Areas Served

Interior Designer in Wake Forest, North Carolina

House of Maevie is a design-led renovation studio serving Wake Forest and the greater Triangle. We design renovations, additions, new construction, and complete furnishings for Wake Forest homeowners. They want a home that feels collected and made to last.

Designing in Wake Forest

Four historic districts, and only one of them restricts you

Wake Forest has a stronger sense of place than most towns its size, and a housing stock to match. It’s also the one town we work in where people most often misunderstand what they’re allowed to do to their own house.

The distinction that catches people out

Wake Forest has four historic districts. Three are National Register districts: the Wake Forest Historic District, Glen Royall Mill Village and Downtown Wake Forest. National Register listing is largely honorary. It doesn’t stop you changing your house.

The fourth is the locally designated historic district, concentrated on North Main Street with a portion on South Avenue. That one’s different. Every exterior change there needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Commission, reviewed against the town’s Historic Property Handbook and the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.

So the first question on a Wake Forest project isn’t whether your house is historic. It’s which of the four you’re in, because only one of them changes your timeline.

Working in the older core

The rules leave interior work alone either way, and that’s worth knowing. Kitchens, baths and layout changes are normally straightforward, even on a house that looks untouchable from the street.

What those homes actually need is familiar. Rooms someone closed off for reasons that no longer apply. Kitchens sized for a different era. Finishes that need updating without erasing the reason you bought the house. Done well, new custom millwork should be hard to tell from what was already there.

The newer subdivisions

North and east of the old town it’s a different brief entirely. Later houses, structurally sound, usually needing character rather than repair. Better layouts in the rooms you use most. Cabinetry that reaches the ceiling. A lighting plan that someone actually planned.

Whichever side of town you’re on, we settle layout, scope and budget before anyone chooses a finish. Thoughtful design takes time, and those are the decisions that cost the most to reverse.

Why House of Maevie

Why Wake Forest clients choose us

Planning before products

We work the difficult decisions out first: layout, structure, scope, and budget. That way you choose what shapes your home with clarity, long before construction begins.

Character, not trends

Homes that feel collected and personal, rooted in the way you live rather than in a season’s worth of trends.

Guidance through complexity

From concept through installation, we coordinate the details and the trades, so the project never stalls waiting on an answer.

What We Work On

Renovations, new homes, and complete furnishings in Wake Forest

Renovations & Additions

We design whole-home and multi-room renovations and additions across the Triangle, from early space planning through construction and installation. Our studio stays with the project throughout, handling creative direction, technical drawings, selections, and trade coordination.

Investment: single-space renovations begin around $40,000 for a bathroom and reach $150,000+ for a kitchen, with design fees running from $6,000 to $22,500.

New Construction Homes

For new builds, we join early, alongside your architect and builder. We work out layouts, finishes, and the full technical drawing set before ground breaks. The earlier we’re at the table, the more we protect your vision and your budget.

Investment: design fees begin at $15,000 and scale with the size and complexity of the home.

Furnishing & Interiors

Complete furnishing for full homes and individual rooms, each held to the same standard as a whole-home project. Layouts, custom pieces, sourcing, and styling, taken through to installation. Whether it’s a single room or the whole house, we design for how you actually live.

Investment: full-service furnishing begins around $25,000 per room, with design fees from $4,000.

Our Process

Clear at every step

Inquiry

Tell us about your project. We schedule a brief call to learn about your home, goals, and timeline.

Consultation

We walk your space and discuss priorities, investment, and direction before outlining scope.

Concept

We establish layouts and key decisions early, before moving into detailed design.

Development

We settle selections, drawings, and visualizations before the build begins, so construction moves with confidence.

Execution

We stay involved through procurement, coordination, and installation, start to finish.

Frequently Asked

The questions we hear most in Wake Forest

How do I know if my Wake Forest house is in the restricted historic district?

Check whether you’re in the locally designated district rather than a National Register one. The local district runs along North Main Street with a portion on South Avenue, and the town’s planning department will confirm your address.

If you’re in it, every exterior change needs a Certificate of Appropriateness before work starts. If you’re in one of the three National Register districts instead, that listing is honorary and doesn’t restrict what you do. Plenty of people assume the stricter answer applies to them when it doesn’t.

What does an interior design project with House of Maevie cost?

Design fees begin at $3,500 and rise with scope. Complete furnishing of a room typically starts at $25,000. A bathroom renovation begins at $40,000, and a kitchen can run to $150,000 or more. Design fees there fall between $6,000 and $22,500. New construction and whole-home projects begin at $15,000 in design fees. Wake Forest projects range widely, so we work the real number out together on the complimentary call.

Does the historic district affect kitchen and bathroom work?

Generally no. The Certificate of Appropriateness process covers exterior changes, so interior work is usually straightforward even on a house in the protected district.

Where it does bite is anything visible from the street: windows, doors, roofing, porches, additions. If your project touches any of those, build the review time into the schedule from the start rather than discovering it once you’ve booked a contractor.

Where Else We Work

Starting a project in Wake Forest?

Every project starts with a conversation. Tell us about your Wake Forest home and what you’re hoping to create, and we’ll help you find the right next step.