When moving into a new home, you want to be able to see yourself reflected in the space’s design. This is a place you will grow in, share meals in, and make memories in, so personalizing it is important. Expressing your style through your home can be a daunting task. With Pinterest boards, screenshots of Instagram posts, and magazine cutouts piling up, we are here to help you make your vision a reality—with the help of some local interior designers. Read on to find out more about interior designers who can help make your dream home a reality.
beam&bloom | Bloomfield
About the Owner
(Photo credit: Noel of Carley Storm Brandin)
In September of 2017, Noel Gatts officially started her business, beam&bloom, in Bloomfield, after working with private clients for a few years. Noel is originally from Virginia and lived in New York City before making the move to New Jersey. he says, “New Jersey quickly became the place that feels most like home to me! We have a tight-knit neighborhood where we’ve met some of our dearest friends over the past 7 years. We never want to move! Who knows what the future holds, but Bloomfield has been a dream for us.”
Noel was inspired to become a designer after purchasing a fixer-upper in Bloomfield and falling in love with the renovation and restoration process. After tackling her own project, she began getting requests from family and friends to help them with their own. Noel realized at that moment it would be a great career move for her.
A musical theater actress, Noel hung up her acting career when she had children. She was longing for a different creative outlet and began figuring out her next career move with an emphasis on human interaction. Noel began her career as an interior designer as a “student professional,” learning in the most hands-on way possible.
Design Details
Her happiness in her career choice is evident. Noel’s goal with each project is “to ensure that their final space brings [the client] joy.” In describing her design aesthetic, she says, “I have a truly eclectic aesthetic, and my focus on ‘balance and delight’ is reflected in my brand’s name, beam&bloom. I also like to break the rules a bit. My designs tend to be fairly edited even when they are bold.”
Noel’s inspiration for her projects comes from nature, her environment, and her community, and the way these elements come together to create art. She is heavily influenced by music and movement, naturally taking from her roots as an actress.
(Photo credit: Lisa Russman Photography)
Why beam&bloom
What sets beam&bloom apart from other designers in the area is the team’s ability to stretch clients’ comfort zones. Noel is an excellent listener and deeply cares about her clients’ lives and wants them to think creatively and explore new things. Her goal is for her and her clients to land on a design that is entirely authentic to them. Noel enjoys the challenge of marrying personalities and aesthetics when multiple clients have input on one home.
beam&bloom interiors also “believes in uplifting humanity, and does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, gender, gender expression, age, ancestry, ability or sexual orientation in any of its activities or operations. We will continue to learn and seek out opportunities to level the playing field in our industry and community.”
How to Hire + Cost
beam&bloom, like other companies in the area, are booked out for quite a few months so get your request in early via its website. The company is offering Designer Day Packages throughout the summer for 6 hours of design work and a digital presentation of the choices made for the space. Noel says, “It’s a great way to get attentive and concentrated attention, and we often provide a comprehensive design plan for our clients for one or two spaces by the end of our day.” Designer Days are $1500.
If the project meshes with the designers’ schedules and design aesthetic, they are now booking full-service packages for Fall 2021. Full-service projects require a minimum purchasing budget of $10,000 per room with the design services ranging from $2000-$4000, depending on the scope of work.
To see beam&bloom’s work and learn more about Noel and her team, follow on social media @beamandbloom.
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Decorated Interiors | Montclair
About the Owner
(Photo credit: Mike Van Tassell)
Five years ago, Campbell Minister founded Decorated Interiors seeing “a need to support busy families with their design needs and sought a chance to turn my creative passions into a profession.” After moving around the country five times with her husband over a six-year period, Campbell wanted a career change. She was a teacher who had worked in a variety of school settings but felt a calling to interior design, following in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother who were both antique dealers and hobby-level decorators.
Campbell started in the business doing paint consultations and staging with real estate agents in the area but felt she was missing out on the more personal process that full design projects entail. She decided to enroll in an interior design program to pursue her career seriously but had to stop school to take on a large project with a developer: helping build a home from the ground up. This project kicked off her career in a big way.
Design Details
Decorated Interiors has a team of six so the crew can accomplish a full-service experience for each client. Campbell is the lead designer and there are two junior designers. The team also has drafting assistants for floor plans and mock-ups. The team works together to make its clients’ visions a reality.
Campbell is a self-described chameleon; her clients’ unique stories direct the design. She believes that getting to know a client enables her to connect with him or her, and thus deliver fabulous spaces. Using specific details of her client’s lives, ie: wine lovers, frequent travelers, etc., each project is tailored to her client’s style.
Clean lines and long-lasting pieces are Decorated Interiors trademarks, with functionality being a top priority. You will notice natural textures and elements such as raffia and bamboo in the designs because it makes you feel like you’re outdoors while inside.
Inspiration comes to Campbell from her frequent travels and moves. She grew up in Washington D.C. but moved around for her husband’s job, even living for a short while in Italy. Campbell says, “This exposure to different regions plays out in my designs. I am able to adapt to the needs of my clients.”
(Photo credit: Mike Van Tassell)
Why Decorated Interiors
Flexibility is the key difference between Decorated Interiors and other companies in the area. The team prides itself on being flexible in how each client wants to work. As mentioned, the team is able to adapt to different client styles and is not set in one aesthetic or another.
In addition, the team is open to different-size projects and is happy to help on any level with different budgets in mind. Decorated Interiors will work on a single room or paint consults, or a large, full renovation or building project.
