Inside the Design Studio with David Peck

Three things are capturing my attention in pop culture this week, and they have almost nothing to do with each other — which is exactly why I can't stop thinking about them. First: Threads. I was never a Twitter person, I deleted TikTok to be less distracted, and lately Instagram just feels like too much. But Threads has become one of the happiest, most affirming, genuinely funny places I land — p...

This week's Voice Notes: three things I can't stop recommending, and one celebrity who lost me. Brené Brown and Adam Grant's new podcast The Curiosity Shop , the tradwife thriller Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, and season two of The Four Seasons on Netflix — plus why Gwyneth Paltrow disappointed me this week. They looked like four unrelated things. They turned out to be the same conversation: th...

It's been a minute. If you've noticed, the podcast has been sporadic at best for the first part of this year — and I want to explain what's been happening. The short version: I was writing a book. Not the one I told you about last year, but a completely different one that grew out of my Word of the Year workbook and turned into fifty thousand words in about two months. You'll have to wait for the...

At 30 weeks pregnant, Rayna Reid Rayford walked into a Houston ER in excruciating pain. They sent her home. Dehydration, they said. She came back a week later, still in agony. Same diagnosis. Same dismissal. What changed everything? Five physician family members in town for her baby shower. They asked the questions. They demanded the MRI. They found the acute necrotizing appendicitis that would ha...

For nearly a decade, I've used one word to guide my year. Not as a resolution. As a practice. And it's changed how I make decisions, navigate transitions, and design a life that actually fits. Most "word of the year" practices are aspirational—you pick a word that sounds good, make it your screensaver, and hope it sticks. But by March, you've forgotten about it because it never meant anything real...

This week, I'm thinking about three things that all have something in common: rewriting the script. Sometimes it's a script someone else wrote for you, sometimes it's your own script that you decide to change, and sometimes it's a narrative we've been telling wrong as a nation for over 70 years. I talk about Taylor Swift's unexpected "Opalite" video and how she's reclaiming England by filming ther...

This week I'm thinking about three things in pop culture that have an unexpected through-line: Catherine O'Hara's comedy, a new book about mattering, and the Roseberry siblings' creative partnership. What connects them is the difference between performance and being performative. When art comes from genuine care and alignment—not external validation—that's when it sticks with us. That's when we fe...

This week felt especially heavy. In this Voice Notes mini-episode, I'm sharing a few reflections and pieces of pop culture that helped me stay present and grounded—not to escape what's happening, but to remember why art and thoughtful platforms still matter. I talk about Michelle Obama on Call Her Daddy , what it means to use influence with intention, and why even familiar comfort shows like Emily...

Last year, my Word of the Year episode was my most-listened-to show, bar none. So we're doing it again for 2026—but this time, I'm pulling back the curtain on how I actually choose that one word and use it to design my year on purpose. I've never really connected with New Year's resolutions. They've always felt like a chore list wrapped in good intentions. Instead, for almost a decade, I've picked...

What do Houston's most legendary art patrons and fashion's most famous ponytail have in common? In this episode, Paris-based journalist and biographer William Middleton —author of Double Vision: The Unerring Eye of Art World Avatars Dominique and John de Menil and Paradise Now: The Extraordinary Life of Karl Lagerfeld —joins me to connect the dots between the Menils' quiet power in Houston and Kar...

Let's be honest: Glinda's bubble was cute until it wasn't. And "good" was working for her… until it really, really wasn't. In this episode, I break down Wicked: For Good the same way Glinda breaks down emotionally in Act II: publicly, dramatically, and with a surprising amount of self-awareness. We talk about why Elphaba shows up morally certain while Glinda shows up morally… adjacent. We also unp...

What happens when your biggest career high collides with your hometown's worst nightmare? In this episode, I sit down with jewelry designer Jill Reno , whose path to Paris Haute Couture Week started with plastic Michael's beads on a not-so-glamorous layover in Milwaukee. From ballet and business school to flight attendant life at Continental, sculpting with her grandfather, and reinvesting every d...

In today's episode, recorded LIVE!, I'm joined by my longtime friend, Australian hairdresser, and salon owner David Bamford —a man who once rocked twin blue mohawks, won international awards by surprise, and opened a gorgeous River Oaks salon… five weeks before the world shut down. We trace his wild path from architecture student to behind-the-basketball-court barber, London and Aberdeen detours,...

