DESIGN ISN’T ONE THING.

Second House is a multidisciplinary creative design studio in Upstate New York, founded by designer, producer, planner, and creative director Katie Hammon.

A CREATIVE STUDIO FOR . Spaces . Experiences . Ideas

We design places people want to be, experiences they remember, and ideas built to last.

UPSTATE NEW YORK · HUDSON VALLEY · NEW YORK CITY · BEYOND

OUR WORK . From an idea to a world of its own.

  • THE MAPLES ESTATE

    Hospitality · Interior Design · Landscape Design · Brand · Experience

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  • A DRAMA FILLED WEDDING

    Wedding Planning . Creative Direction · Wedding Design · Environmental Design

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  • DRAPERY + INSTALLATION

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  • CONTAINER RESTROOM

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  • FLORAL + ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN

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  • ROCKIN' ON THE RIVER

    Event Production · Programming · Experience Design

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  • BLUEBIRD SKOOLIE

    Interior Design · Renovation · Small-Space Design

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  • PAVILION BUILD

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  • TROY RESIDENCE

    Interior Design · Renovation · Styling

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  • ROOT ACCESS

    Website Design · Strategy · SEO · User Experience

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  • DOWNTOWN TROY

    Placemaking · Events · Marketing · Strategy

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Our work moves between spaces, experiences, celebrations, brands, and businesses, though the approach is always the same:

understand the people who will experience it.
consider how it needs to function.
design from there.

From wedding planning and large-scale event production to interiors, hospitality spaces, floral and environmental design, websites, brands, and creative business strategy, we bring design, production, and practical thinking together to build ideas from the ground up.

"Working with Katie was a relief. She "got" exactly what I was looking for and knew exactly how to work with our organization's needs and limitations. I never felt pressured or judged, just supported."

- Shanna, Oakwood Community Center

MEET OUR FOUNDER

A career built between disciplines.

Hi, I'm Katie Hammon. I'm a designer, producer, planner, and creative operator who has never been particularly interested in staying in one lane.

My career began in music and the arts and has moved through large-scale event production, hospitality, economic development, historic renovation, wedding planning, interiors, branding, and business strategy. Each chapter has shaped the way I work today: with a producer's understanding of how things function, a designer's curiosity about how they could feel, and a deep interest in the people who will ultimately experience them.

Before founding Second House, I worked across performance spaces including EMPAC and The Palace Theatre, produced hundreds of public events as Executive Director of the Downtown Troy BID, and eventually co-founded The Maples Estate, an extended-weekend wedding venue and multidisciplinary design project in Upstate New York.

Meet Katie

OUR PRACTICE . Different mediums. One way of thinking.

  • Weddings + Celebrations

    Full-service wedding planning, creative direction, wedding design and coordination throughout New York and beyond.

    Explore Weddings

  • Events + Experiences

    Event planning, production and experiential design for concerts, festivals, retreats, galas and gatherings of all kinds.

    Explore Events

  • Strategy + Consulting

    Creative and operational strategy for hospitality businesses, restaurants, venues, organizations and entrepreneurs.

    Explore Strategy

  • Spaces + Interiors

    Interiors, exteriors, hospitality spaces, landscape, spatial styling and environmental design.

    Explore Spaces

  • Brands + Digital

    Brand strategy, websites, graphic design, content and digital experiences built to make ideas clearer and easier to connect with.

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Clients & Vendors Are Saying

  • "People would often ask warily how I was faring during the planning process and I could honestly say each time that it was so easy and enjoyable. I loved every second."

    Sarah, The Maples Estate Bride

  • "Katie helped us articulate short term and long term goals, strategic challenges, potential paths forwards and also connected us to a rich framework of partner organizers. Can't recommend her enough as a consultant and brand strategist."

    Reif Larsen, Author and Founder of The Future of Small Cities Institute

  • "Multiple vendors even told us it was the best-managed wedding they’d ever worked. The attention to detail and seamless communication ensured everything ran smoothly without us needing to worry about anything."

    Rachel + Nick, The Maples Estate Clients

  • "Katie was amazing to work with throughout the wedding planning process, creating a weekend that felt genuine to us and completely matched our vision."

    Vicki, The Maples Estate Bride

  • "We couldn’t be more grateful to Katie and her team at Second House. Not only did she create backend systems to help two overwhelmed business owners stay organized, she built a website that beautifully conveys our story to customers."

    Jenna + Evan, Owners of Wiggle on Main

  • "Katie's coordination was absolutely key to me being totally stress free on my wedding day."

    Anna, The Maples Estate Bride

  • "As a type-A project manager myself I was so impressed with how calm, cool, and collected Katie made the experience."

    Stephanie, The Maples Estate Bride

  • "Working with Katie was a relief. She "got" exactly what I was looking for and knew exactly how to work with our organization's needs and limitations. I never felt pressured or judged, just supported."

    Shanna Goldman, Director of Oakwood Community Center

  • "She took my vision and brought it to life in a way I didn’t think was possible outside of my own imagination"

    Emily, The Maples Estate Bride

  • “Wedding planning with Katie was like planning with a friend-natural and fun! ”

    Olivia, The Maples Estate Bride

  • “Katie is one of the most organized and thoughtful event managers I have ever worked with.”

    Michelle, Intuition Events

  • "I was able to take a step back and relax knowing with full confidence that my wedding would be beautiful - and it was!"

    Maisy, The Maples Estate Bride

  • "Katie listened and collaborated with us, sharing her own inspired visions and ideas with passion and devotion to her craft. We looked forward to each meeting, knowing we were in safe hands with someone who valued both our creativity and our religious requirements."

    Ilana & Jeremy, The Maples Estate Clients

  • "Katie is a humble leader and a kind person, recognized as a thoughtful, intelligent, and practical leader who gets things done, regardless of how unromantic or tedious the project might be, also regardless of who gets the credit. This is a unique characteristic which unfortuatley does not always lend itself to flashy awards or acknowlegements, but is infinitely deserving of recognition."

    Cheryl Kennedy, NORDTECH

  • “If only all venues, planners, and event runners were as thorough and easy to work with"

    Chuck, Hot Club of Saratoga

  • "As wedding photographers ourselves, we’ve worked with many planners, but Katie really blew us away!"

    Michelle & Cesar, The Maples Estate Clients