Designer Crush: Casey Howard Interior Design
Author:Lindsey ShookBased in Danville, California, Casey Howard Interior Design is a full-service firm that prides themselves on managing the entire design and build process while curating spaces that have classic edge. Their work throughout the Bay Area stretches from Wine Country to the Silicon Valley and beyond. Here, founder Casey Howard shares more on what inspired her to become a designer and what is keeping her inspired.
–What or who inspired your design career? My earliest calling to design started with my childhood bedroom where I experimented with wildly different styles, from coordinated frilly lavender and white custom looks to black and white post-modernism. I earned a business degree and embarked on a career in tech at my family’s urging towards a “more stable” pursuit, but while design took a backseat, it never left me. I have to credit a former partner who recognized my creativity and passion for design and encouraged me to take a leap of faith to pursue what I love. I then found an incredible mentor who helped launch me into the place I am today.
–How would you describe signature style? A little funky, a little classic with edge. Everything we do has a transitional through line with layers of the unexpected and pays homage to the integrity of the structure, home, and its inhabitants.
–Any brands or furniture/decorative artists you are obsessed with? There are so many! I am obsessed with Bradley USA, Cuff Studio, Porter Teleo wallcoverings, Art + Loom and NIBA Designs custom rugs, Buster + Punch hardware, Nate Nettleton and Thomas Gromas wall sculptures, Amanda Wright pottery, Lolly Lolly Ceramics.
–How have you shifted your business during the pandemic, that will remain a part of your process? The pandemic has taught us how to streamline many elements of our process in terms of digital design boards and certain meetings and presentations that we will continue to employ going forward, but it has also affirmed the importance of the tactile process and onsite work that we will never give up.
-What can you tell us about your new office? Our new studio is located in a historic building in downtown Danville, so it is super charming with its own history. We merged the period bungalow architecture of the structure with our signature style to create an elevated, funky, residential mood for our office. We have a welcoming porch, comfortable living room area, and strategic workspaces. My team works at an oversized Mr. Brown dining table modified for our functional needs, and our library is concealed behind a custom built-in cabinet which houses an organized system of Container Store roll-out trays and bins to keep us operating at peak productivity with maximum aesthetic value. Our neighbors, a gem of a restaurant and coffee bar called Sideboard, expanded their patio just outside our windows which has created wonderful community energy throughout the day.
–Favorite SF museum or gallery? Simon Breitbard Fine Arts.
–Must-have daily essential? Coffee and sunscreen.
–Favorite design book? Kelly Wearstler’s book, Evocative Style
–If you weren’t a designer, you would be? Forensic Psychologist!