Ever worn a label that felt perfect—until it started itching like a bargain-bin T-shirt? Same. In this episode, I unwrap the identities I've collected (and returned) over the years: The week I was German, Lebanese, Egyptian, and Irish—no layovers required. How we manage to keep othering one immigrant group after another—same script, new accent . Growing up Independent Fundamental Baptist (picture...

What do fashion tariffs, Blake Lively's alleged text-message nuclear codes, and Instagram's sneaky Discover feed have in common? They all escalated—fast. Welcome to the inaugural "Well, That Escalated…" —the once-a-month segment where I drag my favorite opinion-sharpshooter Laura Max Rose out of our group-chat bunker and into the studio. It's basically the audio version of us texting "WAIT, DID YO...

I'm joined once again by my friend, writer, podcaster, and self-proclaimed Colleen Hoover expert Laura Max Rose for a conversation that's part literary therapy session, part red carpet roast, and part adaptation wish list. We dig into the controversies, casting choices, and unexpected emotions that came with the It Ends With Us adaptation—Laura's seen it six times, so she's got notes—and talk abou...

In this solo episode of  Inside the Design Studio , I get into a question that's more political than it might seem: Do Americans really want things to be made in America? It sounds good on paper—and even better on a campaign trail—but the reality is messier. As someone who has spent the past 15 years making clothes in Houston, I'm here to tell you: wanting the label is not the same as supporting t...

🎭 How does a Tony-winning Broadway actress transition to television, balance family, and keep reinventing herself? In this episode of Inside the Design Studio , I sit down with the legendary Kelli O'Hara to talk about her journey from small-town Oklahoma to Broadway's biggest stages and HBO's The Gilded Age . Kelli shares how she: ✅ Moved to NYC with few connections and built her career from scr...

In this episode, I sit down with my longtime friend, Travis Paul Martin , who went from aspiring actor to fashion PR powerhouse. We met over 20 years ago at Parsons Paris —back when we were young, stylish, and slightly delusional about how the industry worked. Now, after working with brands like Gucci, Barneys, and Rothy's at top agencies like KCD and BPCM, Travis has built his own firm, TPM Consu...

Katharine Quinn never set out to run Broadway's most innovative social media campaigns (have you SEEN "The Great Gatsby" on Instagram and TicTok?), but here she is—shaping the future of theater marketing, one viral moment at a time. In this episode, we dive into her fascinating journey from performer to director to creative brand strategist, her accidental foray into social media, and how she buil...

Love is in the air… or is it? In this special Galentine's Day edition of Inside the Design Studio , I'm joined by Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman and Shavonnah Roberts Schreiber for a no-holds-barred conversation about Valentine's Day—romantic, cynical, and everything in between. From pop culture's best (and worst) love stories to the joy of Galentine's, Hallmark movies, bad date-watching at Steak 48,...

Is AI the ultimate creative sidekick—or is it slowly replacing human originality? In this episode of Inside the Design Studio , I sit down with poet, educator, and someone who is deeply engaged with AI in education, Scott Chalupa to explore the tension between AI and creativity.  We tackle: 🎭 AI's role in art, poetry, and film ( yes, including The Brutalist controversy! ) 📚 Whether AI is inspiri...

What's in a word? Everything, if you're David Peck. In this solo episode of Inside the Design Studio , David reflects on his annual tradition of choosing a word to guide his year—and reveals the word he's chosen for 2025. Along the way, he revisits past selections like Effortless , Consistency , and Abundance , exploring how these words shaped his personal growth, challenges, and victories. Curiou...

In this live episode of Inside the Design Studio, I sit down with Hillary Hart and Dan Knechtges of Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) to explore how they're opening new doors for Houston's theater scene. We discuss TUTS' bold vision for the future, including an innovative new building, the reimagining of Frozen from the ground up, and how their programming reflects the vibrant diversity of Houston. H...

So it's Election Day, and you've probably already seen about 32 political ads (and counting). Whether you're voting red, blue, or writing in your cat for president, one thing's for sure: it's stressful. Today, I'm giving you a break with a podcast episode that dives into politics in a different way. Recently, I joined my friend  Laura Max Rose  on her podcast ( I Just Have to Say ) to get into a t...