How to Hire + Cost
Decorated Interiors is currently booking two months in advance for consultations and three to four months in advance for full-service design projects. You can contact the team via the website as the first step in your design process.
Once you’ve submitted your request, you will have a discovery call and consultation with Campbell and her team to work out the next steps.
Projects can range from $350 for a consultation to $50,000+ for large-scale design projects. The latter category would include working with an architect and builder from concept to completion.
To see Decorated Interiors’ work and learn more about Campbell and her team, follow on social media @decoratedinteriors. In the fall, Decorated Interiors will be rebranding as Campbell Minister Design so stay tuned for these changes.
Olive Hill Design Company | Verona
About the Owners
Teresa Boyd and Helena Finkelstein started Olive Hill Design Company six years ago after a chance meeting as mothers of young children in their shared Verona neighborhood. They discussed their backgrounds and how they had both always considered becoming interior designers. Teresa and Helena both majored in the arts and began their professional lives in other concentrations, but their shared love for and interest in interiors grew as they each got their own apartments and homes.
They started off, as many designers do, helping family and friends with their design choices. They said, “more and more, it felt like doing this professionally would be so rewarding and enjoyable for us both.” With their ideas and goals aligned, Teresa and Helena decided to team up and start their own business together, birthing Olive Hill Design Company.
Design Details
Teresa and Helena describe their style as transitional noting, “We work to create spaces that feel relaxed but polished by layering patterns and textures. We work with lots of young families and pet owners, and we are always trying to create spaces that are going to look great, offer storage, have durable surfaces, and be possible to maintain with a busy lifestyle.” Their lives as moms make them experienced in this regard, understanding how important the functionality of a space is for families.
Their design inspiration comes from their clients’ lives and they say creating a space for a client is like a puzzle. “We are listening to their needs and wants, often blending in personal items that they already own, considering how we can make a space work for the best, looking at the rest of their home, the views outside of their home. All of these pieces need to come together to feel ‘right’ for our clients.”
Why Olive Hill Design Company
Teresa and Helena prioritize their clients’ needs, budgets, and time when taking on a project. Their process offers a lot of flexibility to make sure the busy families they work with can complete their projects. That might mean allowing clients to space their projects and their purchases over time.
Olive Hill Design Company also offers multiple options to get the end result in the clients are looking for, with budgets top-of-mind and recommendations on how their money is best spent.
How to Hire + Cost
Olive Hill Design Company recommends clients reach out as far out in advance as possible as shipping delays on many home and renovation items can cause delays. You can reach them via email or phone (both available on their website) to set up an in-home consultation.
Projects range in price from $1000-$50,000, depending on the size and scope of the project.
To see Olive Hill Design Company’s work and learn more about Teresa and Helena, follow on social media @olivehilldesigncompany.
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RHG Architecture+Design | Montclair
About the Owner
Rachael Grochowski launched RHG A+D in 2004 while living in Philadelphia, PA. Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, she had dreams of owning her own business. Rachael’s stay in Philadelphia was only for 2 years so she decided to open her own architecture and design firm rather than start her career short-term at another shop. When Rachael moved to Montclair in 2007, she brought her business with her, shifting its headquarters to her new town.
A licensed architect with experience as a design director, Rachael says, “I was always interested in art and design but spending my first semester of college studying abroad in London really piqued my interest in history, architecture and how spaces to honor and tell the stories of the people who live and work in them for generations.”
This trip abroad inspired her to learn more about the historic preservation of architecture as she wanted to honor the past while pushing design into the time we live in today. Rachael says that “…this path led me to my life’s work which is to guide people towards spaces that ground them in their histories and inspire them to grow into their futures.”
Design Details
RHG A+D’s projects, both interiors, and architecture are warm, modern, and intentionally grounding. Creating a calm space for her clients to live in is very important. The team’s use of color, texture, shape, flow, and how they interact with each other are all purposeful, ensuring the spaces feel like home.
Rachael says she’s “particularly inspired by collaborating with others to create environments that bring peace, purpose, and connection to anyone who enters them. I want people to feel safe and supported in our spaces and help them get to a place of gratitude when they are in them.”
Furthermore, her team is committed to using small makers, artists, and local craftspeople who use sustainable and environmentally conscious materials. RHG A+D is a diverse company. It is committed to hearing, respecting, and incorporating all the different lived experiences and voices working there into its projects.
Why RHG Architecture+Design
What sets RHG A+D apart from other companies is the wide range of services it can provide. Rachael has a large team able to tackle architecture, interior design, branding, lighting design, and outdoor space design projects. RHG A+D can work with commercial and residential clients and has worked on homes, restaurants, retail stores, and commercial office spaces.
This streamlined approach creates consistency in projects and helps their client’s complete projects of all sizes, from kitchen redesigns to ground-up builds where RHG A+D is the architect for the entire project and then also comes in to help them select details down to the accessories.
How to Hire + Cost
Rachael says that clients should reach out to RHG A+D as early in the project as possible. Some clients hire the team while searching for a new home to help them find the right place to support the lifestyle they want.
To hire RHG A+D, reach out via their website to schedule a project review. During a project review, clients and the team will discuss the budget and do a walkthrough of the space. Once this has been done, you will receive a detailed proposal and the work can begin.
Due to the vast scope and scale of the projects RHG A+D takes on, there is no set price range for its services. For pricing, reach out to them directly with details on your project.
To see RHG A+D’s work and learn more about Rachael and her team, follow on social media @rhgdesign.
