A Year in the Making
Where do I even start?
Can you believe a whole year has passed since Studio Padruno came to life?!
When I started this little studio, I had no idea what the next twelve months would hold. I knew I loved design. I knew I wanted to create. And I knew I needed to find my way back to the parts of myself that felt most authentic when I was doing those things.
What I didn't know was just how much could happen in a year.
So, in honor of one year of Studio Padruno, I thought I'd take a little trip down memory lane...
It started with a sandwich shop...
Last November, I began working on APPOSTO, an Italian sandwich shop that would become one of those projects I'll always look back on and smile. Fast forward nearly a year, and we just wrapped photography in September.
There's something particularly special about seeing a project go from sketches and samples to a real, functioning place where people gather, eat, and make memories. That feeling never gets old.
Around the holidays, Studio P took me west to Santa Barbara & Solvang, California, for the 2025 Miracle Christmas pop-up. A little holiday magic, a little California sunshine, and another reminder of how much I love the world of hospitality design.
New year, new places.
January brought a (very cold) trip to Chicago to meet with a developer client and kick off a new Lagree fitness studio. Site visits, measurements, big ideas, and the excitement of seeing what a space could become.
And just last week, that very studio celebrated its grand opening!
The interior design world is a practice in patience. Design happens in phases, often over months and sometimes years. But there is something incredibly rewarding about watching an idea eventually become a real place in the world for other people to experience.
In between those bigger milestones were many other projects and clients who made this year what it was.
Residential remodels for wonderful clients from Virginia to Santa Ana, Texas to Missouri. Every home with its own story, its own challenges, and its own opportunities to create something meaningful.
Closer to home, there was The Hive in Ashland, Missouri. Another opportunity to help shape a gathering place in the midwest that raised me.
And then came an opportunity I certainly couldn't have predicted a year ago: developing a full interior concept for a growing fast-food franchise with more than 30 locations in the pipeline nationwide.
What began as a design concept is now making its way into the real world, with construction underway in Irvine, Sacramento, and Las Vegas.
Even writing that feels NUTS.
And then there were the little things.
Somewhere between all the floor plans, samples, construction calls, and site visits, there were a few creative detours:
A candle line. A little merch. Ideas that started as passing thoughts and somehow became tangible things with Studio Padruno's name on them.
And... my favorite personal project of all: buying a second home in my hometown in Missouri.
What began as a house purchase quickly became the Brick Colonial Project, a place to experiment, document, and bring the Studio Padruno aesthetic to life in a much more personal way.
A home with a lot of potential and plenty of projects ahead of us!
There's something really special about creating a space of my own so close to where it all began. The house is just around the corner from my family's home, which, fittingly enough, is the very house featured in the Studio Padruno logo. It all feels a little full circle.
Somewhere along the way, I found myself again.
Of everything this year has given me, I think that's what I'll remember most.
I fell back in love with design. Not just the beautiful finished images, but the process of creating. Dreaming something up, figuring out how to make it work, collaborating with clients, learning, trying again, and eventually seeing it all come together.
I challenged myself in ways I hadn't before. I learned how to run a business, hold true to my values, navigate difficult decisions, and become more confident in my own perspective.
Looking back, I can see God's hand in every part of this year. In the opportunities that appeared, the people who crossed my path, the doors that opened, and even the moments that challenged me.
I've kept coming back to a verse from John 1:3:
"Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."
It was a beautiful reminder, especially in this life phase so centered around creating, that He is behind it all.
I don't take a single bit of this year for granted. I've been blessed beyond what I could have imagined, and I'm endlessly grateful for this chapter.
So, what's next?
One year in, Studio Padruno looks a little different than it did when it began.
The work has evolved, my perspective has grown, and I've found a clearer sense of what I want this studio to represent.
That evolution is also behind the (slightly) refreshed Studio Padruno identity you're seeing here. A look that feels a little more like me, and a better reflection of the spaces I love creating.
Midwestern soul, big city style. Same as before.
As I step into year two, I'm doing so with more confidence, more excitement, and an entirely new opportunity on the horizon. I can't share all the details just yet, but this next chapter is going to look a little different.
One thing I can promise is that Studio Padruno isn't going anywhere. It's a part of me, and I have so many ideas for what it can continue to become.
To everyone who trusted me with a project, supported the studio, shared a kind word, purchased a candle, followed along, or simply cheered me on from afar: thank you!
You've made this first year more memorable than I could ever put into words.
And a special shoutout to my husband, Santi, who believed in Studio Padruno before I even believed in it myself. From encouraging me to take the leap, to traveling across the country for site visits, to literally buying contractor boots so he could jump in and help execute a project or two. He's been my biggest supporter through it all, and I couldn't be more grateful to have him along for the ride.
Here's to the first year, the lessons, the memories, the places, the people, and all the things we haven't dreamed up yet.
Year two, here we come.
More soon...
With love and gratitude,
Michaela