Designer Spotlight: Audrey Scheck Design
Audrey Scheck, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy
Meet one of my longtime supporters and inspiring friend, Audrey Scheck! Audrey and I met via Instagram around 2017 when she was pivoting from a corporate role in digital marketing and branching out into her passion: interior design.
I worked with Audrey to create a custom round textile piece for her home and featured her home in LA on the blog a few years ago. It was an honor when she reached out again about creating a custom piece for her dining room. Now that Canvas With Movement art is hanging in her gorgeous home in Austin, TX that she designed remotely, from Los Angeles.
Audrey officially launched Audrey Scheck Design in 2020 and already has a full team spread over multiple states helping her to create cozy, cohesive, and beautiful environments that feel warm and welcoming.
Over the years Audrey has purchased my artwork for herself, many of her clients, and even her own mom. We have continued our instagram-friendship for the past 5 years and watching her build a family and design career has been a joy. I’m so excited for you to learn more about Audrey, see her beautiful home, and learn her tips for designing and hosting for the upcoming holiday season.
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
You remodeled a home remotely in 2020- What a wild process that must’ve been! What did you learn during that process that has benefitted your design firm, Audrey Scheck DEsign?
I designed and project managed the remodel of our current home during the pandemic while we lived in Los Angeles. I never saw the house until the remodel was complete, and doing the entire thing remotely taught me SO much. I learned the importance of being detail-oriented and organized, trusting your contractor, and giving up some control. There were good days and tough days during the remote remodel process, and I will always look back on that time with such gratitude.
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Was starting your own design firm a professional goal, or did it naturally evolve from all your personal experience with the process of renovating and designing your LA and Austin homes?
I have loved interior design for as long as I can remember. I was very intentional about the decor in my room throughout grade school, and I will never forget the feeling of moving into my own apartment in Austin after college in 2007. It felt surreal being able to decorate my very own space, and I became even more interested in design through that process. I got married in 2014, and we bought our first home (a 100-year-old Spanish style house in a historic neighborhood of Los Angeles) the following year. I remodeled the exterior before we sold it, and I fell in love with the process. We sold that house and did a full interior and exterior renovation of our second home, and I started my design firm after remodeling our third home here in Texas!
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
My husband and I just finished an 18 month remodel and OMG it was intense. I learned SO much from the process but ultimately decided that Interior Designers are basically Superheroes! How do you balance your Firm’s projects and your life, without getting overwhelmed or burnt out?
Thankfully I've got an amazing, super talented team working with me! I realized quickly that I couldn't do it alone, and I made my first hire two months after launching my firm. We are now a team of 11 spread across 3 states servicing nearly 50 active clients. I pinch myself daily and still can't believe what has unfolded in the last year and a half! Balancing work with my personal life was definitely more difficult during the first year. I spent many nights working until 3am and would only get a few hours of sleep before my children woke-up. I was running on pure adreneline and excitement, and I sometimes still do the same because I truly love my job so much.
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Your new home is beautiful! After moving in, how long did it take for you to get it to feel cozy and welcoming? Were there certain spaces you focused on immediately, or did you let it all come together without a timeline?
Thank you so much! We did everything in stages with the major construction happening before we arrived from California. All of the big ticket items such as paint, updating the flooring, and installing necessary window treatments were taken care of before we arrived. We spent the first year updating furniture pieces that didn't properly fit in this space, and we've spent the second year adding more character to the home. We recently added wallpaper to the kids' rooms and did a full wall treatment overhaul in my husband's office inclusive of both millwork and wallpaper. We also fully remodeled the back yard by adding a hot tub and a custom deck off of our back patio.
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
OK! Now for some fun stuff- As we approach the holidays, I know that adding a few accessories here and there bring so much to a space that may feel flat. Can you help guide us on some quick and relatively inexpensive ways to bring a welcoming charm to our spaces BEFORE our guests arrive for the upcoming holidays?
We love to layer spaces with things like candles, dried stems, linens, and interesting glassware. A super easy way to bring charm inside is to explore your surroundings outside. We are big fans of foraging fresh branches and leaves from around our home to use in arrangements inside. We love finding things on Amazon, and we recently launched our own curated storefront which features some of our favorite affordable pieces! When time allows, we also try to add personal touches into our table settings by placing table cards or monogrammed initials on inexpensive linens that guests can take home as a keepsake.
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
“I discovered Lauren's work via Instagram (her company was Boho by Lauren back then). I worked with her to commission a round tapestry for our first home in Los Angeles, and I have been a fan girl ever since. When we sold our first home and moved into a larger home in L.A., I commissioned a new tapestry for our dining room. It was the statement piece of our home, and it has always meant so much to me.”
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
What’s next? Are you adding or changing anything in your home now that your family has settled in?
Now that we're settled, the focus is more on fun projects that make the house feel even more like a home. I love to move things around to keep each space feeling fresh, and I also really enjoy incorporating vintage finds into my design. There are also some larger, more focal points in the home that I have really taken my time with. For example, the wall above our mantle in the living room has been empty for 2 years because I have been waiting for the perfect piece to fill it with. I reached out to Lauren a few months ago to see if she had any ideas, and she immediately replied with the most perfect idea. We are currently working together on a custom sculptural fibre, which I can't wait to have in my home!
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design
Design: “Circle C”, Audrey Scheck Design // Photo: Jenna McElroy // Styling: Audrey Scheck Design // Textile Art: Lauren Williams
Audrey, thank you so much for the tips and tricks and insight into your fast growing design firm! I'm looking forward to snagging a few items off your Amazon shopping list ASAP, as well as foraging in my backyard to create an arrangement that adds some warmth and charm to our home this Thanksgiving! We’re excited to follow along with all things Audrey Scheck Design on Instagram and your website.