Covering the tumultuous 2024 election cycle meant long, demanding days for Laura Jarrett, co-anchor of "Saturday TODAY" and NBC News' Senior Legal Correspondent. Facing a relentless schedule filled with potential lawsuits and breaking news, she looked around her stark office in 30 Rockefeller Plaza and knew a change was imperative. The sterile, corporate environment felt draining, almost sad. "This is going to be a long road for weeks, lawsuits flying left and right," she reflected on her mindset at the time. "I looked around this office and I thought, 'This is just too sad to be in here all day. This could be better.'" Amidst the external chaos she couldn't control, transforming this space became a grounding mission, a personal project to create a haven within the demanding world of network news. What started as simply buying a rug on sale from Lulu & Georgia blossomed into a months-long office renovation, completely banishing the generic corporate aesthetic.
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Banishing the Corporate Blues: Light and Life
The first assault on Jarrett's senses? The harsh, unforgiving overhead lighting. "The corporate office lighting feels like a hospital," she stated bluntly. "And it makes you sad." Her solution was decisive: turn off all the overheads completely. Instead, she embraced warmth and ambiance. Lamps and strategically placed light panels, tucked under furniture and behind TVs, became her weapons against the fluorescent gloom, mimicking the effect of expensive, custom-built lighting. This simple shift fundamentally altered the room's atmosphere.
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Unable to paint the walls due to office regulations, Jarrett turned to other methods to infuse life and personality. She covered the blank expanses with curated art and introduced abundant greenery. The process was organic and personal. Inspiration photos were taped directly to the wall as she planned, and she even worked from the floor on her laptop while awaiting furniture deliveries. Her design ethos centered on creating visual calm with intrigue: "I am drawn to anything where my eye can rest, but still be intrigued. I think that's what draws me to neutrals." The result feels like a seamless extension of her own home – a crucial comfort during 14 to 17-hour workdays.
A Personal Touch: Meaningful Decor and Mixing High & Low
Jarrett masterfully blended accessible finds with higher-end pieces throughout the space. A gorgeous white curved desk from CB2 anchors the room, complemented by a cozy Article sofa. These mingle effortlessly with treasures sourced from Zara Home and Etsy. Her approach to accessorizing is refreshingly practical and stylish. She loves fresh branches from her favorite city bodega and champions affordable vases: "Some of these vases honestly are probably some of the cheapest stuff that I have in here... you can get them for like 20 bucks," she notes, appreciating their aged, vintage quality.
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Among the carefully curated objects, deeply personal items hold the most significance. One cherished frame displays a simple handwritten note from her young son, James: "I miss my mommy." This echoes a touching family tradition, as Jarrett herself once wrote a similar note to her own mother, Valerie Jarrett (lawyer, businesswoman, and former senior advisor to President Obama), who also kept it in her office. Recalling her mother's perspective, Laura shared, "I asked [my mom] one time, 'Why do you keep that? That's the most sad thing ever for a working mom.' And she was like, 'No, it was such a good, grounding thing to have in the office.' So I keep it up there because it makes me think of James, but also makes me think of my mom." Her most prized possession, however, is a signed copy of Ina Garten's biography, a balm for tough days often spent watching old episodes of the Barefoot Contessa.
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Order in the Chaos: Maintenance and Future Plans
Jarrett's impeccable taste hasn't gone unnoticed. Vicky Nguyen, NBC's Chief Consumer Investigative Correspondent, popped in during the interview, quipping, "You can't buy taste, but you can buy some of the things that Laura Jarrett has in her office." While her space is now incredibly neat, Jarrett is realistic about maintaining order amidst the frenzy of breaking news. "If you came in here election night, it was not this clean," she laughs. Her philosophy is pragmatic: "I try to just use down moments when I can to just try to tidy up a little bit. Sometimes when we're in the middle of breaking news, there's paper everywhere, but the next day, get yourself together and clean it up a little bit." She acknowledges Savannah Guthrie, her fellow TODAY co-host and lawyer, as the queen of organization: "She likes order. She's on it. She's got her stuff together."
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Looking ahead, Jarrett's design eye is already focused on a colleague. She's volunteered her services "pro bono" for newly minted TODAY co-host Craig Melvin's office makeover. "Craig is in a period of transition, as we know," Jarrett explains. "So I'm helping him with his own glow up for his office because he has a lot of ideas, but he's going to need some help pulling it together and executing on his vision." Her ultimate goal for her own space, however, remains personal: "I hope that when I come in here, it's just my little den of solitude and calm." In transforming her corporate box into a personalized sanctuary, Jarrett proved that with smart design choices and personal touches, any space can become a true haven, especially amidst the storm of 24/7 news.