By most measures, Hollie Velten-Lattrell’s career trajectory isn’t a straightforward one. After graduating from UC Santa Barbara, where she studied modern dance, the Folsom, CA, native started a jewelry collection (which landed her on the pages of Elle France), then a clothing line (which was carried at Fred Segal). Later, she became a fashion and accessories buyer (Anthropologie), followed by a stint as a textiles buyer (West Elm). Her professional journey also included pit stops as consulting creative director, trend forecaster, stylist, and set designer.

Yet, when you hear Hollie tell her story about how she came to own this sweet little interior design studio in Maplewood, NJ, you realize that the road she’s traveled is far more direct than what’s shown on her resume. “My parents were California hipsters in the ’70s. He was a photographer and she was this long-haired beauty, a flight attendant. I spent my youth wanting to grow up to be her,” she says.

Her mom unexpectedly passed away right before Hollie gave birth to her first child, but her influence is enduring. “There’s an invisible line that connects me to her,” says Hollie, whose love for fashion and interior design all lead back to her mom. She is her mother’s daughter, after all.

Below, Hollie gives us a tour of her design studio, which has a New Jersey address but resides in spirit in California.

Photography by Danielle St. Laurent, courtesy of Spaces by Holllie Velten.