Oliver James Interiors LLC

It has been one of the best investments I’ve made and a pleasure working with Whitney Talsma, founder of Oliver James Interiors, for our home project! Whitney is a true partner in the design process who seeks to understand, listens, and interprets your needs and vision into truly special pieces that coordinate beautifully into your lifestyle and make your space feel complete. My partner and I had a 2 bed 1 bath condo with items accumulated from IKEA and other randomness from our separate lives prior to living together. When we bought a 5 bed 4.5 bath house, we left everything behind to start fresh! Unfortunately, after vetting 10+ designers, disappointing in-store design consultants at Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, and Jordan’s, and a failed attempt with Havenly (virtual consultants), I bought the necessities on my own for our empty house with baby #2 arriving soon! On maternity leave, I got new local recommendations via Facebook, where a realtor pointed me toward Oliver James Interiors. Whitney’s aesthetic, proposal options, and process were a great fit from the start. She took copious notes ─ some comments I even forgot about until she explained why she chose a particular material my toddler couldn’t damage, hid something I didn’t like, or matched something I loved but didn’t know how to make it work. I was most surprised with the wall art that really nailed our style because art is so personal and hard to describe (we’d never owned any, so she could only go off of “we like/don’t like this but not sure why”). Whitney really put so much thought into each and every item she recommended, even the smallest functional items, like a suction shower towel rack when there was no other logical place, perfectly sized box to keep/hide our dog leash, and a patterned towel that tied in a bathroom painting with a couch pillow and office rug. She also could do so much on a tight budget ─ she really knows how to prioritize the most important pieces that you’d want to splurge for good quality and ones that don’t need to break the bank for their function. My favorites: a piece of art in my home office that makes me feel happy and ready to start my work day, a classic and soft duvet cover, unique lamps that lend a special touch to the bedroom, an entryway mirror with a striped boning frame, a statement clock that ties everything together in our open-concept first floor, a super-comfy bedroom chaise, ...I could go on... With regard to Whitney’s process, she’s very friendly, patient, and observant. We’d go into depth reviewing design boards ─ why something worked, what we might want from another option ─ so everyone was confident and excited to place the orders. As a Project Manager, I like to analyze a ton of options and see how one thing ties into everything else ─ this is where Whitney was a saint! I would ask for additional options, measurements, time to review with family, usually to just end up selecting the thing Whitney recommended in the first place! I would also ask about things I liked but wasn’t sure if it would work and she always offered the best advice without making me feel like it was a silly suggestion. Trust me, take her advice, she knows what she’s doing! With the supply chain madness, Whitney has also been really on top of monitoring inventory for when to place orders or delivery tracking, even offering alternatives when items were really delayed. She also handled a few returns quickly and easily, including one that we had to return twice (and got a personal guarantee it would arrive in good condition the third time!). As you can tell, I’m a huge fan. Whitney found things I never would have, and I didn’t have to spend hundreds of hours of my own time for results that are ‘fine’ but maybe not cohesive or balanced or outlast trends. I literally saved myself money by using Oliver James Interiors, not just because of the incredible finds and insider discounts, but because of what my personal time (and sanity) is worth. See attached design boards for proof ─ I can’t recommend Whitney and Oliver James Interiors enough! More...

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