• Intelligencer
  • The Cut
  • Vulture
  • The Strategist
  • Curbed
  • Grub Street
  • Subscribe to the Magazine Give a Gift Subscription Buy Back Issues Current Issue Contents
    Subscribe to New York Magazine
  • Subscribe
  • Profile
    Sign Out
Subscribe Give A Gift
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
  • Style
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Shopping
  • Design Hunting
  • New York Weddings
  • Parties & Red Carpet
  • Fashion Shows
  • Cathy Horyn
  • Self
  • Health & Wellness
  • Motherhood
  • Advice
  • Sex & Relationships
  • Science of Us
  • Horoscopes
  • Ask Polly
  • Culture
  • Books
  • Television
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Celebrity
  • Power
  • Politics
  • Work
  • Money
  • Rebecca Traister
  • Latest Stories
  • Video
  • About Us
  • The Cut Shop
  • NYMag.com
  • New York Magazine
  • Intelligencer
  • Vulture
  • The Cut
  • The Strategist
  • Grub Street
  • Curbed
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Pin It
+Comments Leave a Comment
  • Style
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Shopping
  • Design Hunting
  • New York Weddings
  • Parties & Red Carpet
  • Fashion Shows
  • Cathy Horyn
  • Self
  • Health & Wellness
  • Motherhood
  • Advice
  • Sex & Relationships
  • Science of Us
  • Horoscopes
  • Ask Polly
  • Culture
  • Books
  • Television
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Celebrity
  • Power
  • Politics
  • Work
  • Money
  • Rebecca Traister
  • Latest Stories
  • Video
  • About Us
  • The Cut Shop
  • NYMag.com
  • New York Magazine
  • Intelligencer
  • Vulture
  • The Cut
  • The Strategist
  • Grub Street
  • Curbed
Sponsor Story
This is paid content produced for an advertiser by New York Brand Studio. The editorial staff of thecut.com did not play a role in its creation.
Sponsored By Tumi Sponsored By Tumi
Sept. 17, 2018

How 3 Women Style Their Offices for Success

It’s the power of a few well-chosen accessories.

From left: Sade Lythcott, Mari Andrew, and Lola Ogunnaike. Photo: Ryan Slack
From left: Sade Lythcott, Mari Andrew, and Lola Ogunnaike. Photo: Ryan Slack

Maybe it’s a perfectly fine-tipped pen, noise-cancelling headphones, a family picture, or the work bag you always bring to a big meeting: How we style our offices can make us feel ambitious, in control, and unfazed by a steady deluge of emails. Searching for the platonic ideal of productive workspaces, we asked three successful women how they organize their offices to do their best work.

For writer and illustrator Mari Andrew, it’s a drawer full of ribbons, ready to be tied on a drawing before she sends it off to a publisher. For National Black Theatre CEO Sade Lythcott, it’s African art and a photo of her mom. And for journalist Lola Ogunnaike, it’s a stack of colorful notebooks. Learn how they’ve designed their “offices” for maximum comfort, efficiency, and creativity below. And find out what kind of work bag—supplied here by TUMI—helps each keep their essentials close.

Sade Lythcott

Sade Lythcott is CEO of the National Black Theatre, the oldest black theater in New York City, which was founded in 1968 by her late mother, the visionary Dr. Barbara Ann Teer.

Sade Lythcott photographed at the National Black Theatre in New York City.

On the significance of her two offices: I have two workspaces. The National Black Theatre is on Fifth Avenue and 125th Street. When my mother bought the property in the ’80s, Harlem was a very different place and half of people thought this black woman could not buy a city block—this old jewelry factory—and the other half were like, why would you want to? She said, “I want to buy this property because it’s the most famous address in the entire world.” She said, “Think about it: You say ‘Fifth Avenue’ anywhere and people immediately think New York City, opulence. When you say ‘125th Street,’ they immediately know Harlem, black culture. And if I can buy the intersection of black culture and opulence, I want to build this theater for our people.”

When my mother had myself and my brother, she moved the executive offices into our home, which is a brownstone about 15 blocks away. She set up her office there so she could be close to us kids. So I work between both spaces, my home and the theater.

From left: Lythcott’s mother Dr. Barbara Ann Teer appears at the center of a wall of posters at the theatreart from African chiefs and medicine people decorates the walls
From left: Lythcott’s mother Dr. Barbara Ann Teer appears at the center of a wall of posters at the theatreart from African chiefs and medicine people... From left: Lythcott’s mother Dr. Barbara Ann Teer appears at the center of a wall of posters at the theatreart from African chiefs and medicine people decorates the walls

On being a CEO in the house where she grew up: In 2008 my mother suddenly passed of a heart attack, and I had worked in fashion my whole life up until that moment. [I was asked] if I could for a very short period of time step in and be the CEO while they hunted for somebody else, and I’ve been there ever since. It’s been ten years. I call myself an accidental CEO. It’s the most meaningful work I’ve ever done and it’s totally my life’s purpose.

