Sara Barney didn’t set out to become an interior designer. “Back in 2016, I was looking to make a change, but I didn't know what that looked like,” she recalled. “It sounds cutesy, but it was a light bulb moment—what if I went back to school for design?”
She enrolled in a one-year program while working full time and raising two young kids in Austin, Texas. “I'd come home, put them to bed, and crank away at the program. I was also putting myself out there like, hey, I'm a designer-ish—and people were hiring me.” The leap of faith paid off. After completing the program in just three months, she launched her firm, BANDD/DESIGN, named after her daughters. “My kids are Blake and Decker and that's ‘B and D’. We'll just call it BANDD/DESIGN with an extra d.”
As her business grew in Texas, Sara decided it was time for a change of pace and location. She was already familiar with Southern California, having lived in Hollywood while working in entertainment, so she felt it was the right place to expand. Her top priorities: excellent public schools and beach proximity. “I had already been doing work in California so the next step was to determine where to live. If I had known South Bay existed, I would have never left LA,” Sara said. “Redondo is a sleepy beach town, but you're 30 minutes from LA. I’m shocked that everybody doesn't want to live there.”
Approachability is a hallmark of BANDD/DESIGN. “I very much did not want to create a business where it felt inaccessible to anybody who wanted beautiful design,” said Sara. “It still costs money. It's still a luxury service. But I don't ever want it to feel like, ‘Hey, your project's not big enough.’”
She thrives in Southern California’s design diversity. “Every house is different here. Some people wouldn’t like that, but I love it.” She’s currently working on a home in the Hollywood Hills designed by famed architect A. Quincy Jones. “It’s super cute, very weird, makes no sense at all. It’s so cool.”
While her projects vary, one constant is how she begins each one—with curiosity about her clients. “We send out a questionnaire at the beginning with all kinds of random questions like, What's your favorite TV show? What's your favorite cocktail? Because I feel like someone who likes a martini versus a glass of wine—that’s two totally different personalities. It helps me understand how you live.”
She encourages clients to focus on the now. “Don’t design for five to 10 years from now, design for your life now… Chances are you're going to want to change it anyway.”
Post-COVID design trends, she notes, have reflected people’s emotional needs, especially for touch. “There was a resurgence of using natural materials. They call it organic modern—raw wood, textured walls. I like the designs to feel layered and textured. It makes it feel richer in my mind.”
She’s seeing a resurgence in natural wood on cabinets. Mid tone woods, handmade tiles, velvets, and sage greens dominate client preferences. Lately there’s growing interest in purple and butter yellow.
Still, trends come and go. For Sara what lasts is simplicity. “People have too much stuff. Think of it like an art gallery. They don't put up every piece of art. So think about the best ones and get rid of the rest.”
For easy home upgrades, Sara recommends paint, pillows, and drapery. “People don't invest in drapery, and it is such a game changer in your space,” she explained. “It elevates your house times a thousand. Changing the chandelier in your dining room is not that big of a deal, and it could be such a huge change to the overall feel of the space. And that also helps in resale.”
In the end, it all comes back to connection—for Sara, between people and place, style and substance. “One of my favorite things to do with my daughters, especially my younger daughter, is drive around and look at houses, which is something I loved doing as a kid,” she said. “We've determined we have very different styles. But it's figuring out what we like in these homes and what we appreciate about them. I love that.”
Don’t design for five to 10 years from now, design for your life now…Chances are you're going to want to change it anyway.