Beginnings

Since it feels like I’m starting this Blog journey from scratch, it only seems natural to start at the beginning even though I’ll be celebrating 25 years as an Interior Designer in 2023.  Who am I?

This is a second career for me.  I worked at Microsoft for years before reaching the end of my creative rope.  It was a phenomenal experience as a young woman to be part of something like that, but I was so burnt out.  Gratefully, I was allowed the freedom to leave and attend the Art Institute of Seattle.  I’d always been good at decorating and knew I was creative, now it was time to see if I had the ability to be a professional Interior Designer!

I fell in love with kitchen and bath during school on a field trip to a local appliance distributor.  I was hired right out of school at a little kitchen and bath design/build showroom.  I jumped in feet first, kept my head above water and learned so much, from sales to drafting software, estimating, and managing projects. There’s a tremendous amount that they can’t teach you in school!  I went to my first National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) meeting, which is a Trade Organization, and haven’t looked back!

The kitchen and bath segment within residential design beautifully combined my creative talent, education, experience, and my affinity for technical detail.  I have a secret inner Industrial Designer sitting on my shoulder, which comes in handy when designing these intricate and often challenging spaces.  These spaces in our home calls for skills beyond color selection.  A professional in this field needs to understand all the mechanics of the spaces, from the foundation up, appliance installation, plumbing, lighting, cabinetry and how all those elements interact with each other.

I teach kitchen and bath now as well and I always tell my students, my goal for them is to either fall in love with this segment and make it their specialty, or to understand just how challenging it is so they can build their collaboration team with the experts they need to execute a safe, efficient, and functional space.

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