Five Years In Business: What I’ve Learned About Grit, Growth, and Building a Life You Love entrepreneurship for designers interior design business journey starting an interior design business women in interior design Jan 23, 2026

The Day I Said “Why Wait?”

January 27, 2021 - the day my business was officially born.
My son was just six months old when I decided to submit the paperwork for license, and I was somewhere between postpartum exhaustion and wild determination when I looked at my husband and asked,
“Do you believe i...

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Why I Said No (Twice): The Power of Vetting Clients as Your Business Grows client experience client vetting design process designer boundaries designer mindset ideal clients interior design business project management setting boundaries Jan 16, 2026

This week, I received an email from a familiar name — a client I worked with about five years ago.
They reached out last January too, asking if I’d take on another project for them. And for the second year in a row… I politely said no.

Now, turning down a project might sound counterintuitive. Desig...

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Why the Schematic Phase Makes or Breaks a Design Project client onboarding client questionnaire design process designer resources interior design workflow schematic design space planning Jan 09, 2026

A look inside my process — and why this week’s schematic presentation reminded me why I’ll never skip this phase.

This week, I presented the schematic design for one of my current full-home renovation projects — and it went so well. 
It’s always such a rewarding moment: seeing clients’ eyes light u...

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Why I Charge $500 for a Design Consultation (and Why You Should Too) business tips for designers client consultations creative entrepreneurship design boundaries design clients interior design business pricing strategy Dec 12, 2025

Let’s Talk About the “Free Consultation” Trap

When I first started my design business, I offered free consultations - thinking it would help me book more clients.

It didn’t.

Instead, I spent hours driving to meetings, sharing advice, and giving away creative energy to people who were never going ...

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The Project That Finally Taught Me to Stop Shrinking! behind the scenes client relationships creative boundaries design business designer burnout interior design mindset Dec 05, 2025

 

When Going Above and Beyond Becomes Too Much

A reflection on boundaries, burnout, and the unseen emotional labor of design work..

If you're an interior designer (or any creative professional, really), you’ve likely been there - deep into a project that started out exciting and inspiring, but so...

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Pro Tips: How to Impress Clients with Photorealistic 3D Renders 3d rendering 3d visualization design presentation design workflow enscape interior design business photorealistic design rendering for interior designers sketchup Nov 13, 2025

The Power of Photorealism in Interior Design

Have you ever presented a design you were truly proud of - only for your client to hesitate because they couldn’t quite see it? You can feel the concept in your mind, but to them, it’s still just a flat plan on paper.

That’s one of the biggest challenge...

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Pro Tips: Why Every Interior Designer Needs 3D Modeling & Rendering 3d design tools 3d modeling client presentations design visualization enscape rendering interior design business tips online design courses sketchup for interior designers Nov 12, 2025
 

Have you ever had that moment when your client just couldn’t see what you were describing?
You’ve spent hours refining a floor plan, pulling finishes, and curating the perfect mood board - yet somehow, your client still asks, “But what will it actually look like?”

You’re not alone. Every designe...

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AutoCAD for Interior Designers: The Ultimate 2D Drafting Course 2d drafting course autocad classes for beginners autocad for interior designers autocad training for designers design documentation drafting floor plans interior design drawing course learn autocad online professional drawing sets Nov 12, 2025
 

Every stunning interior project begins long before the 3D renders, the mood boards, or the final installation. It starts with something far more essential: a precise, well-drafted 2D plan.

Whether you’re a new designer or a seasoned professional, mastering AutoCAD is one of the smartest investme...

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Attract Higher-End Clients: Elevate Your Brand by Using 3D Visualization 3d visualization client attraction design brand enscape interior design business interior design marketing luxury design rendering for designers sketchup Nov 12, 2025
 

Luxury clients don’t just buy beautiful spaces - they buy confidence, clarity, and vision.

They’re drawn to designers who can make them see the end result before it even exists. And while talent and creativity are essential, presentation often determines perception. The way you show your ideas s...

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For Business Beginners: How to Build a Design Portfolio Without Clients 3d visualization branding for designers client attraction design career design marketing enscape interior design business portfolio building sketchup Nov 12, 2025
 

When I left the corporate world to start my own design studio, I had the passion, the education, and years of experience - but there was one big problem:
I didn’t have a single project to my name (because of copyrights, I couldn't share any of the projects I've worked on!).

No professional photo...

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Pro Tips: How I Earned an Extra $60K with To-the-Trade Vendors business tips for interior designers design business profitability designer income furnish & flourish interior design sourcing interior design workflow markup system sourcing strategies to-the-trade vendors trade accounts Nov 11, 2025

When I first started my business, I thought the only way to make more money was to take on more clients or so I was told!

So I kept saying yes to everything - full projects, smaller ones, quick design consultations - thinking more work meant more income.

But after each project wrapped, I realized ...

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When Enscape Crashes: A Designer’s 2 a.m. Survival Guide 3d rendering tips design software issues design software troubleshooting enscape rendering enscape settings enscape troubleshooting interior design workflow interior designer tech help late night design life nvidia control panel sketchup crash fix Jun 30, 2023

The truth is - ALL programs crash. Every single one of them! Period! 

At some point in your career - SketchUp, AutoCAD, or Enscape will freeze, crash, or give you that dreaded error message....Sorry! 

So what do you do when it’s 2 a.m., your Enscape just crashed, and your deadline is tomorrow morn...

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