Daily Features

The Bald Mermaid: Designer Sheila Bridges’s Revealing New Memoir

The author writes disarmingly about confronting feelings surrounding her hair loss, in between dishing out out some excellent stories about a life spent in design.

By Angela Riechers, Superscript September 13, 2013

When interior designer Sheila Bridges learned she had the autoimmune disorder alopecia and would lose all of her exuberant curly hair, she took charge of the situation with characteristic bravado by taking a razor to her scalp. Ivy League-educated, outspoken and funny, Bridges became known for her sexy yet classic interiors shot through with rich colors. She was frequently profiled in the pages of glossy magazines, owned a home décor store in Hudson, New York, and counts Bill Clinton and novelist Tom Clancy among her clients. Her hair began falling out while she was taping the fourth season of her TV show “Designer Living”; the program was canceled shortly after that. In The Bald Mermaid (Pointed Leaf Press, 2013), Bridges writes disarmingly about confronting the powerful feelings of grief and depression following her hair loss—in between dishing out out some excellent life tips ranging from dealing with ill-behaved lovers to fending off unneeded advice on cancer remedies from well-meaning strangers. Angela Riechers discusses the book, and the stories behind its creation, with the author:

Designer Sheila Bridges writes about her storied career and her struggle with hair loss in The Bald Mermaid: A Memoir, published by Pointed Leaf Press. Photo by Trevor Tondro.

Angela Riechers: Did losing your hair change the way you approach your work as a designer?
Sheila Bridges: No. One of the great things about being a designer is that most clients are more concerned about the ideas that are in my head than what's on it.

AR: What are your influences—what inspires you?
SB: Spending time in the Souks in Marrakech pushes me to take bigger risks with color, texture, and pattern. Today I was at the beach watching how the morning sun shimmered on the ocean and thought about how I'd like to design a rug that captured that.

The Bald Mermaid: A Memoir, published by Pointed Leaf Press. Cover image courtesy of Pointed Leaf Press.

AR: It’s no secret that the media-related professions can be shallow and judgmental about appearances. When it came time for your TV show contract to be renewed, did anyone ever say, "If you'd just wear a wig, we can keep you on the air"?
SB: I suspected that the network knew I’d lost my hair and my TV agent told me to not tell anyone about it, making an already difficult situation even more challenging. Having to keep quiet created a sense of shame. As a woman I don't think that there is any way to prepare for what life will be like without hair and I definitely wasn't prepared. I guess I hadn't expected people to have such strong opinions about my shaved head. Even if they did have strong opinions I was more often shocked that they couldn't keep their sometimes hurtful or insensitive comments to themselves.

The Book

The Bald Mermaid Sheila Bridges

AR: Did you find you got more insensitive remarks from strangers or from people you knew well?
SB: Most of my close friends were supportive and tried to reassure me that I looked fine, although a few did suggest life might be easier if I wore a wig. To this day, most of the stupid remarks I receive are from strangers. I realize that most of the time it's more of a reflection of the person making the remark than about me personally.

The paneled library of a client's home in Downtown Manhattan. Bridges is known for her colorful yet classic interiors, which are frequently profiled in the pages of interior design magazines. Photo by Dana Meilijson.

AR: The Bald Mermaid is a beautiful book—lavish, colorful, full of playful typography—and the mix of images feels well chosen and compelling throughout. Did you weigh in on its look?
SB: I collaborated very closely with the publisher's book designer, because it was such personal material. It was important for me to be able to art direct the story of my own life.

AR: The last chapter of your book is about memory and the legacy we leave behind. How do you hope to be remembered? What will be your legacy?
SB: Part of my legacy is the body of creative work that I've amassed over the years. The Bald Mermaid is a part of that—particularly because it is not just about me, but also about the importance of my parents and family. I hope that I have been an inspiration to people through my design work but most importantly, through my actions and the way I have chosen to live my life.

"As a designer, I have always enjoyed experimenting with color and texture in fabrics, furniture, and wallcoverings," writes Bridges. Photo by Dana Meilijson.

Kevin Kwan's Crazy Rich Asians

The Multibillion-Dollar Madhouse

comments powered by Disqus

Announcements

Now is Better by Stefan Sagmeister

Now is Better

By Stefan Sagmeister
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: October 2023

Combining art, design, history, and quantitative analysis, transforms data sets into stunning artworks that underscore his positive view of human progress, inspiring us to think about the future with much-needed hope.

Order the book.

Design Emergency: Building a Better Future by Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli

Design Emergency: Building a Better Future

By Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: May 2022

Rawsthorn and Antonelli tell the stories of the remarkable designers, architects, engineers, artists, scientists, and activists who are at the forefront of positive change worldwide. Focusing on four themes—Technology, Society, Communication, and Ecology—the authors present a unique portrait of how our great creative minds are developing new design solutions to the major challenges of our time, while helping us to benefit from advances in science and technology.

Order the book.

Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World’s Most Creative People by Debbie Millman

Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World's Most Creative People

By Debbie Millman
Publisher: Harper Design
Published: February 22, 2022

Debbie Millman—author, educator, brand consultant, and host of the widely successful and award-winning podcast “Design Matters”—showcases dozens of her most exciting interviews, bringing together insights and reflections from today’s leading creative minds from across diverse fields.

Order the book.

Milton Glaser: POP by Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber

Milton Glaser: POP

By Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber
Publisher: The Monacelli Press
Published: March 2023

This collection of work from graphci design legend Milton Glaser’s Pop period features hundreds of examples of the designer’s work that have not been seen since their original publication, demonstrating the graphic revolution that transformed design and popular culture.

Order the book.

Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall by Alexandra Lange

Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall

By Alexandra Lange
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Published: June 2022

Chronicles postwar architects’ and merchants’ invention of the shopping mall, revealing how the design of these marketplaces played an integral role in their cultural ascent. Publishers Weekly writes, “Contending that malls answer ‘the basic human need’ of bringing people together, influential design critic Lange advocates for retrofitting abandoned shopping centers into college campuses, senior housing, and ‘ethnocentric marketplaces’ catering to immigrant communities. Lucid and well researched, this is an insightful study of an overlooked and undervalued architectural form.”

Order the book.

Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition) by Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller

Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition)

By Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller
Publisher: Letterform Archives Books
Published: October 2023

This facsimile edition of Die Fläche, recreates every page of the formative design periodical in full color and at original size, accompanied by essays that contextualize the work, highlighting contributions by pathbreaking women, innovative lettering artists, and key practitioners of the new “surface art,” including Rudolf von Larisch, Alfred Roller, and Wiener Werkstätte founders Koloman Moser and Josef Hoffmann.

Order the book.