Alexander Girard attracted a great deal of attention with his interior design of the legendary Miller House, for which he personally selected each individual object. The centerpiece of the house was a so-called 'conversation pit', a sunken seating area outfitted with decorative pillows made specifically for this setting. The embroidered pillow 'Home Sweet Home' is pleasantly firm and elaborately stitched.

Alexander Girard was educated in Europe as an architect. Returning to the United States in 1932, his designs defined a new kind of "opulent modernism", a look that became synonymous with 1960s America. His pioneering work in fabric design as well as his innovative commercial and residential interiors, captivated the public with their theatricality. Girard described himself as "a reasonable and sane functionalist, tempered by irrational frivolity."