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about us

designing with intention

After collaborating for years at leading architecture firms, we sought to create something distinct: a firm that places Interior Design at its core while retaining technical expertise and iterative processes.

Drawing on our extensive experience and established relationships, we envisioned a firm that emphasizes creativity, growth, and partnership. Uppercase embodies this vision—a place where these ideals come to life.

uppercase co-founders Heather Hayes and Melissa Fedorchenko
uppercase co-founder Melissa Fedorchenko

melissa fedorchenko

NCIDQ, LEED AP

Melissa has led design projects across the west coast for almost 20 years. Her diverse experience yields thoughtful and bespoke designs for her clients, spanning from luxury mountain lodges to urban mixed-use projects.

For Melissa, interior design is the perfect combination of art and math, two subjects she was drawn to throughout the years. She loves the opportunities and challenges found in every project; coming up with different ways to inhabit and shape the spaces within. From initial ideation to finding that perfect piece of art, her approach is one that is cohesive and considered. Getting to work in a field that combines the artistry of place-making and craft coupled with the prescriptive constraints of building codes is truly a dream come true.

Her work has earned recognition from IIDA InAwards and been published in Hospitality Design magazine.  Melissa earned her Bachelor of Interior Architecture from the University of Oregon.

uppercase co-founder Heather Hayes

heather hayes

NCIDQ, LEED AP

In her nearly two decades as an interior designer, Heather has worked on a diverse range of project types and scales. Her work includes award-winning projects in hospitality, multi-family housing, repositioning, and workplace.

If you were to ask twelve-year-old Heather, she will tell you she designs places filled with sparkle and high-drama, while adult Heather is actually a bit of a brain-science nerd. The merging of these two explains why Heather is driven to create places that are both impactful and meaningful. She is always asking questions and looking for contextual clues to gain a felt understanding of the people who will ultimately populate the places she designs. Her goal is to understand what they need to make it feel poignant, yet effortless in the end.  

Before making the change to interior design, Heather spent the first part of her career in politics and public affairs. She finds that she draws from that experience nearly every day. Those skills especially help her navigate diverse stakeholder groups and to quickly find common goals and build consensus. Heather uses those goals to inform the design process and revisits them when tough decisions might need to be made – especially during value engineering and construction.  

Heather is a longtime member of the Interior Design Advisory Board for Bellevue College, and is active in the effort to pass registration and certification legislation for commercial interior designers in Washington State. She earned a BS in Politics from Willamette University and an AA in Interior Design from Bellevue College.