1 00:00:00,480 --> 00:00:05,440 Hello and welcome to episode 51 of Design Curious Podcast. 2 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:08,080 I'm your host and mentor, Rebecca Ward. 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:12,240 Today on the podcast, I have a great interview with Selena 4 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,720 Lewis. And before I get into her bio, I 5 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:20,600 want to remind you that if you're new to this podcast and 6 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:24,160 you're trying to figure out if you want to do interior design, 7 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:28,050 well, there are a lot of different design types that you 8 00:00:28,050 --> 00:00:31,090 can do out there. I talked a lot about residential 9 00:00:31,090 --> 00:00:34,970 here on the podcast, but we also talked a lot about hospitality 10 00:00:34,970 --> 00:00:38,330 and commercial design. And I would love to talk a 11 00:00:38,330 --> 00:00:41,210 little bit more about the spatial experience design. 12 00:00:41,610 --> 00:00:46,490 And so you can learn what type you should be doing with my quiz 13 00:00:46,490 --> 00:00:48,730 that you can find in the show note links. 14 00:00:49,170 --> 00:00:52,570 You're going to take that and discover which type of design 15 00:00:52,570 --> 00:00:54,980 you should be doing. And that will get you at least 16 00:00:55,220 --> 00:00:58,500 on the first step of understanding a career in 17 00:00:58,500 --> 00:01:01,340 interior design. So go take that quiz. 18 00:01:01,580 --> 00:01:05,500 And now let me tell you a little bit more about Selena. 19 00:01:06,300 --> 00:01:09,220 As a professional interior designer based in Atlanta, GA, 20 00:01:09,700 --> 00:01:13,580 Selena Lewis prides herself on her thriving business that is 21 00:01:13,580 --> 00:01:17,300 built on client testimonials. Her outstanding work has 22 00:01:17,300 --> 00:01:20,700 recently been recognized in Atlanta's My Home Improvement 23 00:01:20,700 --> 00:01:24,660 magazine as a top 10 rising star in the home improvement 24 00:01:24,660 --> 00:01:27,820 industry. Selena's design style is best 25 00:01:27,820 --> 00:01:31,820 described as eclectic with a penchant for incorporating 26 00:01:31,820 --> 00:01:35,220 playful Wallpapers, rich textures and bowl patterns to 27 00:01:35,260 --> 00:01:38,060 elevate spaces. She is skilled in blending 28 00:01:38,060 --> 00:01:40,500 different styles to create unique and personalized 29 00:01:40,500 --> 00:01:43,500 interiors for her clients. So I really enjoyed my 30 00:01:43,780 --> 00:01:46,740 conversation with Selena and just understanding how she got 31 00:01:46,740 --> 00:01:50,780 started and talk a little bit more about what she specializes 32 00:01:50,780 --> 00:01:52,220 in. So let's hear from Selena. 33 00:01:56,570 --> 00:02:00,250 You're now listening to Design. Curious, a place where you, 34 00:02:00,250 --> 00:02:04,210 Creative One, are here to learn about what it really is like to 35 00:02:04,210 --> 00:02:07,770 be an interior designer. And I'm your host and mentor, 36 00:02:07,890 --> 00:02:10,970 Rebecca Ward. If you're worried about how to 37 00:02:10,970 --> 00:02:14,970 succeed in a creative career, if you're ready to learn your next 38 00:02:14,970 --> 00:02:19,170 steps to become an interior designer, and if you want the 39 00:02:19,170 --> 00:02:23,230 satisfaction of doing something you love every day you are in 40 00:02:23,230 --> 00:02:27,350 the right place, Grab a coffee, a notebook, and let's dig into 41 00:02:27,350 --> 00:02:32,110 today's episode. Hi Selena, Welcome to Design 42 00:02:32,110 --> 00:02:34,390 Curious Podcast. Hi. 43 00:02:34,390 --> 00:02:37,550 Thanks for having me. Yeah, so glad you're here. 44 00:02:37,670 --> 00:02:41,790 And I'd love to learn a little more about you and for our 45 00:02:41,790 --> 00:02:43,830 audience. I know that you're based in 46 00:02:43,830 --> 00:02:47,310 Atlanta. Tell us a little more about the 47 00:02:47,310 --> 00:02:49,110 design that you do in your business. 48 00:02:49,830 --> 00:02:53,270 So. My design business kind of 49 00:02:53,270 --> 00:02:58,230 started off of wallpaper, which is kind of funny story. 