By honoring the spark in you that loves to create and following your truth, you give others the courage to do the same. Tying together traditional Southern moments from her training in New Orleans and her coastal travels, Heidi Caillier is a Seattle based interior designer that keeps at it — doing the best that she knows how to do. For her full-service interior design firm this means curating a lovely mix of the old and the new, designing custom furniture, cabinetry, space planning and more. Not only does she know beautiful spaces but she cultivates them in such a way that will make you want to cozy up on the couch with a cup of matcha tea and call them home.

Whether it’s a full-blown remodel or a short and sweet room refresh, Heidi integrates color and texture alongside layered pieces to give every room a feeling that it has its own history — one which can be built on for years to come. With a love for pattern (hello Zak and Fox), vintage and raw materials that feel natural her work oozes an effortless and free flowing comfort. Unique spaces crafted especially for clients with the design philosophy that a home should always be lived in and comfortable. Her aesthetic gives attention to imperfections, as she believes it’s these stains and scuffs that will tell your story.

Photo: ©Haris Kenner — Photo: ©Haris Kenner

While it may not be the easiest, waiting for the right piece to come will yield the most beauty...We should all live life this way — the way Heidi approaches interior design. If you love it, she can make it work. It’s this laid-back living and “stick to your vision” attitude which makes me so excited to be championing this creative mother!

Alyssa Rosenheck: Tell us about yourself…

Heidi Caillier: I’m an interior designer based in Seattle, WA. I specialize in residential interior design. I’ve got 2 year-old twins and my husband also owns his own business, North End Social Club in Tacoma, WA. We moved here from San Francisco almost three years ago and love the PNW. We recently bought a home on Anderson Island as a weekend house — which we are renovating currently.

AR: How are you modernizing / updating southern style when you design?

HC: I love to mix styles and I think southern style is all about this mentality. Putting things together that may not seem like a natural fit but somehow work. If you love it, you can make it work.

Alyssa Rosenheck's The New Southern Designer Spotlight with Heidi Caillier, Interior Design of Seattle, WA

AR: What innovative trends are you seeing with Southern design across the country?

HC: I am seeing a shift back towards pieces with more traditional shapes mixed with modern fabrics and finishes. The effect is anything but stuffy. It also brings in some history and can tell a story, which I think southern design really embraces.

AR: What are your favorite hometown design boutiques?

HC: I love Totokaelo so much. They have a perfectly curated mix. I also like Stock + Pantry, Red Ticking and Maison Luxe.

AR: Favorite shade of white and black paint color?

HC: Benjamin Moore Simply White + Farrow and Ball Off-Black.

AR: The key to making a house a home? What does a home need more of and less of?

HC: It has to be comfortable! And filled with the things you love. I’m all for a beautiful room with perfect details but a home needs to be a place you create memories and live life so you can’t be scared to get a stain on the sofa. To me, the imperfections are what tell the story of your life. A ding on the dining table or etch on the marble countertops are normal and what makes a house a home.

AR: Life advice you’ve gotten that made all the difference?

HC: “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” I am a perfectionist and also incredibly hard on myself which can make for a rough combination. I constantly remind myself of this quote from Maya Angelou. As long as you are doing the best you know how, that’s all you can do. We are always learning and as long as you take the lessons with you I think you are in good shape.

AR: Design advice you’ve gotten that made all the difference?

HC: Good design takes time. So many times clients come to us and they are in a rush to furnish everything and make all of the decisions as quickly as possible. I used to buy into this but have found that I am so much happier with the end results when I let myself wait for the right piece to come. It’s not always the easiest approach but it yields the most beauty.

AR: What’s the best piece of business advice you could provide for creative entrepreneurs starting out?

HC: Work hard. It is honestly that simple. I live and breathe my business. It is the consistency of keeping your head down and working hard that brings success. There are so many trips and stumbles along the way that can be discouraging but you just have to keep at it. Also – stick to your vision and remember why you started.

AR: Who are some of your favorite artists/makers? What do you love about their work?

HC: I love Jessica Helgerson, Nickey Kehoe and Commune. They are putting out original work with such incredible attention to detail. You can tell that every little detail is so well thought out. It is so inspiring.

Alyssa Rosenheck's The New Southern Designer Spotlight with Leanne Ford Pittsburgh PA Los Angeles CA PhotoCredit © AlyssaRosenheck

Katie Hackworth is a walking lesson on following your passions. Katie says she found her “passion for interior design and architecture in a rather organic way. It began with a remodel/addition of a 1950s cottage-style home 10 years back, and grew from there. I realized how important my surroundings were and how they affect my emotions and state of mind. People began taking notice of the homes and interiors I was creating, and in 2013, I took a leap of faith and created my own boutique-style, full-service design and build company. My client base has grown quickly and I’m grateful every single day.”

Katie's interior design build company grew so quickly that measures had to be made in order to keep up. “I recently partnered with a larger local contractor, Dovetail General Contractors, whose work I have admired for some time. They appreciate and pay close attention to the details that make my work unique,” she says, and we can’t wait to see what comes next because we’re already fans.