I think I never really understood the gravity of it until last year when I had my first child. Raising a kid in the same hallowed halls where I ran around as a little kid is kind of mind-numbingly beautiful. I really understand in a much more profound way what it is to not do the work for yourself, but for the next generation—to be of service to our community.

A happy-medium bag is Lythcott’s constant companion between her two primary work locations.

The most cherished possessions in her office: Our African art collection. Both of my spaces are covered in carvings and statues, mostly from different countries in Africa. Most of our works are commissioned or were given by chiefs or medicine people. They all have such meaning because they’ve all been carved with such intention and spiritual juju. The intention is to help the space hold a certain vibration that is all about liberation. So when people come in, they don’t know why they feel so good.

What she needs in a work bag: I am a working mom who is always on the go, so I need enough space where I have a toy for my kid or wipes or snacks. I love the unique shape of this purse, and it’s big enough to carry a considerable amount of items but small enough that you’re not overwhelmed by the weight or size of it. I have a tendency to fill big bags, so this really makes sure you have all of what you need and none of what you don’t.

Mari Andrew

Writer and illustrator Mari Andrew creates highly relatable watercolor drawings for nearly one million followers in her East Village apartment, and she’s currently working on her second book. Her debut, Am I There Yet?: The Loop-de-loop, Zigzagging Journey to Adulthood, was published earlier this year and became a New York Times bestseller.

“I call it my little tree house,” Mari Andrew says of her East Village apartment. ”It overlooks a backyard so it’s pretty quiet.”

The office décor that makes her feel powerful: Right by my desk I have a bookshelf of just books that my friends have written. I have a lot of artist and writer friends, and it’s so cool to look at that and see what people have accomplished and also feel—kind of for the first time, because my book just came out this year—that I am part of a community. It can be a little lonely working by myself; I don’t have co-workers and I actually really miss that. So this shelf is like my version of co-workers, all my people just sort of watching me work, and it makes me feel like I’m part of something bigger than myself.

From left: Decorations in Andrew’s living roomher watercolor illustrations
From left: Decorations in Andrew’s living roomher watercolor illustrations

Her most underrated desk accessory: In my desk drawer I have a collection of ribbons, and I like to tie my art with a polka-dot ribbon or something just to give it a little touch. I think I got it from this scene in Little Women, which I was very influenced by, where the author ties her manuscript with a ribbon and puts a rose in it. And I thought, that is the coolest. A big part of the work that I do, I like to make it really personal. So, to me, it’s such a beautiful, chic [gesture], like, “Here is my art from my soul, and I present it to you.”

Andrew took the photograph framed here—of two men playing guitar under an orange tree—in Portugal. She loves to travel solo, so an everyday bag that can double as a carry-on is key.

Her ideal bag for work: I only work out of bags. I’m sort of like my dream [version] of myself when I was 12, just a woman who carries her art supplies everywhere. The paper I use is 9 inches by 12 inches, so it has to be kind of a good-size tote, but also comfortable to slip in a laptop because I travel a lot and use it as a carry-on. It has to be roomy for snacks and all of the things you bring on an airplane. I love a simple leather tote that’s expressive while still presenting very impressively, which is increasingly important to me.

Lola Ogunnaike

Lola Ogunnaike is the host of PeopleTV’s Couch Surfing and works in a downtown Manhattan office building where the show films.

Lola Ogunnaike in her office. “The real writing and crafting of the interviews and questions happens in this space,” she says.

On working in her office vs. on set: We usually shoot two or three times a day, and when I’m on deadline my entire team likes to congregate in my upstairs office [above the show’s studio], which is fun. The office is where I change and prepare for my interviews, because I write a lot of my own questions. It’s a creative space, but it’s not quite as glamorous as being in hair and makeup, which involves a lot of lashes and curlers and lipstick, which happens downstairs on set.

From left: Gold pens from Ogunnaike’s favorite museum shop in Sohoher go-to bag photographed with some greenery in her office
From left: Gold pens from Ogunnaike’s favorite museum shop in Sohoher go-to bag photographed with some greenery in her office

On keeping her office clutter-free: I’m not quite paperless yet, but I’m trying to slowly get there. My issue has always been that I like hard copies of everything, and that can result in me sifting through a mountain of paper trying to find that one article from 2010. So now my associate producers have helped me come to terms with the idea that it’s okay to just read links to things and you don’t need a 50-page file for each interview. Three hard-copy articles and a host of links will give you more than enough information.

While the on-camera host is committed to reducing paper pileup around her desk, coffee-table books are fair game.