50 00:02:58,230 --> 00:03:02,790 I've just always been into it for years and years and it kind 51 00:03:02,790 --> 00:03:07,230 of started that way and has just channeled itself into full 52 00:03:07,230 --> 00:03:10,670 design renovations, new builds, all the things. 53 00:03:10,910 --> 00:03:16,510 But I still specialize in color and pattern and I think that is 54 00:03:16,510 --> 00:03:20,740 what. Draws a lot of people to me is 55 00:03:21,060 --> 00:03:25,300 bringing that element in that I actually, when I first started 56 00:03:25,300 --> 00:03:29,100 to, I started working with a lot of designers in the area, 57 00:03:29,100 --> 00:03:33,420 because a lot of designers are really good at furnishings or 58 00:03:33,740 --> 00:03:37,860 the Chotsky stuff, the little decorative accents and staging. 59 00:03:38,180 --> 00:03:42,420 But I think in today's world, we are seeing more and more of 60 00:03:42,660 --> 00:03:47,140 color. And pattern and mixing the two. 61 00:03:47,180 --> 00:03:51,340 And I think that's where a lot of designers struggle. 62 00:03:51,820 --> 00:03:55,780 You know, I would help designers kind of pull those elements in 63 00:03:55,780 --> 00:03:57,600 and help them with that. So yeah. 64 00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:00,080 So it's been a. Wild ride. 65 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:04,960 So how did you get into wallpaper then? 66 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:08,000 So, so weird. I've always done it. 67 00:04:08,040 --> 00:04:12,200 I've always had it in my houses for years and years before 68 00:04:12,200 --> 00:04:17,000 wallpaper was trendy, obviously when our parents were. 69 00:04:17,410 --> 00:04:21,089 Younger and our grandparents wallpaper is like this big 70 00:04:21,089 --> 00:04:23,610 thing. And every now and then you 71 00:04:23,770 --> 00:04:26,210 still. Yeah, yeah, it's the borders. 72 00:04:26,930 --> 00:04:30,690 Every now and then you still see you get a lot of pushback from 73 00:04:30,690 --> 00:04:33,170 people when you do introduce a wallpaper. 74 00:04:33,450 --> 00:04:35,650 And they're like, Oh my gosh. Like, I remember stripping that 75 00:04:35,650 --> 00:04:38,850 down with my mom when I was 12. Or I remember. 76 00:04:39,180 --> 00:04:43,740 This gaudy border, like fruit border, you know, pears across 77 00:04:43,740 --> 00:04:47,700 the top of your kitchen. And so I try to tell people all 78 00:04:47,700 --> 00:04:50,660 the time like that's not what today's wallpaper is. 79 00:04:50,660 --> 00:04:54,660 Now, yes, there's still a lot of very traditional Wallpapers out 80 00:04:54,660 --> 00:04:59,940 there and they work beautifully in homes, but now we have just 81 00:04:59,940 --> 00:05:03,380 so many more things and so much more that we bring to the table 82 00:05:03,380 --> 00:05:05,980 with it. So I've always just done it. 83 00:05:05,980 --> 00:05:09,700 I've always had it in my homes. A lot of people would say, like, 84 00:05:09,700 --> 00:05:12,780 oh, when you go to sell your house, like you have this bold, 85 00:05:12,780 --> 00:05:16,580 crazy wallpaper accent wall. And I'm like, I got to live in 86 00:05:16,580 --> 00:05:20,780 my home. And honestly, what I found is 87 00:05:20,780 --> 00:05:24,540 that it didn't like, nobody cared, like we would sell a 88 00:05:24,540 --> 00:05:28,820 house, we would redo it, we would put wallpaper in, we would 89 00:05:29,140 --> 00:05:31,380 make it bold and people loved it. 90 00:05:31,540 --> 00:05:34,060 And I think people will have a hard time. 91 00:05:34,470 --> 00:05:37,470 Doing that in their own space so that when they see it done, 92 00:05:37,470 --> 00:05:40,950 they're like, oh, I like it. And so I just kind of got into 93 00:05:40,950 --> 00:05:42,550 it. I've always just kind of watched 94 00:05:42,550 --> 00:05:46,430 it and followed it. And then when I started doing 95 00:05:46,470 --> 00:05:49,590 design, I kind of started that way. 96 00:05:49,590 --> 00:05:54,710 Like I started helping people pick wallpaper and I got into 97 00:05:54,710 --> 00:05:56,990 actually installing it, which was crazy. 