meet for the standard late-morning coffee. She asked me into the place where she raises her family with her craftsmen husband, where she first experimented on her own walls, and where she lays her head at night. When I arrived, I expected the sun would shine out of her front door. Instead, I found two adorable dogs — one who sat in the bend of my leg during the entire interview — two barefoot kids running around, and one uninvited Palmetto bug on his back, legs kicking. My first thought was, “Even Gray Benko gets Palmetto bugs. Thank God.” And I felt at home immediately. Invited to kick my shoes off and curl up on her plush pink couch that sits in front of her Insta-famous rainbow bookshelf, I enjoyed a conversation with Benko and her project manager Chelcie Eastman. Benko is the creativity and Eastman is the force behind the work. They sat bantering with one another, Benko poking fun at Eastman for “pretending” to be humble when she knows what powerhouse she is, and Eastman giving it right back, joking about Benko’s ability to take lightyears to make a decision — obviously because of all the world’s pretty colors swarming her head. Then the ribbing tapered off, and all one had to say about the other was out of pure admiration. Benko said, “Chelcie just gets things done. She’s the driving force of the projects.” To that Eastman offered, “What you see is what you get with Gray. It is literally the same. Everything that’s in her head is what she’s showing to you. You walk in and plop down on the sofa. Nothing is too precious to be actually used. Everyone is welcome.” It felt like a girls’ afternoon, and I just wished I’d brought the mimosas — but off-beat mimosas with blood oranges, passion fruit, and maybe some other juice from Thailand I’ve never heard of before. That was the vibe. Color. Uniqueness. Good times. I started off with a question I often ask women due to the fact it shows me who they are faster than anything else. I asked Benko what she liked to play when she was a little girl. “I just remember being outside a lot with Lincoln Logs, building houses for my fairies all the time.” Bingo. I smiled at her, and replied, “I think you’re still designing fairy houses. You need a little magic in a Charleston Women at Home Gray Benko (front) with her team. A pastel space by Benko. Photo by Gray Benko. Photo by Bobby McCullough.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjcyNTM1