At home with …Ulla Johnson & kids

“Pistachios: My kids love them and they keep them busy. Snacks generally are sort of the secret weapon of parenting.”

“Rosewater face mist, by TERRY, rose lip balm, Rodin hand cream, pure lavender oil – all soothing items I use before bedtime and when traveling. My daughter will do anything for a bit of lipgloss.”

“We always have colored pencils and markers in our car for impromptu entertainment at long meals or traffic jams.”

“Dance parties! Always puts everyone in a good mood.”

On becoming a mom for the first time: “Oh it was a pretty big shock. We were still living a pretty carefree twenty something life when I got pregnant. None of my friends had kids yet; we were the first so we sort of had to figure it out as we went along. That said my eldest son always had a captive audience of enthralled adults to fawn over him. He still loves to chat with grown ups.”

On Agnes: Bonton

On Ulla: dress of her own design

On Soren: Bonton shirt, and J.Crew pants

On Asher: Bonton shirt

“Salt spray and naturally dried hair.

No fussy cut or color that needs too much maintenance.

Organic face oils morning and night.

Laura Mercier tinted foundation and a touch of blush.”

Ulla wears a dress of her own design

“I was an only child and always wanted a big family. As an only child, you get to have your parent’s undivided attention, and love which is magical but can be overwhelming. And I just really wanted other kids around to play with. My parents were academics and I was often the only child at gatherings of ten or more adults involved in heated political debate. Interesting but not always super fun for a kid! I love that we are such a tribe; my husband and I often look at each other sort of incredulously at all these people we have made! And their love for each other just melts my heart.”

“I would like to be present for them 110 percent of the time and eat meals together every night but the truth is I have dinners and events and emails and matters that I must attend to. I try and limit nights out to two per week and weekends are sacred; I never work or make plans that don’t involve the children. I hope that within this whirlwind of working and mothering they will learn that creating a professional self for women is important and achievable even with a large family. I hope they will respect what I have built.”

On Ulla: denim dress from her collection

Layla Grayce bedding, and Confetti System garland in Agnes’s room

“We try not to carry too much stuff around with us. I got rid of my last stroller when my daughter was two. I never carried car seats around anywhere or large diaper bags or anything like that. Less is more. Agnes loved her scooter so much ever since she got it, she will seriously go a mile in that thing and never complain. That said if she doesn’t have it she will hop along happily for one or two blocks and then demand to be carried. My husband still rides her on his shoulders on a lot of our family outings. I never ever carried a diaper bag after they were tiny babies. My friends make fun of me that even after three kids I don’t ever have a wipe handy but I prefer to feel as unfettered as possible when I am with the kids.”

On Ulla: dress from her collection

vintage Moroccan rug

The boys’ room:

Oeuf Perch bunkbed

Vintage Moroccan rug

Knoll Barcelona leather chair

Electric Love dreamcatcher

Proudest moment so far as a mom: “The compassion I see my children displaying for others. They are all very empathetic people. Some of it I feel like they came with! We work so hard as parents to teach our children love and compassion and respect but a lot of it they are born with.”

Both boys wear Bonton shirts; Soren wears J.Crew camo pants

Vintage Moroccan rug

Dance session in Ulla’s bedroom

Artwork over fireplace by John Miserendino

Sheepskin by Marlow Goods

“The best advice I’ve ever received is don’t try to be perfect.”

Artwork: Daniel Clurman, Mr. Pink

“In a way it was a lonely time for me [being a first time mom]. We moved to Los Angeles when our first son was very small and so it was a lot of massive changes all at once. I was very unsure what direction to go with respect to my business and questioned my level of professional commitment versus the time I wanted to spend with my son. Thankfully, I loved being a mother and remembered I also loved my work so things sort of fell into place after a time.”

On Ulla: dress from her collection

“I was the first of any of my friends to have a baby so I didn’t have a network of moms with which to share the experience and the emotional highs and lows that come along with it. Also I have a very close-knit community of friends, neighbors, colleagues etc. and when I moved to Los Angeles my community there was very spread out. I found the sprawl of Los Angeles, and the lack of street life quite isolating.”

On Ulla: denim dress from her collection

Oeuf Perch bunkbed

“Style wise I definitely care more about ease than I ever did. I do still love high heels though! I think if anything both decor and fashion wise I have just become ever more obsessed with the integrity of the thing itself; its story, its path, its longevity. I only want to buy and make things that will have a long life.”

On Ulla: denim dress from her collection

Eames bed, Layla Grayce bedding, Nova Natural Toys kitchen, Confetti System garland

“I really don’t watch TV in front of them, only after they are in bed and honestly I barely care for it. Sometimes we watch nature on PBS together, if I’ve had a particularly long day. I love that program and grew up watching it. On the weekends we have movie nights and they get to watch cartoons Saturday mornings. That’s about it. My ten year old doesn’t have a phone and I try and give myself phone holidays when I am with them. Sometimes I am more successful at this than others.”

On Ulla: denim dress from her collection

Vintage Moroccan rug,

“I don’t love clutter. I think it is important to have space between objects. I am very into the art of arranging things and believe objects become more beautiful by virtue of their relationship to each other. I think the kids can participate in this as well. I don’t really consider myself a calm person; I am super physically active and my mind is often racing with thoughts, projects, ideas etc. All the more reason that I seek peacefulness in my surroundings. My home truly feels like a bit of an escape from the chaos of the city and the demands of my professional life.”

Nova Naturals kitchen in Agnes’s room

“One of the most surprising challenges of being a mom is how much your children can bicker with each other! I have to remind myself this is part of how they learn and grow as people and that we shouldn’t try and negotiate all of their battles for them.”Teepee from Acorn in Brooklyn

Vintage Moroccan rug

On Asher: J.Crew shirt

“I spend a lot of time talking about sexism with my children. About the roles men and women have played within and outside of their families and the challenges we all face. The wonders of the world they are growing up in and the freedoms they have that even my generation did not. The struggles that are still before us. I try not to divide these up in a boy/girl way but rather to talk about how we are in this together.”

On Asher: J.Crew shirt

“It is part of their essential nature to assert themselves and to question everything. I am not afraid to say no though and I have quite high expectations for table manners and polite behavior. We take our kids everywhere—they travel loads and we eat out all the time. I think they are capable of more than they are often given credit for and don’t need to be limited to ‘kid friendly’ experiences.”

Eames bed, Layla Grayce bedding, Nova Natural Toys kitchen, Confetti System garland, vintage Moroccan rug in Agnes’s room

Have a plan but be prepared to adapt. And advocate for yourself! Our medical establishment increasingly relies on induction and C-section to manage what is an unruly and unpredictable reality. The truth is our bodies know very well how to birth babies and we need to remember to trust and listen to ourselves. Each of my births were very different. I wanted a natural birth all three times but was able to have it only once; the hoops hospitals make you jump through to avoid pain medication and other interventions are staggering. I will say that the natural birth I did have in a birthing center with my second son felt so much more peaceful than the others, not to say it wasn’t incredibly intense but I was in control of my body and the connectedness I had to my husband and doula throughout the experience was very profound. Personally I found a lot of meaning in feeling the true power of birth and to be able to be fully present in that way.”

Try and take a solo trip with your hubby now and then! I haven’t been very successful at this but we just spent 36 hours alone in LA for some art events my husband needed to attend and it was amazing. Felt like newlyweds again.”

Teepee from Acorn, vintage Moroccan rug, Alvar Aalto floating shelves

“If at all possible, I don’t bring work home. I try and be present with my kids when we are together and focused at work when we are not. I know that my children will ultimately respect me for building a professional self.”

Artwork by Salvor from Areaware

Ulla and her children