In January, Kassina Folstad began initiating a lot of changes. She rebranded her company (formerly OlliePop Design) to Hello Norden, a full-service interior design firm and online vintage shop. “I grew up in a family of builders and real estate investors, so I’ve always been interested in fixing up damaged and dilapidated homes,” Folstad says. “The rebrand was all about getting back to a maker and artist’s life.”
She bought a retreat in Wisconsin that she calls Camp Norden, and began planning a cluster of A-framed cabins and sheds for glamping. “It’ll be all handmade structures people can rent on 26 acres near a lake,” she says. She also began offering a line of rugs and a rug concierge service, providing clients with the opportunity to purchase antique and vintage handmade rugs she sources from around the world. “Vintage rugs have always been part of my designs and aesthetics,” she explains. “It’s a natural thing to sell them.”
With the pandemic came yet another initiative: Virtual Design Sessions. “We understand that in-person design services aren’t possible right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still get great service and guidance on your projects,” she writes on her website. “And now that we’re spending so much time in our homes, the projects are front and center and we’re itching to get something done.”
For instance, she says, “If you are trying to DIY something, like you want to paint a room, choose a wallpaper, or tweak something, and you want assurance from a designer that you’re doing the right thing, that’s what the service is for.”
Next up? She’ll be selling her pottery on her website and via Instagram. Her husband, who builds banjos and just reconstructed a vintage Harley-Davidson motorcycle, is joining her in the maker/artist lifestyle. “We’re totally makers, old-school style,” she says. “We work with our hands. It’s not about trends. It’s people who seek something unique and original, who are interested in the juxtaposition between historic and modern, that resonate with us.”
Photos courtesy Hello Norden
