In the kitchen, a large center island boasts an antique limestone top and raised display shelf. Antique Spanish roof tiles were used for flooring, while the ceiling is detailed with hand-hewn wood beams.

Starting out as an English major, then having a change of heart, Rapp graduated from Arizona State University in 1984 with a bachelor of science degree in home economics; its emphasis was in interior design. “After graduating, I worked for a designer from Salt Lake City who was doing work here, and when he went back to Salt Lake, I ended up finishing projects for him.” Smiling, she adds, “I started working from my house, and I’ve never left.” There, she has a staff of four, including two design assistants.

What will one notice in a Rapp design?

A lack of arbitrary accessorizing. Things people use in their daily lives make the best accents, she believes, among them their china and crystal, fresh flowers, photographs and “personal collections of anything.” Even books. “Books say so much about the people who inhabit a home—what they like to cook, where they like to go, what they dream about, what they imagine, where they escape to, what they study—plus, I really like the way they look on a bookshelf—all lined up; neatly or even disorganized, they engage you,” says Rapp.

Dining room chairs upholstered in coral-color leather contrast with silvery Venetian plaster walls. A large mirror reflects the adjacent salon. French doors provide access to the garden beyond.

Both her design skills and her work ethic are exemplary, report those she works with. Builder Jerry Meek recalls her dedication. “I remember one hot summer day when she and her assistant marked all the furniture placement on a concrete floor for a large new home. We were placing light fixtures the next day with the client, architect and lighting designer, and Karen wanted to make certain that everything was perfect for the walk-through. She does whatever it takes to get the job done right.”

What she liked about interior design a quarter of a century ago, Rapp still finds exciting. “I love living my clients’ lives,” she says. “Part of the design process is imagining parties, families and how they live in their homes, and where all their things are stored or displayed.”
 
Also still a thrill is keeping her clients “engaged every step of the way.” When she has an epiphany idea, Rapp says she gets goose bumps. “I want them to get goose bumps, too, when they discover something.”