An Interview with the Seattle Home Decor Company You Need to Know

We all sigh at a good love story. But what really gets our hearts racing is when a couple builds each other up and supports the other’s talents. And if it ends in a success story – the best happily ever after there is – we can’t help but turn into a puddle of feels.

I have that kind of story for you today. It’s the tale of an artist and how her boyfriend spotted an opportunity to turn her passion into a business. You’ll learn how a Seattle-based lifestyle brand was born and witness just how much its founders still admire each other…even after going into business together.

If you’re into minimal design, listen up.

Terra and Jacob, founders of The Savvy Heart, established a beautiful lifestyle brand with a strong point of view. Their minimalist and symmetrical aesthetic allow them to create products that are both graphic and beautiful; masculine and feminine.

I had the opportunity to sit down with Terra and Jacob to find out about their business, where they find inspiration, and some of the unexpected roadblocks they ran into along the way to success. Sit back, relax, and get ready for some serious eye candy.

Interview with Terra & Jacob of The Savvy Heart, a Seattle Home Decor Company

How long has The Savvy Heart been in business?

Jacob: We’ve been in business a little over a year in Seattle, but we started in California where we met. Terra was designing her own stuff and when we met I immediately noticed her talent. I found out she was designing a lot of stuff for her friends and, after talking, we decided to sell her work. We did a show, it did well, and all of a sudden it snowballed into a business.

How did you learn to create your products?

Terra: I studied interior design, went to The Art Institute, and took jewelry and graphic design classes. But what’s funny is I never pursued interior or design-oriented anything. I went back to school to become an aesthetician! I got licensed in Washington state and loved it, but I realized that I’m a creative at heart and that’s my passion. My creativeness wasn’t fulfilled being an aesthetician so I started making things.

It started with jewelry during my free time. I basically taught myself! Then I expanded into other aspects because I love to paint. That’s where the cards and typography prints we sell come from. And as an aesthetician I was always making up my own skincare concoctions and using them on my clients. Our apothecary line was born out of their love for my creations.

Is this your full-time job now? If so, who does what?

Terra: Yes, it’s our full-time job now! We’ve settled into our roles where I’m the lead designer, but Jacob focuses on the concrete home décor. He’s also my sounding board for ideas and our “operations manager.” He was running an auto body shop before so he’s good at production. I provide the vision, but he plays the lead in making sure it happens.

What makes your products special?

Terra: We focus a ton on branding and honing in on our aesthetic. We don’t want people to think, “Oh, it’s handmade. It’s ‘craft fair.” We want to be elevated handmade, which has manifested itself into a minimalist and monochromatic style.

Take me through how your products are made.

Terra: Everything we need to package and run our business – labeling, bottles, business cards – is sourced locally. Our product materials are almost all from the US and we use no preservatives in our apothecary products.

We’re also working toward using 100% fair-trade ingredients for our apothecary line and metals, but finding the best quality for the best price and also have it made in the US is a process.

We don’t want people to think, “Oh it’s handmade. It’s ‘craft fair.’ We want to be ‘elevated handmade.’”

Jacob: In terms of production, we do everything in-house. We converted the bottom level of our home into a workspace. It’s an in-house design studio! All our prints are printed on our large-format printers. Once we have all the apothecary materials, we make items to order. We don’t hold a huge inventory, which helps keep costs down and makes it possible to source locally. Luckily this works for us because we’re pretty fast. We have all the raw materials ready to go and can make things pretty quickly. We can knock out 20 jewelry pieces and 200 apothecary products in a day.

What are some of your biggest challenges to date?

Terra: Jewelry. We really want to get to 100% fair-trade and locally sourced materials, but we need to get some of our metals from overseas. For example, we use very specific chains. We can only find a seller from Turkey that has the type and quality we want!

Jacob: Another reason this is difficult is because we don’t price anything to the point we wouldn’t purchase it ourselves. So we’re trying to balance quality, but for the right price.

It’s hard to not feel like we’re neglecting the creation-side of the business when wearing 100 different hats.”

Terra: And the other challenge is what I think most small businesses run into: finding time. We’re stubborn and don’t like to outsource things. For example, I did the entire website by myself. Doing everything ourselves helps keep overhead low and teaches us to learn our process even better, but it’s draining. It’s hard to not feel like we’re neglecting the creation side of the business when wearing 100 different hats.

Describe that moment when you felt like you made it.

Jacob: I don’t know if we think we’ve actually made it yet. We’re our biggest critic.

Terra: Yeah, there was this big moment when we got our apothecary into Nordstrom Seattle and we wanted that so bad, but now that we have that and it happened sooner than expected, we’re wondering what’s next.

Well, what is next for The Savvy Heart?

Terra: I love interior design, so we want to focus more on home décor items like art prints, concrete knickknacks, and cleaning products. To accommodate this, we might slim down our apothecary line. I think we could get lost creating skincare and grooming products. We aren’t trying to compete with big companies. We want to collaborate. And that’s why you’ll likely see us also doing more collaborations with other brands on Instagram and through our products.

Who inspires you?

Terra: I’m obsessed with Moorea Seal. I look to her for inspiration because we have a similar story and are of a similar age.

What would readers be surprised to hear you offer?

Jacob: In 2015 we hosted a number of popup markets called The Savvy Marketplace. They were these bi-monthly events and we’d bring local makers together to sell their goods. We’re working on one possibly for this summer with Friends of the Waterfront on the pier. Stay tuned!

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Want to learn more about Terra, Jacob, and The Savvy Heart? You can follow their adventures on Instagram, Pinterest, and their blog, or check out their home & beauty products.