Sarah Trop is an award-winning interior designer, global travel blogger, and HGTV’s Flea Market Flip champion, celebrated for her sustainable, biophilic, and small-space design solutions. Founder of FunCycled, Sarah blends soulful creativity with construction know-how, transforming historic homes and upcycled pieces into works of art. Her work has been featured on Country Living, House Beautiful, and Life at Home Magazine. A dynamic speaker and advocate for trauma-informed, faith-guided design, Sarah inspires audiences to uncover beauty in the old, bring peace to their spaces, and live with greater purpose.
Episode Summary
In this lively and heartfelt episode of Liz on Biz, Liz Theresa chats with Sarah Trop, founder of FunCycled, about her vibrant entrepreneurial journey from IT to upcycling furniture, and finally, to leading commercial and residential interior design projects. The conversation weaves through topics like impostor syndrome, harnessing ambition vs. adventure, building teams, social media best practices, and the power of dreaming big for the future—personally and in business. Sarah Trop shares honest stories about hiring, business pivots, and her Becoming Project, closing with inspiring advice on making space for wonder and collaboration.
Key Topics
- Sarah Trop’s background: from IT professional to FunCycled founder (10:27)
- Launching a business while raising a young family (10:35)
- FunCycled’s evolution: upcycled furniture, HGTV win, kitchen cabinet painting, and commercial/residential design (11:13, 15:03)
- Navigating impostor syndrome and embracing new opportunities (16:14)
- Scaling the team: hiring for culture and skill, learning from transitions (22:27)
- Social media mindset: quality over quantity, and the power of stories vs. feed posts (20:33)
- Managing finances and lessons learned from business ownership (31:21)
- The importance of maintaining boundaries and “why” in entrepreneurship (29:31)
- Handling client ghosting and PR hiccups with grace (36:37)
- Expanding into commercial projects and building partnerships (39:27)
- Dreaming big: Sarah Trop’s 10-year vision and The Becoming Project (41:17, 43:48)
- Advice on making room for wonder and intentionality in life and business (43:38)
Notable Quotes
“Hard things can teach you lessons… If you have a bad experience with someone, just learn what you don’t want to do to someone.” — Sarah Trop (27:50)
“There’s more room at the table than Scarcity Mindset wants us to believe.” — Sarah Trop (18:28)
“Pause for wonder… a beautiful way to give yourself hope that things will go how you want, because you’re taking the time to know what you want.” — Liz Theresa (43:21)
Connect with Sarah Trop & Fun Cycled
- Website: funcycled.com
- Free Resources: funcycled.com/free
- Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest: @funcycled
- YouTube: FunCycled
Additional Resources
- Free video tutorials & top picks: funcycled.com/free
- FunCycled Blog
