The list of one-name wonders in this world is tiny – think Prince, Madonna or Bono. If you happen to follow interior design, chances are you can add Clodagh to that list. Irish by birth but New York-based, her accomplishments are impressive even to the layperson: Over the past 25 years, she has been named one of the World’s 100 Leading Interior Designers by Architectural Digest, has been inducted into Interior Design’s Hall of Fame, wrote a popular coffee table book, titled Total Design, and has created interiors for luxury hotels, spas and even Robert Redford.

Her sun-drenched full-floor showroom in downtown Manhattan is filled with archives of furniture and art, but organized in such a way that the effect is calming. “I believe in silent design,” Clodagh explains. “There shouldn’t be a lot of visual clutter going on.” This fascination with serenity began when she was introduced to the practices of Feng Shui in 1985, and she’s worked with master Sarah Rossbach ever since to eliminate harmful energy from her spaces. Today, Clodagh’s focus is largely on eco-design and partnering with companies that practice fair trade and fair employment. Clodagh is now celebrating a quarter century in the world of interiors, but her professional career began in fashion. After a horseback riding injury left her in bed with a broken back for nearly a year, she answered an ad in the Irish Times looking for dress designers. Her talent matched her ambitiousness, and so, at age 17, she began work under her own name. “I worked with very architectural fabrics, and I was always very conscious of how clothes made people look,” she says. “There’s also a balance between what someone is wearing and how they look in a room.” This, she notes, is important for jewelers to realize. If a woman looks cool and detached, put her in red jewelry, she explains.

Her newest book, Your Home, Your Sanctuary, was released by Rizzoli in October. A virtual how-to for decorating room by room, the large-format book is filled with images and tips for making your time at home as peaceful as possible, including a call to use the five senses in all aspects of design. “I particularly love to work with water,” Clodagh says. “Since the body is 70 percent water, it makes logical sense to incorporate it into our surroundings.” Her showroom proves this principle: A stone coffee table is cut down the center with a small river and smooth stones; it sits near floor lights surrounded by bubbling water.

Luckily, Clodgah’s principles of home can and should be applied to the workspace, especially a luxury jewelry store. “It’s truly all about comfort,” she says. “Jewelry is a heavy investment, and when you’re selling, you’re really in the hospitality business.” The entryway to your store should be of the highest importance, and something that reflects a shift from street to showroom. Clodagh’s mantra of “no clutter, no chatter” should be especially important in this transitional space. Comfort is also expressed in the details. Clodagh suggests making sure your customers have a place to sit and rest their handbags, and lighting that flatters. “Uplights should be balanced with downlights,” she says. “And, most importantly, a customer should never have to look down into a mirror; it immediately adds 20 years to your face.”

Other details include small luxuries like fresh flowers and refreshments — but not reheated coffee or tea in a paper cup. “Invest in a machine that makes individual cups of fresh-brewed coffee or espresso, and offer it in glassware or china that represents the feel of your store. Present it on a beautiful tray. Your customers will feel pampered.” Perhaps more than anything, Clodagh believes that charity will lead to prosperity. One of her pet projects, Clodagh Cares, benefits the Thorn Tree Project in Northern Kenya. Hand-beaded accessories made by Kenyan locals are available through her Web site, and all proceeds go to construction and maintenance of the Thorn Tree School. She is also committed to using local artisans in her projects around the world. “We are very community orientated — when we open a spa or hotel, we always invite local artists to contribute to the design, and then invite them to meet the community. It’s a wonderful way to use cooperation to create something beautiful.”