Designer Spotlight: Randy Heller Pure & Simple Interior Design

Studio Designer‘s accounting and project management platform on the cloud allows the world’s leading designers to drive efficiency and growth, save time, and manage beautiful projects. We love to champion the fine work of our clients who use our platform to run their businesses and achieve their goals of growth, success, and creative fulfilment.

Studio Designer client Randy Heller is the founder of Randy Heller Pure & Simple Interiors on Chicago’s North Shore and uses the platform to run her daily business. Before she even considers a chip of paint or a swatch of fabric, she grasps the architecture of the space. She shared, “Proportion, form and scale happen first. The room has to be prepared architecturally and I love working with the shell first.” A graduate of the International Academy of Art in Chicago, she studied under celebrity designer Kelly Hoppen in the U.K. to broaden her scope of interior design and architecture.

Upon returning to the United States, Randy spent a decade working on homes like manses and converted horse stables before launching The Design House and Learning Center, a hybrid design studio and art gallery. Heller combines her love of art and classic design in her signature neutral palette and invites clients and design enthusiasts to immerse themselves in the transformative world of design. Randy shared, “I believe design has the ability to change the way we feel on a daily basis. Successful design creates monumental experiences in one’s life.”

Read more about Randy’s design influences and how she uses Studio Designer to run her business.

Tell us a little bit about you. How and why did you decide to become a designer?

I have always been on the creative side of the business. Prior to rolling out my firm, I was a visual merchandiser for a national clothing brand, and transitioning into interiors was a very organic development.

Describe your design aesthetic

When it comes to my design style, I have a holistic approach towards creating the perfect space. I take into account lifestyle, architecture, and color to ultimately tell a visual story. I combine classic furniture, found objects, and art to create a truly unique, functional, yet organic and modern style. I consider my design aesthetic to be understated and work with textured materials, prefer natural stones, neutral color tones that offer the eye ease and comfort. I like to thread vintage as well as antique pieces throughout a space and finish it off with very unique art and accessories.

Share some design references to turn to frequently to spark your creativity. 

There is so much that inspires me in my everyday life. By nature, I’m a dreamer, so most of my inspiration comes from visiting beautiful images of landscapes, cutting edge design, interiors, art, and products from faraway places that I read about online and in books. I am also inspired by music, dance, theatre and—as crazy as it sounds—just looking up at the sky.

Who are the interior designers, architects, artists, or creative professionals you admire? 

The interior designers, architects, artists that I admire are so vast, but to mention a few off the top of my head, I admire interior designers Nancy Braithwaite and Darryl Carter. I love the artists Joshua Vogel, Christiane Lemieux, Oliver Gustav, to name a few.

What design project of yours are you most proud of and why?

I’m very proud of the Carlyle Project. It gave me the opportunity to show my skill set in interior architectural details, which was lacking in this house and much needed. It’s something that I really pride myself on and always use as a starting point when I begin to build a design concept and palette.

Share a story about how you acquired an unusual item for a project.

My husband hates when I talk about this, but every year in my community there is free garbage day. This allows homeowners to throw any and all items away, regardless of size at no cost. I borrowed my friend’s pick-up truck and found old interior doors that I just fell in love with, and garbage picked them. It would drive my husband crazy. I once picked up a pair of Herman Miller chairs and Adrian Pearsall side tables!

Share your advice on how to run a successful design business and maintain a creative edge at the same time.

Honestly? I couldn’t, nor do I want to, run my business without Studio Designer. Studio Designer is a complete game changer for my back office. We use Studio for time billing, project management, client management, inventory, and will be considering it for ease of customer payments.

How do you use Studio Designer to successfully run your business?

Walk before you try to run. Know who you are and what your brand is and embrace the fact that it will forever be changing as long as you’re in business.

What advice do you have for designers building their businesses?

A fun fact about myself is that I will go to the extreme to save wildlife and I carry spiders outside if I see them in my house or office. I have always had a love for animals and all types of critters. When driving, I brake for squirrels that decide to cross the road.