Ray of Light: Clea Shearer & Joanna Teplin

Meet our favorite organizing gurus, artists, authors and all-around bosses, Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin, stars of the hugely popular Netflix series, Get Organized with The Home Edit. We had the (very lucky) chance to catch up with them for our May catalog—landing in mailboxes next week! 

Chatting with Clea and Joanna is an all-at-once mix of surprise, humor, energy, warmth, color and connection. It feels as easy as catching up with longtime friends, as exhilarating as running a marathon, as giddy as a glass of champagne, and leaves you daydreaming that they might reorganize and design your entire life (I mean, home). Which is exactly what Clea and Joanna do for countless people every day—help create a world of beauty and style that lights up every room. 

Read on for more from two extraordinary women—on individuality, having a Netflix hit, getting styled by our resident Style Director, Ashley, and the deep connections Clea and Joanna have forged with each other and their audience.

EE: How was the shoot?
CS: It was great! What’s better than playing dress-up and having someone style you? (Exactly.) 
JT: Yes, it forces you to take risks you wouldn’t otherwise. 
CS: … and it’s great when you doubt the way something is going to look, then end up loving it. 

EE: What were your favorite looks?
CS: I loved the look I ended up in: AGOLDE jeans, a white tank and a really good blazer.
JT: I was drawn to a lot of the separate pieces, especially because it felt like you could mix them easily. I liked so many of them!

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EE: How has your friendship strengthened your business?
CS: We met through a mutual friend, decided to have lunch, and four hours later we were business partners. We started our business the same day we met.

EE: So actually, your business grew your friendship, rather than the other way around? 
CS: Exactly. We didn’t know each other at all. But as we began to collaborate, we saw that we complemented each other’s different strengths, even though we are complete opposites in many ways. It works because we listen, and we allow the other person to simply be who she is. 
JT: Clea’s incredible. We really just enjoy being together. 
CS: It’s also so much easier, because at this point, we’re more like siblings. We don’t have to worry about trust or being really straightforward with each other. It’s much more productive, too.

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EE: That realness and connection certainly comes through in your Netflix show. You must have an incredible relationship with your fans. 
CS: We do have a very engaged audience. (Over five million Instagram followers. We’d say so!) Those who spend a lot of time with our content (aka with us) really get to know who we are and what we value, in ourselves and others. 

EE: What about home design and organization do you think resonates so deeply with people? 
CS: Like fashion, it’s a way for people to express themselves and to surround themselves with what makes them feel good—color, pattern, space. 
JT: It’s also just so fulfilling. Every year for some time now one of us has built a house or built an extension to a house! 
CS: I can’t tell you how many times I get home, walk in the doors and announce that I have an entirely new design vision for our home. I think my husband might be done. 

EE: Speaking of family, you’re both moms. How do you approach work, mom-ing, and being a role model for your children? 
CS: Our husbands are so helpful. We are very lucky. We do not do it all. We do our best. I love what I do, and I want my daughter to see my success and the work it takes to get there. 
JT: I would say the same. I want my children to see that hard work is simply a given; and you can love it, too!

EE: One of our goals at EVEREVE is to inspire women to keep moving forward in their style and in their lives. What does an ever-forward mindset mean to you?
CS: Well, that’s easy! Joanna and I never stop thinking about what could be better, faster, re-calibrated, reimagined. We are always growing, adjusting, layering on services, considering new books and thinking about what’s next. At the end of the day, we want to be a design and organization resource for everyone, client or otherwise. 

EE: Who are your personal heroes?
CS & JT: Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Michelle Obama, our moms and our grandmothers. We were both raised by a family of extremely hard-working women.

Here’s to all the women moving forward every day, listening, learning and supporting each other across generations.

Shop all of Clea and Joanna’s current favorites here and catch up on more conversations with women who inspire us in the Ray of Light series.