When Hayden Jones opened her interior design business in Victor, Idaho, 14 years ago, she wanted a name that captured the essence of her personality and style.

“Originally I wanted the store to be a fun place to shop. A place that wasn’t intimidating like other design showrooms can be,” Hayden says.

She decided that the word “festive” — defined as cheerful and jovially celebratory — was the perfect fit for her vision. She opened her shop, Festive Living, and her interior design business, Festive Design, in a historic stone building on Victor’s Main Street in 2006. From the beginning, she wanted the store to be Victor’s go-to for gifts and home décor, so she stocked Festive Living with carefully curated bedding, jewelry, baby gifts, furniture, and an array of household goods.

“We try to provide everything for your home so that people in our community don’t have to shop online,” Hayden says. As a result, the products she sells range from inexpensive thank you gifts and stocking stuffers to works of art and kitchenware.

Hayden, a South Carolina native, graduated from Clemson University in 2000 with a degree in textiles, focusing on the aesthetics of fabric and interior design. In 1999, she came to Jackson for an interior design internship and was immediately hooked. She returned to the area after graduation, working for a number of different Jackson designers before venturing out on her own with Festive Design.

She says the Victor store is her home base, but most of her work centers around designing living spaces for clients on both sides of the Tetons.

“I draw my strength as a designer by forming connections with clients and collaborating with their vision. I’m open and able to do all realms of design — all kinds of different styles, whether it’s mountain-modern, Western, or what have you. Every house I design looks different. I think that’s an asset… You walk into some houses and say, ‘Oh, I know who designed this,’ because they have a certain look. I’m not that way. I really cater to what the client wants; what they are trying to achieve.”

Hayden works closely with Showroom Manager and Design Assistant Laura Rutter. Laura, also a native southerner (North Carolina), has been with Festive Design since the 2006 opening and the two have a natural and trusting comradery. “I think many of our clients appreciate our Southern charm. We pride ourselves on being approachable and accommodating throughout the design process,” Laura says.

When it comes to interior design, the two women are pros at translating a client’s half-formed ideas into a coherent vision. Hayden says most of the people she’s worked with come back to work with her on other projects. “We have really good relationships with our clients,” she says. “We know the majority of people who come into the shop by name, and most of our clients are return customers. One of our clients right now is working on her third home. This one is very different from the other homes I’ve designed for her. People’s tastes change, and I can change with them.”

Although she’s experienced working with various home décor styles, Hayden says she’s most excited about the mountain-modern look. The mountain-modern aesthetic combines the clean lines and open spaces of contemporary design with the cozy, rustic elements of the classic mountain home. Mountain-modern homes are built for mountain living and typically include practical features like mudrooms and storage for outdoor gear, together with an element of laid-back, sophisticated luxury that appeals to the modern aesthetic.

Whether it’s mountain-modern, rustic, contemporary, or minimalist — Hayden’s mission is to help her clients transform their house into the home of their dreams.