Her favorite work bags: I’m obsessed with crossbody bags. If I have to catch my toddler, I don’t have to worry about a bag getting in the way. I love how functional and chic this one is—I can even fit a little pen and a little notebook in there, which I always have on hand. On days when I’m carrying a larger purse, I need a tote that can also hold the snacks my 3-year-old son prefers: a water bottle, a bag of crackers, a yogurt pouch, and a bag of grapes.

Shop the Story

Bonnie Shield Bag

Bonnie Shield Bag

$695, TUMI

Shop Now
Yvonne Carry-All

Yvonne Carry-All

$595, TUMI

Shop Now
Amy Circle Crossbody

Amy Circle Crossbody

$295, TUMI

Shop Now

Production Credits

  • Photography by Ryan Slack
  • Produced by Sue Sue Drennen
  • Branded Content Editor Katie O'Donnell
  • Designer, Branded Content Julia D'Orazio
  • Hair and makeup by Angela Davis Deacon at De Facto
  • Photography assistants: Trey Badami and Jose Alvarado

This is paid content produced for an advertiser by New York Brand Studio. The editorial staff of The Cut did not play a role in its creation.

Tags:

  • fashion
  • tumi
  • sponsor story
  • womens handbags
+Comments Leave a Comment
How 3 Women Style Their Offices for Success

The Latest on the Cut

how i get it done Yesterday at 7:00 a.m.
Meena Harris Would Like to (Politely) Remind You That She Is ‘Not Kamala’ She is a CEO, entrepreneur, children’s book author, lawyer, and mother. Here’s how she gets it done.
By Jane Starr Drinkard
astrology Jan. 17, 2021
Madame Clairevoyant: Horoscopes for the Week of January 18 Aquarius season begins this week!
By Claire Comstock-Gay
sex diaries Jan. 17, 2021
The Happily Partnered Woman Who Dreams of Having a Threesome This week’s sex diary.
recalls Jan. 17, 2021
Beware the Hot Pockets The USDA has received reports of “pieces of glass and hard plastic” buried inside some pepperoni pockets.
review Jan. 17, 2021
Men in Tights Miucca Prada and Raf Simons introduce the idea of a onesie.
By Cathy Horyn
burning questions Jan. 17, 2021
Just How Many Cats Might Elon Musk ‘Owe’ Jamie Lynn Spears? “The Tesla is a secret cat-killer, and it’s a problem that we really gotta fix,” Spears said in a now-retracted Instagram video.
information Jan. 17, 2021
Do You Have Some Questions About Cannibal Fetishes? An expert on kink explains everything.
livestream Jan. 17, 2021
Watch the Prada Menswear Show Livestream Enjoy!
tv Jan. 15, 2021
Bling Empire Is Selling Sunset With More Billionaires The year’s first reality hit follows a group of wealthy Asian and Asian American people living in L.A.
a beautiful life Jan. 15, 2021
Jason Wu Is Ready to Dress Faces Now Talking to the designer about his new beauty brand.
screen time Jan. 15, 2021
A New Dawn for Bodycon And other trends I’ve noticed in my feed this week.
By Emilia Petrarca
politics Jan. 15, 2021
Everything You Need to Know About Inauguration Day On January 20, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will become president and vice-president. Here’s how to watch the ceremony and what to expect.
covid-19 Jan. 15, 2021
I Tried to Get a ‘Leftover Dose’ of the Vaccine Last Night Hundreds of other New Yorkers did, too.
By Stephen Lurie
style Jan. 15, 2021
How This Drag Race Contestant Sourced Her Jaw-Dropping Wardrobe Kahmora Hall’s Bob Mackie collection would make Cher proud.
cut chat Jan. 15, 2021
Andrew Yang Is the Ultimate Alt Dad Of course he got a Very Serious Director to do his campaign video.
hear ye hear ye Jan. 15, 2021
Young Man Gets His Own Bowl Congratulations, Shawn Mendes, on your very own bowl.
friday sales Jan. 15, 2021
22 Things On Sale You’ll Actually Want to Buy: From the North Face to Ganni Including lots of on-sale cashmere.
niche drama Jan. 15, 2021
I Know Too Much About This Disney Love Triangle Now Everyone on TikTok has a theory about the song “drivers license,” allegedly about a breakup between the stars of the High School Musical TV show.
crime Jan. 15, 2021
The Last Man Set to Be Executed by the Trump Administration What to know about Dustin Higgs, the final person scheduled to be killed in Trump’s cruel and unprecedented execution spree.
hot bod Jan. 15, 2021
You Don’t Have to Commit There’s no point to sticking with an exercise routine if you don’t actually like it.
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
  • Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Help
  • We’re Hiring
  • Press
  • Trademark
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Ad Choices
  • Do Not Sell My Info
The Cut is a Vox Media Network. © 2021 Vox Media, LLC. All rights reserved.