98 00:05:57,310 --> 00:06:01,150 Yes, I used to do the installs for my clients only like you 99 00:06:01,150 --> 00:06:03,590 know you. Order paper through me like I 100 00:06:03,630 --> 00:06:06,670 put it up and it was good. I'm so glad that I had that 101 00:06:06,670 --> 00:06:09,750 experience. One, just helps me understand 102 00:06:09,750 --> 00:06:13,670 like that process. But two, it was a good stepping 103 00:06:13,670 --> 00:06:18,030 stone into the world. We do live in a very competitive 104 00:06:18,030 --> 00:06:23,590 market in Atlanta for designers. I think that a lot of people, 105 00:06:23,670 --> 00:06:27,910 they know the look and a lot of people can become a designer, 106 00:06:27,950 --> 00:06:30,550 right? But it's more of. 107 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:34,200 Finding somebody who can incorporate everything. 108 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:37,800 So we have furnishing companies out there now. 109 00:06:37,960 --> 00:06:41,000 A lot of people there's like Trifecta and there's all these 110 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:43,920 different like furnishing companies out there and they're 111 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:47,720 wonderful and they're great resources for designers to use. 112 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:52,240 However, they try to become a designer to sell their 113 00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:54,760 furnishings. So where those designers are 114 00:06:54,760 --> 00:06:56,850 mainly like? We're here to sell your 115 00:06:56,850 --> 00:06:59,050 furnishing. Yeah, we'll help you kind of do 116 00:06:59,050 --> 00:07:01,530 a vision board, but our goal is to sell furnishings. 117 00:07:01,530 --> 00:07:05,330 I think it's important to differentiate yourself as a 118 00:07:05,330 --> 00:07:09,450 designer from someone who's just kind of doing your one track 119 00:07:09,450 --> 00:07:10,850 mind. Sure, I'm going to pick out 120 00:07:10,850 --> 00:07:13,690 furnishings for you, but I'm all and I'll throw like some curtain 121 00:07:13,690 --> 00:07:17,850 selections in there for you. But your primary objective is to 122 00:07:17,850 --> 00:07:21,130 sell furniture. Where you know a designer is, 123 00:07:21,330 --> 00:07:24,810 you don't have an objective. Your objective is to complete 124 00:07:24,810 --> 00:07:28,610 the space and make the space for what your client wants it to be. 125 00:07:28,610 --> 00:07:30,970 And there's no like agenda per se. 126 00:07:31,570 --> 00:07:35,730 So I think in this market, separating yourselves and having 127 00:07:35,730 --> 00:07:39,930 something that you are really good at, it's important. 128 00:07:40,210 --> 00:07:43,370 And I get a lot of clients strictly just our wallpaper. 129 00:07:43,770 --> 00:07:47,010 They just call me to help them pick out their wallpaper and we. 130 00:07:47,440 --> 00:07:49,880 Take them through that process and we bring the books to them 131 00:07:49,880 --> 00:07:52,720 and bring the samples to them and put them up in their space. 132 00:07:53,040 --> 00:07:55,800 And some of those end up becoming more than that. 133 00:07:56,080 --> 00:07:58,160 Yeah. And I think it's important when 134 00:07:58,160 --> 00:08:02,360 people start to kind of see that visual coming together and just 135 00:08:02,360 --> 00:08:04,320 bringing that all to life. Yeah. 136 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,760 So did you work out of a store or how did you get your 137 00:08:08,800 --> 00:08:13,080 wallpaper sources? So I just started doing a lot of 138 00:08:13,080 --> 00:08:17,120 research. I would spend a lot of time like 139 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:20,840 at night, I would just go on Google and I would just start 140 00:08:20,840 --> 00:08:24,280 looking up different papers and different brands and I would 141 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:28,760 contact the reps and I just started getting accounts. 142 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:32,760 I would then take those accounts and I would actually go through 143 00:08:32,760 --> 00:08:36,039 their online samples and I would just order samples. 144 00:08:36,549 --> 00:08:39,590 And then I started ordering a lot of paper and then a few of 145 00:08:39,590 --> 00:08:42,070 my accounts had come to me and said, hey, you know, you're 146 00:08:42,070 --> 00:08:45,110 doing a lot of volume, we want to send you books. 