Alyssa Rosenheck's The New Southern Designer Spotlight with Katie Hackworth, H2 Design + Build of Seattle, WA

We sat down with the busy mother of two girls—plus a handful of rescue dogs and a hedgehog—to hear how a Seattle-based designer sees Southern style, and how she approaches trends.

Alyssa Rosenheck: Tell me about yourself.

Katie Hackworth: First, I’m a mom to my two girls, who have me wrapped around their little fingers. I’m an extroverted introvert and an Aries through and through. I’ve always been an observer, and from that I think I’ve learned a lot about people and myself and what we respond to. I prefer things to look effortless, but it never is (and you normally won’t hear me say that). And I’m entirely too sensitive for my own good. That’s me in a tiny nutshell.

AR: How are you modernizing Southern style when you design?

KH: I focus on pulling together timeless elements that are (hopefully) unexpected. Southern style is timeless. It’s about family, history, and tradition. All core themes that should run throughout a home and never feel outdated. You can take two somewhat traditional components and combine them in a new way, or contrast them with something completely paired down. The new balance created is what modernizes the overall design.

AR: What innovative trends are you seeing with Southern design across the country?

KH: I don’t pay much attention to trends; great design is beyond that. It’s something people respond to innately, regardless of what is trending in the moment.

Alyssa Rosenheck's The New Southern Designer Spotlight with Katie Hackworth of Seattle, WA

AR: What are your favorite Seattle design boutiques?

KH: Big Daddy’s Antiques, Rejuvenation, Maison Luxe, and Marine Area 7. Other than that, I'm a self-proclaimed online expert. My favorite curated home store is easily Jayson Home out of Chicago.

AR: Favorite shade of white and black paint color?

KH: I have two favorite shades of white. "Simply White" by Benjamin Moore is my go-to, and for a slightly more historical feel, I warm it up a bit with "Crisp Linen,” also from Benjamin Moore. My favorite shade of black is just that, “Black" by Benjamin Moore.

AR: What’s your life motto?

KH: I can’t do anything half way. I’m either in 100 percent, or out. I know there is a phrase about that somewhere…all or nothing! Yes. That’s it.

AR: What’s the one shade the changes everything?

KH: Forest green. The hue reads so much to me. Fancy, rich, and deep, along with natural, authentic, and true. The tone demands attention, but in a very understated way.

AR: The place you go to get inspired?

KH: The architecture and interiors of Paris, Berlin, London, Istanbul, Rome, Amsterdam… all viewed via Pinterest. Of course, in person would be even better.

AR: The key to making a house a home?

KH: A home should never read as a picture-perfect page from a catalog. A home needs character and layers describing the people that live within it through artwork, books, collections, family heirlooms, curious knick-knacks, and then some.

AR: What’s a piece of life advice you’ve gotten that made all the difference?

KH: All of my drive comes from within, and it goes back to that all or nothing motto. Give something your everything, and it will happen. I don’t know who said that, but I keep repeating it.

AR: What about design advice?

KH: Stick with your gut. Trust your instincts. If you love it, buy it…. all true!

AR: What’s the best piece of business advice you could provide for creative entrepreneurs starting out?

KH: Having a successful business is nothing short of exhausting. You must love what you do. It’s the only thing that will make it all worth it. And in the end, you'll only remember the good stuff.

AR: Who are some of your favorite artists?

KH: Kai Samuals Davis easily stands out as a favorite artist of this era. His pieces are very tactile and real with a massive jolt of emotion. I've tried to dissect his brushstrokes and his process just seems to be genius. In addition, I love collecting the artwork of my talented friends: Drie Chapek, Megumi Shauna Arai, Michelle Armas, Lydia Bassis, Dorothee Brand, Valeria Spring, Jenny Vorwaller, Deb Achak, to name a few. I think knowing the artist personally adds another layer to the piece and it’s an honor to have them placed throughout my home.

AR: How to mix old with new?

KH: Staying timeless is the best advice anyone can give you. Whether it’s a timeless piece from this decade or decades back, you can’t go wrong.

AR: Fill in the blank, “my momma always said…”

KH: “Always be kind and good.” I do my best. That’s all I need to say about that.

AR: Go-to housewarming gift?

KH: Coffee table books are a great gift and a perfect component for layering a home with personal character. My current favorites are John Derian’s John Derian Picture Book and Malene Birger’s Life and Work.

AR: Design book you’ll always have on your own shelf?

KH: A Frame for Life by Isle Crawford. Everything she does is unexpected perfection.

AR: Tell us something we probably don’t know.

KH: In my previous life, I thought I would go into medicine. I took a few extra marine biology classes, and landed myself a zoology degree from The University of Washington.

AR: What’s your dream project?

KH: The palette and materials I gravitate toward reflect what I see in nature. Living in the Pacific Northwest and growing up surrounded by water will do that to you. It leads me to say that my dream project would be a small, authentic home placed on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. If it was my own, even better. I guess that makes me my dream client. I know what I like, which makes working for myself quite easy!

AR: The greatest color combination that ever existed?

KH: A warm, crisp white alongside raw white oak.