Exploring Life & Business with Brooke Coe of Huh? Designs

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brooke Coe.

Hi Brooke, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I have a unique design aesthetic – funky, sleek and conversational. I do what feels good, and almost always with an edge. When we renovated our first home many moons ago, I nurtured my love for Beetlejuice meets Dr. Seuss and transformed our crazy little Atlanta bungalow into a statement piece. As visitors stopped by, conversation ensued around how unique the look was, and where they could get it. Friends asked me to design their homes and build furniture for them, but I had a day job. I started doing side projects, which turned my design ‘hobby’ into my full-time job. These days, I like to say I have a portfolio career, I ebb and flow into one or the other as it feels right. Beyond my true day job of managing digital application user interface design, my side job and passion remains interior and furniture design. My services now include virtual design leveraging CAD software and I will identify and source materials for clients to execute upon.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Is anything ever really smooth?! Over the years, I’ve learned to work with the surprises that almost always come up. When designing homes for renovation, you have to work within the constraints of available space, plumbing locations, city codes and more unless you’re up for a major renovation. I try and have a huge impact within a reasonable budget for my clients.

About 20 years ago when I was getting started, I designed, built, and installed a custom wall unit in a client’s home. At the time, I had less-than-basic sketching skills and wasn’t able to fully convey what the unit would look like and how it would look installed. Needless to say, after installation, the client had different assumptions on how it would fit in their home and after some brief discussion, asked me to uninstall it and refund their money. This was a huge gut punch and something I hope to never experience again – so I made sure of it.

I now work with CAD software enhanced by Photoshop to demonstrate exactly how the renovation, redesign or installation will look, feel, and function. There are no longer assumptions left unmet. The client now has the ability to walk through their new home and view it in different lighting, at different angles and make changes before the design is fully realized. Something that leads to happy clients and a happy designer.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Huh? Designs?
Huh? Designs offers clients the ability to visualize their renovations and have their materials professionally selected and sourced all before a single hammer is lifted. And knowing that not everyone has a caviar budget, I create budget-friendly designs with a high aesthetic impact. I specialize in whole-house renovations that flow, however, I can also just-as-easily focus on single rooms. People’s homes are their sanctuary and a renovation or redesign can be overwhelming so Huh? Designs make the whole process easy by working with clients to create a design that meets their style, taste, and needs.

How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
If you’re interested in renovating or redesigning your home, you can contact me through Huh? Designs (www.huhdesigns.com). All we need to get started is a conversation about your goals, your budget, some measurements and photos before the magic can begin!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.huhdesigns.com

Image Credits
Brooke Coe