Storie Collective

I have nothing but amazing things to say about Sara and our Storie Collective experience. We chose her because of her style but we are closing our project loving her for so much more. She had a clear point of view (both aesthetically and technically) but was open to our ideas/perspectives. She was patient with our endless questions and a delayed timeline. She went above and beyond on project management / guiding our contractor but did so in a respectful manner. Ultimately, she helped us create a space for our family and friends that makes us truly happy. I know for sure that we couldn’t have done it without her and the Storie team and once we recover from this project, will go back to them for our next one!

Hi, I am impressed by your design, and tried to send you a message, unfortunately I failed so, probably I could not receive phone verification code

My family and I recently completed a significant renovation of our Capitol Hill row house, and we are thrilled with the results achieved by the interior design team at Storie Collective led by Sara Swabb. Before we began the project, we knew we needed a professional to ensure the project was cohesive and done right the first time. After a good deal of research of local design professionals, we engaged Storie Collective for an in-home consultation. We were immediately confident that Sara and her team had the experience and vision to help us create something special — we were right! As a middle-class family with limited means, we were initially concerned that we couldn’t afford Storie Collective; however, Sara was able to bring in vendors, trades, and contractors with a range of price points that made our budget work. I am absolutely convinced that we saved money because the front-end design process was so precise and methodical, which ultimately helped us avoid costly oversights and missed opportunities. Sara’s “no job too great or too small” approach was comforting, and following completion of our kitchen, primary bath, and powder room renovation, we asked Storie Collective to return to redesign and refresh our living room. The living room has been transformed from a bland box into an inviting, dark green lounge worthy of countless conversations (and cocktails!) between family and friends. The coffered ceiling Sara designed has completely changed the feel of the living room, and the lighting choices help pull it all together to make the room entirely purposeful. Having lived in our renovated home now for a few months, my wife and I remain grateful to Sara and her team for creating something enduringly beautiful. We can’t wait until our next project with Storie Collective!

Working with Storie Collective has a way of making good projects great. As a construction company, we understand the importance of seamless collaboration and clear communication, and through drawings and site visits we are able to confirm solutions to carry out a vision. This allows us to do things right the first time around. Their team brings a blend of creativity and practicality to every project, ensuring that the end result was not only stunning but also functional and aligned with our construction processes, but also the client's vision and budget. The attention to detail is evident in every aspect of their work. Storie Collective's ability to listen and incorporate our feedback, along with their proactive approach to problem-solving, make the entire process of this difficult work we do together smooth and enjoyable. Storie completes budget exercises prior to beginning projects, which helps clarify client/contract/designer expectations in a professional and clear format. We look forward to partnering with Storie Collective on future projects and highly recommend their services to anyone seeking exceptional interior design. Their passion for design and commitment to their clients truly set them apart.

We had the pleasure of working with Sara to remake a family room in an old house with odd corners, weird ducts, and things not level. She is a fantastic listener, always calm, always trying to come up with a good solution. Throughout the project she was accessible and responsive and joy to work with. Her taste is impeccable and we love the finished room!

Sarah and the Storie Collective team were excellent to work with and helped inject our style into our home. Sarah was hands on throughout the process, helping iterate on design, managing vendors and contractor teams, and ensuring every detail was complete. We're looking forward to working together again!

My husband and I undertook to build a new home - something we had never done before. As the months progressed, we became more and more dissatisfied with how the build was progressing including difficult communications with the contractor and architect and just an overall feeling that the end home was not going to be what we envisioned. So we brought in Sara! From the beginning, she made sure that she understood our vision and she found a way to implement it. Due to construction delays, the project ended up taking over a year, but Sara remained imperturbable - navigating between the difficult contractor, a subsequent contractor, myriad subcontractors, etc. etc. She was our touchstone. And we could not be happier with the outcome! We feel that it represents our vision, but in a refined and elevated manner. Months later, I still find myself noticing little items and touches that she included that bring joy every day. I just want to mention that our collaboration with Sara was so productive and satisfying that we have brought her in on several subsequent smaller projects. She and her team are always professional, clear, timely - and deliver a great end product.

Sara and Storie Collective are beyond amazing! Apart from Sara’s obviously great style, she is very responsive and attentive. She sources beautiful and unique pieces and was able to interpret our aesthetic even when it was difficult for us to articulate. She managed a relatively significant kitchen renovation with ease. She is good at staying on budget without sacrificing quality. If a problem arrises, she works hard to find a solution without involving the client in the back and forth with the vendor. I could not recommend Sara more highly for projects big and small and have referred her to several friends already!

Sara is a total pro and joy to work with. Most importantly the end product is gorgeous and we will truly treasure the spaces she created for our family for decades to come. Throughout the process Sara was wonderful to work with - her designs required no revisions and she executed them beautifully - she kept all our vendors coordinated and was so organized, making sure all the design elements were ordered and arrived on schedule and that our contractor knew all the installation specs and requirements. Don't hesitate to work with Sara on projects big or small - ours was a full home renovation down to the studs and very complex due to historic district requirements; merging two distinct homes etc. She can do it all and is cool, calm and collected through it all!

Sara and her team helped turn our vague renovation vision into a beautiful home. Their attention to detail and commitment to developing spaces that their clients will love is unmatched. Every step of the way, they were professional and responsive to our interests and feedback. I cannot recommend their services (and storefront) enough.

Sara and her team at Storie Collective have been BRILLIANT and I could not wait until the end of our project to write this review. We are currently seeing all of their work come to fruition and Sara has made the process so easy and exciting for us. Sara uses her design prowess, innovative ideas, and an uncannily intuitive ear for hearing her clients tastes and styles, and combines them to create spaces more beautiful than the owner could have imagined. It's MAGIC. My husband and I don't always have the same taste and Sara has been fantastic at building compromise that we can both feel good about. We expanded our project quite a bit when we saw the exciting ideas Sara had for our space, so naturally our budget increased, but she and her team have been respectful of our limits throughout the entire process. I can't wait to see the final results come together. I will always go back to Storie Collective for future design needs. Watch this space...

This was our first foray into renovation and updating of our kitchen as well as painting the whole house and we couldn’t have done it without the exceptional talents of our interior decorator Sara Swab and her first Stories Collective. Starting with the painting project Sara patiently listened to our interests and style and then came up with a wonderful color palate for our rooms which turned out beautifully. Moving on after the painting to renovation of our kitchen, we hadn’t updated it in 25 years! She was able to suggest everything from the counter top to the hardware to the sink and the faucet. We are rather hands on so we went out and looked at all the materials before buying but for those customers that prefer not to be so hands on, Sara is a dream and can purchase samples as well as the final materials. Plus, the contractor she suggested (Lucas at Factotum remodeling) whom she works with was the best! I would strongly recommend Sara and her firm.