WELCOME TO THE STUDIO

Smiling blonde woman with a tattooed arm sitting in an airport terminal by a window.

My story

Katie heiser, Founder

I didn't come to interior design the traditional way...

Looking back, the signs were always there. As a kid, I was constantly rearranging my bedroom, and I had a slight obsession with rating every bathroom I walked into. My dad was a contractor, so I spent my childhood on job sites, watching spaces come together long before I knew design could be a career.

For nine years, I worked in early childhood education, wearing a lot of different hats along the way — including a stretch as a program supervisor. It doesn't sound like a designer's resume, but it's exactly where this all started. I spent almost a decade paying close attention to how a room affects a person — how the right space can help someone feel calm, focused, safe and like themselves, and how the wrong one can do the opposite. I just didn't have a name for that yet.

The turning point came when someone I used to nanny for asked me to help with projects in her home. I taught myself CAD along the way, and somewhere in the middle of it, I had my "aha" moment. I went back to school for interior design and haven't looked back since. I currently have my Master's Certificate in Interior Design at Heritage School of Interior Design, and I built C. Street Studio from the ground up. The name comes from Christenson St, the street I grew up on — a reminder that the places we come from stay with us.

That combination is what sets how I work apart. I don't design toward a single aesthetic — I design toward you. Every project starts with your story: the home you grew up in, the pieces you've kept, how you live right now and the life you're building next. Nostalgia and memory are the foundation of how I work, not decoration on top of it. And because I grew up on job sites, I don't just think about how a space should look — I think about how it actually gets built and lived in.

Whether you're renovating a home you plan to stay in for decades or finally making a rental feel like yours, I believe the same thing: a home should build the person living in it. Everything I do, from the first conversation to the last install day, comes back to that.

Black-and-white architectural sketch of a raised wooden house with a wraparound porch, multiple windows, landscaping, and a front walkway.

the origin of c. street studio

C. Street Studio is named after Christenson St — the street I grew up on, and the house that, without me realizing it at the time, quietly built who I am.

That home is where I first understood that a house is never just a backdrop. It's where I learned what warmth actually feels like — not just as a temperature, but as a feeling a room can hold. The worn texture of a hallway rug under bare feet. The pattern on a curtain catching afternoon light in a very specific, familiar way. The particular creak of a floorboard that meant someone was home. None of it was designed to be beautiful in a magazine sense — but it was full of feeling, and I didn't know yet that feeling was something a space could be built around on purpose.

That's the thread I carry into every project now. I believe nostalgia isn't sentimental — it's information. The textures, colors, and small imperfect details that make a space feel like yours are usually the same ones that quietly shaped who you became inside it. Naming the studio after that street was my way of building the whole business around that belief from day one: a home should build the person living in it, the same way mine built me.

Traditional wood-paneled entryway with built-in coat storage, hooks, bench, patterned rug, and glass-paneled door

philosophy

C. Street is named after the street I grew up on, and that's where this philosophy began.

Some of the feelings we carry the longest come from places: the chair you curled up in, the colors on the walls of a room you loved, the way a kitchen felt on a slow morning. That's why nostalgia sits at the heart of how I design. The pieces you've kept, the colors that feel like home, the small details that quietly hold a memory — those are never just decoration to me. They're where we start.

I don't design around a single "look." I mix old and new, collected and thrifted, bold and quiet, because the goal was never to impose a style. It's to create a space that connects with you, mentally and emotionally, and feels like the place you've always belonged.

That's why every project begins with your story. I want to know what shaped you. That might be the home you grew up in, a place you traveled to that you still think about, or a piece passed down that you'd never part with. I also want to know where you are right now: how you live day to day, what your mornings look like, and what you need your space to give back to you. And I want to hear where you're headed: the life you're building, the family you're growing, and the person you're becoming. Your past, present and future all belong in your home, and my job is to bring them together into a space that supports you through every chapter.

That looks different for every client. It might be a full renovation, a whole home refurnished room by room, or a rental that finally feels like yours. Whatever the scope, a home full of things that mean something will always feel more like home than one that simply looks good in a photo.

FAQs

Reach out through the contact form with a bit about your space and what you're hoping for. From there we'll set up a quick call to talk through your project, see if we're a good fit, and figure out next steps together.
All Services start at $120/hour.
Whole Home Renovation or New Construction is for new builds and whole-home remodels, any project where the layout, cabinetry, or finishes change throughout the house. I guide the design from the first floor plan through final install, give your contractor a detailed plan to build from, and stay involved through construction. Furnishings can be included or handled separately.
Partial renovation is for one space that's ready for a total transformation, most often a kitchen or bathroom. I design the layout, cabinetry, tile, fixtures, and lighting, and hand your contractor the drawings and specs to keep pricing and construction on track. Furnishings can be included or handled separately.
Furnishing only is for homes that are built and ready to feel like yours, with no construction needed. From a single room to the whole house, I handle the layout, furniture, lighting, rugs, window treatments, art, and final styling, plus ordering, delivery, and installation day.
The Renter's Edit offers renter-friendly design packages for apartments, condos and townhomes 1,200 sq ft and under, so you can make your space feel like home without changing a wall.
Not really, on purpose. I work across a wide range of aesthetics because the goal was never to impose a look — it's to design around you. What I bring to every project, regardless of style, is an eye for nostalgia and the small details that already mean something to you. That's usually a better starting point than a trend.
Every project starts with a conversation, not a mood board. After you reach out, we'll hop on a call to talk through your space, your goals, and your budget, and make sure we're a good fit. From there, I'll put together a proposal based on your scope — whole home renovation or new construction, partial renovation, furnishing only, or the renters edit — and once you're ready to move forward, we get into the real work: measurements, mood boards, sourcing, and a design plan built around what already means something to you. If your project includes construction, that gets folded into the full-service process from the start. The last step is always the best one — bringing it all together and installing.
Yes, on both counts. I don't believe a redesign has to mean starting from zero — if a piece already means something to you, I'll always look for a way to work it in rather than replace it just for the sake of a fresh look. As for budget, we'll talk about it openly upfront so the plan we build together is realistic for you, not just aspirational.
It depends on scope. Partial renovation projects typically run anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Whole home renovation — especially anything involving construction — are a longer process, with a minimum timeline of about six months.
Not necessarily. If you already have a contractor you trust, I'm happy to work alongside them. If you don't, I can help connect you with someone local.