The Interior Collective

Season 8 of The Interior Collective Podcast is brought to you by Loloi.

Hi, and welcome back to The Interior Collective. I’m your host, Anastasia Casey, and today we’re diving into one of the most important, and often overlooked, foundations of a healthy design business: contracts and scope management.

I’m joined today by Brittney Hakimfar, founder of Far Studio, a Philadelphia–based interior design studio known for its thoughtful, layered work and highly organized project structure. But beyond the aesthetics, Brittney has built a reputation for running projects with clarity, strong boundaries, and systems that protect both the designer and the client experience.

In this episode, we’re talking about the contract and scope missteps that so many designers encounter at some point in their careers. We’ll get into the specific language that helps prevent scope creep and revision overload, why vague deliverables often lead to long-term issues on a project, and how to structure revision rounds, approvals, and change orders clearly from the very beginning.

Brittney also shares how Far Studio structures their team, how they approach pricing and project management today, and how those systems have evolved as the studio has grown.

If you’ve ever had a project expand far beyond its original scope, or struggled to set clear boundaries with clients, this conversation will give you practical tools to protect your time, your creativity, and ultimately your profitability.

Season 8 of The Interior Collective Podcast is brought to you by Loloi.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Dezign Assist.

Today on The Interior Collective, we’re talking about something that every designer eventually faces in their career: the moment when growth requires a leap of faith.

Building a successful interior design studio isn’t just about talent or great projects. It’s about mindset. It’s about trusting yourself enough to make big decisions before you feel completely ready. And it’s about recognizing that the strongest businesses are rarely built alone.

In this episode, I’m joined by Danielle Chiprut of Danielle Rose Design Co. a designer who has embraced that growth mentality in a meaningful way. We’re talking about what it really looks like to bet on yourself, how to navigate the risks that come with scaling a creative business, and why building a strong support system outside of your internal team can be one of the most powerful decisions you make.

From photographers and PR partners to the broader network of collaborators who help bring a designer’s work to life, we’re exploring how those relationships shape not only the visibility of a studio, but its long-term trajectory.

Season 8 of The Interior Collective Podcast is brought to you by Loloi.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Dezign Assist.

Hi, and welcome back to The Interior Collective. I’m your host, Anastasia Casey.

Today’s conversation is one I think a lot of interior designers are going to feel deeply seen by. I’m joined by Bri Ussery, and together we’re unpacking a dynamic that quietly shapes almost every design studio: the split between the visionary and the enforcer.

Designers are often asked to hold two opposing roles at once. On one hand, you’re expected to be the creative leader. The person with taste, clarity, and vision. On the other, you’re also expected to enforce boundaries, manage approvals, push timelines forward, and uphold fees. When both of those identities live in the same person, something starts to fracture.

In this episode, Bri and I explore why that split happens, where it shows up most clearly in real projects, and how it impacts everything from client trust to profitability to a designer’s sense of authority. We also talk through the structural and operational fixes that help protect the principal’s role and keep designers in the visionary posturerole clients believe they’re hiring them for.

If you’ve ever felt the tension between leading creatively and enforcing operationally, or noticed moments where your authority starts to blur, this conversation will give language and structure to something you’ve likely been experiencing for years.

Season 8 of The Interior Collective Podcast is brought to you by Loloi.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Dezign Assist.

Today’s guest is Nicole Salceda, founder of Eye for Pretty. Nicole built a highly visible brand at the intersection of interior design, retail, and digital influence. But what makes her story especially compelling is not just how she grew quickly, but how she chose to scale back with intention.

In this episode, we’re talking about what happens when growth outpaces alignment, how to downsize without feeling like you’ve failed, and what it really means to be an “influencer designer” in today’s market. We also get into her team structure, partnerships with builders, brick and mortar retail, and how custom spec builds have reshaped her revenue model.

If you’ve ever questioned whether bigger automatically means better, this conversation is for you.

Season 8 of The Interior Collective Podcast is brought to you by Loloi.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Dezign Assist.

Today we’re talking about one of the most intimidating and misunderstood layers of an interior design project: art.

My guest is Sarah Hurt, founder of Seattle Art Source, an art advisory that has worked alongside interior designers across the Pacific Northwest since 2017. Sarah’s entire business exists to remove the hesitation designers often feel around specifying art, and to help them position it not as an afterthought, but as a strategic and emotional anchor within a home.

In this episode, we’re getting practical. We’re talking about when to introduce art into the project timeline, how to speak about it with authority, what your role is versus an art advisor’s role, and how art can actually elevate your client experience while protecting their financial investment.

If art has ever felt like the most mysterious line item in your design proposal, this one is for you.