147 00:08:45,310 --> 00:08:47,270 And so then they would send me books. 148 00:08:47,310 --> 00:08:50,390 And then from there, and I'm still like to this day, I 149 00:08:50,390 --> 00:08:54,670 actually just got a new company that reached out to me and said, 150 00:08:54,670 --> 00:08:58,150 hey, can we send you some books of our stuff? 151 00:08:58,470 --> 00:09:01,030 And two books showed up last week and I. 152 00:09:01,490 --> 00:09:03,690 Peek through them a little bit, but they're so good. 153 00:09:03,690 --> 00:09:06,650 So I'm like, now I'm going to research that vendor, but I'm 154 00:09:06,650 --> 00:09:09,570 really particular to like. I try to help clients 155 00:09:09,570 --> 00:09:13,130 differentiate between Wallpapers because there are some great 156 00:09:13,450 --> 00:09:16,930 wallpaper sources out there, and wallpaper is if you've ever done 157 00:09:16,930 --> 00:09:18,850 it in your house. It's actually not a cheap 158 00:09:18,850 --> 00:09:21,570 endeavor. I don't think people understand 159 00:09:21,570 --> 00:09:24,930 like how expensive it actually can be. 160 00:09:25,760 --> 00:09:29,760 And even a, I carry a couple pretty affordable brands and 161 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:32,880 then I have everything up to like you know, super high end 162 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:36,800 expensive and I try to you know, show people the differences. 163 00:09:37,160 --> 00:09:39,880 I'm very particular about quality on the paper too. 164 00:09:39,880 --> 00:09:42,080 So like, I'm very particular about that. 165 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:44,880 And so I'll do a lot of research on those brands. 166 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:47,160 Yeah. And I think it helps that you 167 00:09:47,320 --> 00:09:51,160 also know how to install it so you understand what to look for 168 00:09:51,160 --> 00:09:52,960 out of a paper. Like you're not just looking at 169 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:55,950 how how pretty it is. You're like making sure it's the 170 00:09:55,950 --> 00:10:00,630 right application for the space and for that client, right? 171 00:10:00,990 --> 00:10:03,110 Yes. And I tell people all the time, 172 00:10:03,110 --> 00:10:06,150 like, there's a brand out there. I don't want to mention names, 173 00:10:06,150 --> 00:10:11,070 but a lot of people go to it. They have cool paper, it's fun, 174 00:10:11,070 --> 00:10:13,910 it's funky, and people actually think it's pretty affordable. 175 00:10:13,910 --> 00:10:16,830 But when you start the way that they do their measurements, 176 00:10:17,030 --> 00:10:19,430 clients always say, oh, what about this and? 177 00:10:19,900 --> 00:10:22,300 I'll look at it and go okay, but you don't understand. 178 00:10:22,300 --> 00:10:26,180 It looks like it's $24.00 A roll, but that's not, that's a 179 00:10:26,180 --> 00:10:29,700 sheet and you need like 40 sheets to get you around the 180 00:10:29,700 --> 00:10:32,100 room. And also the quality. 181 00:10:32,380 --> 00:10:36,060 Like I tell them like, listen, you can buy this, I'm not going 182 00:10:36,060 --> 00:10:39,140 to order this for you. You're welcome to order it on 183 00:10:39,140 --> 00:10:41,540 your own. And I'm not going to have my 184 00:10:41,540 --> 00:10:43,540 installer put it in either because. 185 00:10:43,950 --> 00:10:45,350 You're not going to be happy with it. 186 00:10:45,470 --> 00:10:49,910 And that's a reflection on me. And I understand like you fall 187 00:10:49,910 --> 00:10:51,710 in love with the print and I get that. 188 00:10:52,270 --> 00:10:54,550 I totally understand that. And I don't ever tell clients 189 00:10:54,550 --> 00:10:57,950 not to do it. I just, I can't back it because 190 00:10:58,110 --> 00:11:02,030 it doesn't turn out right. And it's an investment. 191 00:11:02,110 --> 00:11:04,470 Like, wallpaper is an investment. 