How I became an Interior Designer…

No. 11: When did I begin loving interior design?  When did I know I wanted to become an interior designer?

My Story…  When I was young, I never said “when I grow up I want to be an interior designer”  I didn’t know it was an occupational option… on all of my career path documents from elementary school to high school, I listed that I wanted to be first a homemaker and second a teacher (later narrowing to an elementary school teacher – I had some great elementary teachers).  Looking back even as a young child, I loved art, doll houses, historical design, old and new buildings, construction projects – I loved the smell of the home improvement stores, and I’ve always had grand ideas. One of my first sentences as a toddler was “make money, build a house”, when our house was built I got to help pick my carpet and wall paint – as a five/ six year old I was emphatic what shade of pink it was to be – my budding expertise didn’t win the color battle – carpet was a grayed pink and walls were painted a pale, almost white, pink – called cotton candy.  I wanted boldness in color, my mother wanted safety and longevity in color – it was her house. 

One of my elementary school memories includes a field trip to the Carroll Mansion in Baltimore City, Maryland. I remember being impressed by the architecture, design, and finishing details. As a young child, the house and its story made an impression on me, one I never forgot. I loved the dining room, the rich colors appointed to the walls and windows, the federal style dark stained dining table and hand carved chairs, silver and china on display, I couldn’t begin to take it all in. I can still see the molding details, elegant curved stair case rail, mantles, and drapery in my mind’s eye; moreover, I remember how I felt - awestruck. My souvenir while the other children were purchasing pencils, toys, and key chains – a simple post card of the dining room, which I treasured and still have.  I loved visiting the cloisters, it was one of my very favorite places.  I loved the Hampton Mansion, the Walter’s Art Gallery with it’s impressive marble columns, and the miniature rooms on display at the BMA.

I always doodled (I listen better when I doodle), I learned that if I changed the angle of a line my drawing would go from flat to having depth – I would draw houses with porches and dormers.  I loved art, although I didn’t much care for the art projects in my elementary school art class – in fact, my art teacher even told me I would never have a future in art (an absolutely horrible thing to say to an elementary school student – of which she was clearly wrong in her assumption) that didn’t stop me, I would paint and do arts and craft projects, I was always driven by making something both functional and beautiful.  I loved home economics and shop class in middle school, I found the drafting unit in 7th grade just exciting.  

I continued art courses into  high school, taking as many studio classes as I could, was a part of the national art honor society.  To describe my interests in high school: Art, History, French, Science, Student Government… all of which serve me well in my profession today.  I applied to two colleges Towson State University and Brigham Young University, both as declared elementary educations majors, I was accepted to both, I accepted both – Towson for one semester in the Fall (I had a great scholarship), and BYU to begin in January (a chance to leave – my fist airplane ride).  At Towson, while sitting in orientation for elementary. education. majors I looked around at my fellow class mates (they were wearing lots of denim with embroidered Disney characters peeking our of pockets, I felt it – I knew it - these were not my people) we toured the campus elementary education. facilities – albeit impressive, I was quickly realizing this was not the department for me.  Come registration (which was a physical meet with someone to sign up for classes ordeal – online is so much easier these days)  I mentioned I didn’t want to start the elementary education track but just take generals – so what was open… English, History, French 201, and Human Geography – I was a freshman, yikes – I made it through – didn’t care for my teachers, nor was any of it particularly interesting – I didn’t have a major,  I didn’t have much purpose.  What was I doing?

I went to BYU starting in January, more general education requirements: English, Biology, Economics, Religion, and a class for fun Introduction to Interior Deign – which changed my life.  I had the class after lunch at 1pm we would sit in a dark room reviewing slides and listen to lecture, (admittedly I would fall asleep in class occasionally – dark room, after lunch – inevitable) we had a few small projects I loved it, it opened an amazing world of recessed lighting and chair designs, I learned the names of styles and periods, I learned the technical aspects of the industry – codes – ADA – human scale.  I was excited!  I fell in love, and better yet, I felt like I found a place with my kind of people (artsy – but not too much, passionate, with a side of business and technical) – I had a major! 

I looked into the program, it was part of the College of Fine Arts and Communications – majoring was by selection: an application, practicum and portfolio, applications were only received in February – It was spring, I had missed it.  Only 20 students were accepted in each department per year(12 departments).  Over the summer, I pulled together my high school portfolio and worked on my application, I continued to take general education. courses in the fall.  I applied in winter, six weeks later I was sent a magical letter – I was in.  I could now take the art core classes!  Although I was accepted with the idea that I would pursue interior design that initial acceptance was to get into the college of fine arts visual arts dept. We would be juried yet again at the end of that first year and then be selected to enter our specific department.  As I had already taken 2 full years of general education. requirements, I was just about finished – I filled my schedule with the core courses and any non- prerequisite required interior design courses and built my portfolio accordingly.  At the end of that first core year I felt confident in pursuing interior design and was very pleased to have the next letter of acceptance, that was the end of my first junior year (there was no possible way to complete a four to five year design program in two years so I like to think that I had two junior years and I did the program in three).

I crammed as many interior design courses as possible into a semester, each year we were re-juried with a portfolio review in order to maintain our major – only the best – if our grades and skill level didn’t cut it, we could graduate with a BA in design, not the BFA in interior design.  Every year it was always a bit nerve racking, but we became very skilled at portfolio display and presentation.  Even up to our final BFA reviews we could be dropped to a BA.  As difficult and competitive as it was – I loved it.  It was a perfect fit.  I thrived, I became active in the Interior Design Club, ASID and IIDA – becoming student president of each.  I was a Teacher’s Assistant for Introduction to Interior Design for the Professor I took that first class from (she allowed me to teach a few lectures and I helped with grading), and a TA for Textiles and Historic Textiles – I learned from some of the best teachers in the industry – they wrote the books that many colleges and universities use (I had no idea how well known they were – until I began teaching myself and doing textbook research).  I loved it, all of it – even the parts I didn’t like, I loved.  My classmates were friends and co-workers. We worked tireless – pulling many over nighters in the design lab, we had fun.  I interned in the Baltimore area, knowing I wanted to come home to the East to work. I graduated the following year and felt well prepared to take on the real world.

I still love interior design, it is apart of me.  I have added teaching interior design to my list of loves – I guess that elementary school career path wasn’t too far off – I wanted to be a homemaker and a teacher – ultimately I am both not in the pre-prescribed idea – however, through design, I have helped hundreds of my residential clients make their home a better place to live and now as a college instructor I teach and inspire my students to love interior design as much and even more than I do.