12th October 2026 | IN DESIGN ADVICE | BY SBID Share Tweet Pinterest LinkedIn Denisa Popovici, Founder & Interior Designer at NISI MAISON, has given her insights into the industry. I am the founder and interior designer behind Nisi Maison, a London-based studio creating refined, characterful interiors with a strong sense of place and individuality. I grew up in a family of creative people, which led me to study interior design in the UK. Over the past eight years, I have worked as an interior designer with leading names in luxury interiors, including Ethan Allen, Bernhardt, Caracole and Harrods, gaining a deep understanding of quality, craftsmanship and the care discerning clients expect. My approach is rooted in understanding how people want to live and translating that into spaces that feel considered, harmonious and personal. I am particularly drawn to the relationship between architecture, proportion, materiality and detail. I work closely with clients, makers and suppliers to create interiors that balance beauty with functionality and stay relevant for many years, rather than being tied to a particular trend. Why did you want to work in the interior design profession? I grew up in a family of creative people, so making things was always part of everyday life. One of my strongest memories is watching my dad build our family home. I saw it come together room by room, and I remember how much thought went into every decision, from where the light would come in to where we would all sit together in the evenings. I didn’t realise it then, but that was my first lesson in interior design. A home isn’t just about how it looks. It’s about how it makes you feel and how it supports the way you live. That idea has stayed with me, and it’s still the reason I do this work today. Nisi Maison Which elements of your profession do you enjoy the most? The very beginning of a project is very special to me, when I’m getting to know a client and their space. Those first conversations tell me so much: how they live, what they love, and what isn’t working for them at that moment. That’s when the ideas start to flow. I also enjoy the details very much, probably more than most people would expect. How a piece of joinery meets a wall, how a lamp lights a corner in the evening, how a stone feels under your hand. Nobody notices these things one by one, but together they are what makes a space feel right. And nothing beats the moment a client walks into their finished home and it feels completely theirs. Nisi Maison Nisi Maison What has been your most memorable career highlight from the past year? My biggest highlight this year has been watching Nisi Maison grow into its own. When you start your own studio, there comes a moment when you stop wondering whether it will work and start seeing it take shape, and this year I felt that. I’ve been lucky to work on projects where I could take care of everything, from the first sketches through to bespoke pieces, furniture and the final styling. Seeing something that once existed only in drawings, samples and long conversations become a real home still feels a little magical to me, especially when a client trusts you completely. That trust is something I never take for granted. Nisi Maison What are your favourite types of projects to work on and why? Homes, without a doubt. Maybe it goes back to watching my dad build ours, but I feel most in my element designing spaces where people actually live, raise families and make memories. I’m especially drawn to properties with character, where the building has its own history and the job is to work with the architecture rather than fight it. I also love being involved with the whole interior rather than only one room at a time. When the layout, materials, lighting, joinery and furniture are all considered together, the home feels calm and connected. For me, the best compliment is when a space feels beautiful but also completely natural to live in. Nisi Maison Nisi Maison What are the most challenging aspects of working in interior design? The hardest part is balancing ambition with reality. Every project starts with big ideas, and then budgets, timelines, contractors and lead times all have their say. Changing one thing can affect all five others. My job is to protect what makes the design special while also staying flexible, and that takes a lot of clear communication and, sometimes, difficult conversations. There is also real pressure today for everything to happen quickly. But good design needs time to be tested and refined, and part of my role is gently reminding clients that the best decisions are rarely the rushed ones. Nisi Maison What do you wish you knew before working in the field? I wish someone had told me how much of this job happens away from the mood boards. When I started, I imagined days spent choosing fabrics and sketching ideas. In reality, a huge part of it is project management, budgets, emails, site visits, chasing deliveries and solving problems nobody saw coming. I’ve come to love that side of it too, because it’s what turns ideas into real spaces. I’ve also learned that confidence doesn’t mean always having an instant answer. Some of my best decisions came from saying “let me think about that” and taking the time to get it right. Nisi Maison Nisi Maison If you could give one tip to aspiring designers, what would it be? Trust your own eye, and keep training it. With Instagram and Pinterest, it’s very easy to end up designing what everyone else is designing. Instead of just saving images, ask yourself why something works. Is it the proportions, the light, the materials or the craftsmanship? Visit buildings, hotels, galleries and markets in person, touch things, and notice how spaces make you feel. I learned so much growing up around creative people and watching them make things with their hands. Over time, all of that becomes your own point of view, and that’s what clients will come to you for. How do you see the interior design industry evolving in the year ahead? I think people are slowing down a little. Clients are thinking more about how long things will last and less about following trends. They want homes that feel personal and tell their own story, not something copied from a feed. I’m seeing much more love for natural materials, craftsmanship, vintage pieces and buying fewer, better things. Technology and AI will keep changing how we visualise and develop designs, and that’s exciting. But I don’t think it will ever replace the human side: sitting with a client, understanding how they live and sensing what a space needs. That part will always be personal. What does being an SBID Accredited Interior Designer mean to you? For me, it’s a mark of trust. When someone invites you to design their home, they’re trusting you with something very personal: their budget, their time and the place where their life happens. That’s a big responsibility. Being SBID accredited shows clients that behind the creative side there are proper professional standards, good practice and a commitment to keep learning. As a growing studio, that means a lot to me. It’s a reminder of the kind of designer I want to be and the standard I want Nisi Maison to be known for. Denisa Popovici, Founder of Nisi Maison About Nisi Maison Nisi Maison is a luxury interior design studio based in London, founded by designer Denisa Popovici. The studio creates refined, personal interiors for private homes and selected commercial spaces, balancing timeless elegance with comfort and practicality. Every project begins with listening to how clients live and what they love, then shaping spaces through thoughtful layouts, bespoke joinery, considered lighting and a curated palette of materials, finishes and furniture. Working closely with trusted craftspeople and European suppliers, Nisi Maison guides each project from concept through to procurement, installation and styling, delivering crafted spaces that feel calm, characterful and made to last. Visit Profile If you’d like to feature your news or stories on SBID.org, get in touch to find out more. If you’d like to become SBID Accredited, click here for more information.