192 00:11:05,250 --> 00:11:07,490 Yeah. And I do think, going back to 193 00:11:07,490 --> 00:11:10,890 what you said earlier, that it's interesting that people still, 194 00:11:10,890 --> 00:11:14,290 to this day, even though they've had some cool Wallpapers out for 195 00:11:14,290 --> 00:11:17,650 10 plus years, they still think of it as their grandma's 196 00:11:17,650 --> 00:11:19,410 wallpaper. They just can't get past that 197 00:11:19,770 --> 00:11:23,330 stigma of like, wallpaper being stuffy, old thing, you know? 198 00:11:23,330 --> 00:11:26,450 And every time I introduce it to a client, they're like, Oh no, I 199 00:11:26,450 --> 00:11:28,090 don't want wallpaper. And then we'll show them what it 200 00:11:28,090 --> 00:11:30,890 looks like, like, Oh yeah, I could handle that, but not like 201 00:11:30,890 --> 00:11:33,090 some little, you know, many floral things. 202 00:11:33,770 --> 00:11:36,490 Yes, yes. So it's it's come such a long 203 00:11:36,490 --> 00:11:38,690 way. There's so many different 204 00:11:38,690 --> 00:11:44,570 textures, styles, vinyls, really cool stuff. 205 00:11:44,610 --> 00:11:47,530 I mean we even have like wallpaper that's like fabric 206 00:11:47,850 --> 00:11:51,330 that's so fun and it does it. Paint is flat. 207 00:11:51,330 --> 00:11:53,970 I always tell people like, yes, there are times where we want to 208 00:11:53,970 --> 00:11:57,210 do paint and we want to accent with paint, but paint is a very 209 00:11:57,210 --> 00:11:59,250 flat. We're wallpaper. 210 00:11:59,330 --> 00:12:04,650 Even if it doesn't have a design on it, it is very dimensional 211 00:12:05,130 --> 00:12:09,650 and it really can pull a lot of different colors, tones, 212 00:12:09,970 --> 00:12:14,330 dimensions, textures, and it just adds life to the space. 213 00:12:15,330 --> 00:12:17,690 But believe it or not, florals are coming back. 214 00:12:18,170 --> 00:12:22,370 I live in an area outside of Atlanta in kind of a suburb area 215 00:12:22,370 --> 00:12:27,770 of Atlanta and we're very traditional houses. 216 00:12:28,260 --> 00:12:31,980 And so when we're doing design in these types of houses, we're 217 00:12:31,980 --> 00:12:34,980 competing with the modern. But unless you're going to 218 00:12:34,980 --> 00:12:39,780 completely gut and rebuild from scratch, you are still stuck 219 00:12:39,780 --> 00:12:42,780 with a lot of very traditional elements in these homes. 220 00:12:43,340 --> 00:12:48,220 And so we try to bring a very transitional environment. 221 00:12:48,220 --> 00:12:54,060 And so we might still have some like modernist styles, but we 222 00:12:54,060 --> 00:12:58,380 might pop a floral. For instance, in my house I live 223 00:12:58,380 --> 00:13:02,300 in a very traditional home. In my dining room I have this 224 00:13:02,380 --> 00:13:06,460 very like geometric wallpaper. But then if you go into my 225 00:13:06,460 --> 00:13:10,300 kitchen I have a floral. So we really try to balance 226 00:13:10,340 --> 00:13:14,300 different Wallpapers and really try to make it fun and edgy and 227 00:13:14,300 --> 00:13:18,460 give because every client wants that modern look, but it just 228 00:13:18,460 --> 00:13:22,540 doesn't always work in every client's house because you have 229 00:13:22,540 --> 00:13:24,380 traditional trim. You have. 230 00:13:25,610 --> 00:13:29,690 Elements and unless you're going to just once again got it all 231 00:13:29,690 --> 00:13:31,970 out and start over, got to make it blend. 232 00:13:32,170 --> 00:13:33,690 Yeah. But it works, you know? 233 00:13:33,690 --> 00:13:36,930 It works really well and it just gives people, Someone once told 234 00:13:36,930 --> 00:13:40,770 me it's just there's something to look at something When you 235 00:13:40,770 --> 00:13:43,250 walk into this house, there's so many things for your eyes to 236 00:13:43,250 --> 00:13:45,570 look at and it's really cool, you know? 237 00:13:45,770 --> 00:13:49,930 Yeah, so definitely, yeah. So wallpaper is kind of your 238 00:13:49,970 --> 00:13:54,130 niche to get into the industry. And now are you doing full 239 00:13:54,130 --> 00:13:57,680 service design? Yes, I do full service design. 240 00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:02,600 I work with a builder and I do new builds with them. 241 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:07,600 And then I have a general contractor that works just with 242 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:13,270 me as a designer, and we have. Oh gosh, so many renovation 243 00:14:13,270 --> 00:14:16,830 projects going on right now. I thought that the renovation 244 00:14:16,830 --> 00:14:19,750 world would maybe slow down a little bit just because of the 245 00:14:19,750 --> 00:14:23,150 housing, you know, market kind of has slowed down. 246 00:14:23,150 --> 00:14:27,030 But people honestly, my husband says this, he's like your 247 00:14:27,030 --> 00:14:29,350 business is kind of recession proof. 