Interior designer Angelia Spraberry lives according to a simple philosophy. “Life is all about relationships,” she says. “I think that’s what God put us on the earth to do.”
Spraberry follows the same principle in running her business, Oak Highland Design.
“It’s very fulfilling to establish relationships with clients — not only working relationships but friendships,” she says. “It’s a business, but I really don’t think of it that way.”
One of Spraberry’s satisfied clients is Debbie Norris, who lives in Trussville with her husband in a three-bedroom house built in the early 1990s. With Spraberry’s help, the couple recently redecorated their entire first floor, including the kitchen, dining room, living room and bedroom.
Norris enjoyed working with Spraberry, saying the designer is “fun and has a great sense of humor,” and also praises Spraberry’s creativity.
“She’s very good at what she does,” Norris says. “She had to work hard with me because I couldn’t put into words what I wanted, but everything she picked out was perfect and beautiful.”
Spraberry was able to help Norris through the entire process, including sourcing furniture directly from fine furnishings manufacturers.
“Angelia made us feel confident that what we picked out was the right thing,” Norris says. “She knows her products and knows her process.”
Originally from Prattville, Spraberry moved to Birmingham in 1984 with her husband Brian. She fell in love with interior design while working as a furniture buyer for UAB and earned her degree in interior design in 1990 at the Southern Institute of Interior Design.
After working for several years as a buyer and designer, Spraberry moved with Brian to New Orleans and became a stay-at-home mom. The couple moved back to Birmingham in 2011 and now live in Highland Lakes in Shelby County.
Spraberry founded Oak Highland Design in 2021. At that time, her sons — Chris and Corey — had grown up, and her friends were asking her for design advice. Brian saw Spraberry helping her friends and suggested she turn it into a business.
“It was the perfect time to start my own business,” Spraberry says.
She was also awarded a coveted franchise from Decorating Den Interiors Franchise, a national network of suppliers and manufacturers allowing designers access to a significant number of quality companies.
Many clients have “a good idea of the look they want to achieve for their space but don’t know how to make their vision a reality,” Spraberry says. “I sit down with my clients and talk to them about what they like and what they’ll use the space for. I often come up with ideas they haven’t thought of.”
The most important objective “is to make the rooms beautiful and functional and create a design that fits their lifestyle and their family,” Spraberry says.
After meeting with clients, Spraberry selects furniture, lighting and other materials, such as tile, paint and countertops, and offers clients a few choices, and will often meet clients at a tile store or stone yards to look at samples and make selections.
“I try to make it as easy as possible,” Spraberry says. “Clients can feel overwhelmed at a store where they have so many selections. They always say, ‘I’m so glad you’re here.’ That’s my role. I take all their frustrations and turn them into beautiful selections.”
Spraberry experienced a lovely moment when she went to the stoneyard with Norris and her husband to look at countertop material.
“Debbie’s face just lit up when she saw these beautiful stones, and it was fun to watch,” Spraberry says.
As she did with Norris, Spraberry strives to make the entire design and renovation process as easy as possible for her clients, and she coordinates everything from measuring to product ordering to installation.
“I work from the ground up to create a custom plan just for you,” she says.
Norris and her husband had extensive work done. They repainted the first floor, removed the old popcorn ceilings and refinished the hardwood flooring. In the kitchen, they added a hardwood floor, remodeled the cabinets and installed new lighting and new countertops. They added new draperies in the living room, dining room and bedroom, changed the dining room windows and bought new furniture in some of the rooms.
Spraberry converted the hallway between the kitchen and dining room into a bar and also helped Norris find the skilled craftsman she needed for some of the work.
“Angelia has all these people in her Rolodex, and she was always here to supervise to make sure it was done correctly” Norris says.
The women began working together in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused long delays in ordering materials, such as kitchen cabinet doors.
“It was frustrating, but we took it all in stride, and it turned out to be OK,” Spraberry says.
She was also there to support Norris when some of the items they ordered — including furniture pieces — were damaged when they finally arrived.
“Angelia made sure it was returned and replaced,” Norris says.
“It’s been a journey and learning experience for me, and it’s been a joy getting to know Debbie and working with her,” Spraberry says. “It was a lot of fun to do this project from beginning to end.”
Bringing this kind of joy and fun to her clients is Spraberry’s favorite part of her business.
“When I get to the client’s house and my installers start bringing in the furnishings and everything goes in place and then to see the look on their faces, it’s pure joy for me, and it’s the reason I do what I do,” she says.
Spraberry also believes our homes should offer us a sense of peace.
“I think a person’s house should be a home,” Spraberry says. “It’s a safe place where you can go at the end of the day and regroup and relax and fellowship with your family and friends, and you want that space to reflect who you are as a person. In today’s world, when we have so much chaos and everything comes at us really fast, you want your home to be a retreat where you can have that sense of comfort and peace when you go to bed that night.”
