Serving Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey
Interior Design Firm in Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ
In one of Bergen County's most gracious historic boroughs, INSABELLADESIGN renovates and furnishes Ho-Ho-Kus colonials with respect for the architecture and an eye for how families actually live.
Call (732) 933-4344 Request Consultation
Est. 1996 · ASID & IIDA Members · WBENC Woman-Owned · 500+ Projects · 3M+ Sq Ft Designed
Interior Design in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey
Ho-Ho-Kus is small, storied, and quietly one of the most desirable addresses in Bergen County. This is a borough with a National Historic Landmark (The Hermitage) at its heart, a walkable village, some of the top-rated schools in New Jersey, and streets lined with gracious center-hall colonials, Tudors, and stately older homes that have been in careful hands for generations. Families move here for the schools and the charm, and they stay because there's genuine character to protect.
That character is also the design challenge. A 1920s colonial has proportion and craftsmanship you can't buy in new construction, but it also has a kitchen sized for a household with staff, closets built for far fewer clothes, and a floor plan that predates open living. The art is updating a home like this for modern life (the island kitchen, the spa bath, the mudroom) without stripping out the moldings, the wide-plank floors, and the details that made you fall for the house in the first place.
Neighborhoods we serve: Sheridan Avenue · Brookside · Warren Avenue · Sycamore Avenue · the village near The Hermitage
Holmdel, NJ
Holmdel Residence
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Princeton, NJ
Princeton Residence
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Colts Neck, NJ
Colts Neck Residence
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Luxury Residential Interior Design in Ho-Ho-Kus
Our work usually starts with the two rooms older homes handle worst: the kitchen and the primary bath. We design custom kitchens that open up cramped original layouts while keeping the home's proportions (furniture-grade cabinetry, honed stone, a properly sized island) so the room reads as if it always belonged. In the baths, we build spa retreats with heated stone, freestanding tubs, and custom vanities that feel current without going cold or clinical.
The details are where a historic house is won or lost. We restore and extend original millwork (crown, wainscot, paneled doors) so new work is indistinguishable from old. We add the modern conveniences the house never had, from mudrooms to laundry to real closets, and we tuck in the systems and lighting a 1920s home was never wired for. The goal is always the same: a home that lives like it was built this year and looks like it was built ninety years ago.
- Historic-home renovation
- Sensitive kitchen updates
- Millwork restoration & matching
- Spa baths in older homes
- Added mudrooms & storage
- Period-appropriate lighting
- Furnishings & art
- Whole-house space planning
Call (732) 933-4344 Request a Consultation
Commercial Interior Design in Ho-Ho-Kus
Ho-Ho-Kus's walkable village and professional community are a good fit for our commercial work too. We design boutique offices for the borough's financial, legal, and medical practices, along with the kind of upscale retail and service spaces a discerning village supports. The instinct is the same as our residential work: respect the setting, favor real materials over trend, and make a small professional space feel considered and warm rather than corporate.
Corporate
Designer Greetings
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Healthcare
NJ Laser Dentistry
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The INSABELLADESIGN Difference
Ho-Ho-Kus is a place where reputation travels fast: it's small, close-knit, and people talk. That's precisely the environment where our approach thrives, because careful, referral-worthy work is exactly how a reputation grows in a town this size. Beth Insabella Walsh leads every project personally, so the judgment calls that matter most on an older home are made by the founder, not delegated down a chain.
Since 1996 we've built our practice on referrals and repeat clients, and nowhere does that matter more than in a borough this tight. When you love an old house enough to protect it, you want a designer who feels the same way, and who'll still be there for the next room when you're ready.
Selected Work
Projects from our portfolio closest to Ho-Ho-Kus in both location and character.
Holmdel Residence
Holmdel, NJ. An ASID Silver Award winning primary suite renovation in a substantial family residence.
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Princeton Residence
Princeton, NJ. A transitional renovation blending older architectural character with cleaner lines and updated function.
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Designer Greetings
Corporate. An award winning corporate project with a redesigned conference environment and custom stone table.
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View Residential Portfolio View Commercial Portfolio
I must say it's been my pleasure to have had the opportunity to work with Beth and her team at Insabella Design. My boss has been a long time client of Beth, over 25 years. And over those many years I was fortunate enough to work with Beth directly. She is extremely attentive and knows exactly what needs to be done. She has designed numerous major renovations and reconstruction projects for us. She has always been a pleasure to work with from the beginning of the projects to the very end. If I ever needed something in a pinch she always makes it happen. I would be completely lost without her and her support in keeping my boss comfortable and happy. Thank you Beth, to you and your team for your excellent services.
30+ Years of Experience
500+ Projects Completed
3M+ Sq Ft Designed
98% Client Satisfaction
How a Project Works
1. Start with a conversation
A consultation at our Little Silver studio or your property. We talk through the space, the scope, how you live or work in it, and what you want the finished project to accomplish. No obligation, and you will always be speaking with Beth.
2. Design and decisions
Space planning, materials, millwork and cabinetry design, lighting, and furnishings developed into one coherent plan, with drawings and documentation your contractor and trades can actually build from.
3. We carry it to the finish
We coordinate the trades, manage orders and timelines, and stay on the project through installation and styling, so you get a completed space rather than a plan left for you to assemble.
About INSABELLADESIGN
- Nearly 30 years of award-winning residential & commercial design (est. 1996)
- ASID & IIDA professional members · WBENC-certified, woman-owned firm
- Full service: detailed space planning and design documentation, custom kitchens & baths, millwork, furnishing, install
- Every project led personally by founder Beth Insabella Walsh
- Trusted by the architects, builders, and trades our clients rely on
- Sourced materials, custom fabrication, and finishes held to an exacting standard
Nearby Areas We Serve
Ho-Ho-Kus Interior Design FAQs
Can you modernize a historic Ho-Ho-Kus colonial without ruining its character?
That's the heart of what we do here. We know which elements carry the home's value (the trim, the proportions, the floors) and build around them, updating kitchens, baths, and systems while the new work sits quietly alongside the old rather than announcing itself.
Our kitchen is small and closed-off. Can it be opened up?
Usually, yes. Many of the borough's original kitchens were laid out for a different era of living, closed off from the rest of the house. We can take down a wall or two, add an island, and open the flow, scaled so the new room still matches the rest of the floor plan rather than reading as an addition.
Do you work with contractors who understand old-home construction?
We do. Older homes hide surprises (knob-and-tube wiring, uneven framing, plaster over lath) so we coordinate with trades who've done this before and plan for the unexpected. It keeps the project honest and the house intact.
Can you match new millwork to the home's original moldings?
Yes. Millwork matching is one of our specialties. We profile the existing trim and have new pieces milled to suit, so additions and renovations read as original rather than obviously new.
Do you help with furnishings and art after the renovation?
Absolutely. We can carry a project all the way through furniture, window treatments, lighting, art, and accessories, using pieces you already own where they work and sourcing the rest to complete the home.
Start a Project in Ho-Ho-Kus
If you own a gracious Ho-Ho-Kus colonial that deserves a sensitive, high-end update, INSABELLADESIGN is built for exactly that work. Call 732-933-4344 or email info@insabelladesign.com to start with founder Beth Insabella Walsh.
(732) 933-4344 info@insabelladesign.com
Serving Ho-Ho-Kus, Bergen County, and communities throughout New Jersey