“I always seek out the soul, grit and authenticity in each project. If you look closely at the details, those elements are always there. Truth makes every home unique and every piece of furniture different and interesting; authenticity is first and foremost to me in design and one of the biggest tenets of my firm.”
–Sandra Funk, House of Funk
Welcome to House of Funk, a home base like no other. Drawing on over a decade of experience as an award-winning full-service and luxury online interior design firm, House of Funk creates thoughtful homes rooted in tradition.
To Sandra Funk, founder and principal designer, this means a combination of clean lines and soulful touches. It also means Interior Design with a sense of place that reflects a client’s desires, personality and style.
With two studios, one in Manhattan and the other in Montclair, New Jersey, Sandra is constantly moving and shaking up design. When Sandra isn’t designing, creating or live streaming she is writing for House of Funk’s blog. Now an honorary GDG writer for the day, Sandra takes us through a busy day of collaborating, creating and of course, caffeinating!
6:45 am
Alarm goes off and I hit snooze. I’m more of a stay-up-late-and-get-inspired type of person. My dog Izzo likes to come snuggle me and remind me that he needs to go out, which helps get me moving.
7:30 am
Coffee and a chocolate mint ZonePerfect bar. That’s been my daily breakfast for 16 years. I help my two girls (ages 10 and 8) get ready for school in the morning, aka lots of reminders to eat breakfast and pack their lunches, and “did you remember your homework?” My amazing au pair helps wrangle the troops so I can get out the door. It takes a village!
9:00 am
Job site visit. Checking in to make sure the reno is going well, then I edit and revise as needed. I’m always making sure that the schedule is intact.
10:00 am
At the office, I light candles for good energy and positive karma. Then I make myself a latte from our office espresso machine to kickstart our weekly topline team meeting. This is when we discuss the status and updates of all of our current projects, as well as potential clients in the pipeline and PR initiatives.
11:30 am
My standing weekly appointment with my business coach. I meet him off-site at his office and we review anything that’s top of mind that week. Every entrepreneur should have an encouraging mentor to help them through the ups and downs of running a business!
12:30 pm
Back at the office for design, design, design. I’m deep in the conceptual design for two of our clients and detailed design for another two. I review my senior designer’s floor plans and make notes for our meeting later and shop our in-office library of Kravet, Robert Allen, Romo, Pollack—we keep our favorites in house!
1:30 pm
I order in a salad with grilled chicken if I’m being good!
2:00 pm
A potential client proposal meeting at our office. This is when I walk the client through the design agreement and address any budget or scope of work questions they may have. Having this meeting at the office is a great way to introduce clients to the full team as well as show them around our studio.
3:30 pm
Connect with my PR/marketing team about our weekly Wednesday Facebook and Instagram Live show, Design Sips. We talk through this week’s topic and pull out any fabrics, paint samples, etc. that we will be showing on that week’s episode.
4:00 pm
Head out to our client’s home for a stone installation. My senior designer has been on site for the install, and I join her there to make sure everything is going smoothly and looking great. So exciting seeing it all come together in the space!
5:30 pm
Before heading home to my girls and husband, I hit up a yoga class downstairs from my studio (so convenient). Sweating it out for an hour helps me release any tension from the day and allows me to mentally clear my mind.
7:00 pm
Dinner with the fam. My husband is an excellent cook. I wash the dishes. We all cuddle in the family room for some vintage TV from my childhood, Family Ties. The content is so much richer than today’s kid shows and it’s a great way to wind down.
9:00 pm
The girls are tucked in and on their way to sleep. I pour myself a glass of red wine, pull out my laptop, and dig back into my design work. This is when my creativity really runs free, so I like to dive in for an hour or two. Some of my best ideas come during this evening session. The wine might have something to do with it.
11:30 pm
The house is quiet, everyone is sleeping (including the dog), and I climb into bed. There’s always a big glass of water on my nightstand and a book in case I can’t fall asleep right away. I recently finished reading The Go Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea. Highly recommend. I love the mental shift from being a taker to a giver. I slip off to sleep and let myself walk through my client’s space. This allows me to envision the designs I’ve been working on even more deeply. In the morning, I will wake up with new ideas for the project.
House of Funk may be closed for the night, but knowing Sandra, she and her team will be up early, running between the Garden State and the Big Apple outfitting everything from compact NYC digs to sprawling NJ country homes. Thanks for the peek into your funky world!