248 00:14:29,350 --> 00:14:33,790 Like I hate saying that, but if someone is buying a new house 249 00:14:33,830 --> 00:14:38,880 then they are typically. Looking to hire a designer to 250 00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:42,360 decorate or furnish or whatever and vice versa. 251 00:14:42,360 --> 00:14:46,200 If you're not in the house buying like realm, you're 252 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:49,280 probably investing in the current house that you have. 253 00:14:49,880 --> 00:14:56,440 So we haven't slowed down at all when it comes to any of that. 254 00:14:56,680 --> 00:15:01,080 I think when COVID hit, we all saw this, but your house became 255 00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:04,760 your haven, your house became your haven, and everybody wanted 256 00:15:04,760 --> 00:15:08,350 to invest in their homes. And make their homes what they 257 00:15:08,350 --> 00:15:11,950 wanted it have that space and I think people really started to 258 00:15:11,950 --> 00:15:13,950 look around and go oh maybe I want to if. 259 00:15:14,270 --> 00:15:17,710 I'm going to be stuck in. My house maybe I wanted to be 260 00:15:17,710 --> 00:15:20,830 what I want you know so I think we saw a lot of that and then 261 00:15:20,830 --> 00:15:23,510 the housing market kind of boomed right after that. 262 00:15:23,510 --> 00:15:26,270 So then we saw the effects of that. 263 00:15:26,910 --> 00:15:30,830 So it's I love all of it. The renovation process is it's 264 00:15:30,830 --> 00:15:34,710 harder because you're. Working with a lot of elements 265 00:15:34,870 --> 00:15:36,910 and trying to change a lot of elements. 266 00:15:36,910 --> 00:15:40,630 But once again, you're having to still stick with the basics of 267 00:15:40,630 --> 00:15:42,950 the home. But I think the beautiful thing 268 00:15:43,190 --> 00:15:47,790 with my design too is whether you're renovating or you're just 269 00:15:47,790 --> 00:15:50,950 trying to create a space based off of what you have, it's like 270 00:15:50,950 --> 00:15:53,550 a joke. A designer friend of mine, like 271 00:15:53,790 --> 00:15:56,950 she has to take down walls, like she just just come in and it has 272 00:15:56,950 --> 00:16:00,850 to be what she wants to do. Yeah, like okay, this room is. 273 00:16:01,010 --> 00:16:03,450 I can't, I can't visualize this room because it's not what I 274 00:16:03,450 --> 00:16:05,770 want. But for me, it's like the 275 00:16:05,770 --> 00:16:07,930 ongoing joke. You can put lipstick on a pig. 276 00:16:08,250 --> 00:16:12,850 So you know, I can come, I can take your room and make it what 277 00:16:12,850 --> 00:16:15,090 we want it to look like because I can visualize that. 278 00:16:15,370 --> 00:16:17,370 And that's all really what design is. 279 00:16:17,370 --> 00:16:20,450 I mean, design is the vision that you have and what you can 280 00:16:20,450 --> 00:16:23,410 visualize and what you can't. And that doesn't make you a good 281 00:16:23,410 --> 00:16:27,240 designer or a bad designer. It just makes you unique and 282 00:16:27,240 --> 00:16:31,120 there are things that I am not great at, like the chochky 283 00:16:31,120 --> 00:16:33,560 stuff, like the little decorating stuff. 284 00:16:33,640 --> 00:16:36,400 I mean I can do it. It's not my favorite thing to 285 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:38,160 do. There are some designers that 286 00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:39,480 that is what they're really good at. 287 00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:43,440 They're gonna taking 3 vases and putting them on a shelf and 288 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:46,920 making them look beautiful. I am a very like in person 289 00:16:46,920 --> 00:16:48,800 person. I like to be hands on with my 290 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:51,810 clients so. I would really struggle. 291 00:16:51,810 --> 00:16:56,810 I do have some virtual clients and I do virtual a lot and it 292 00:16:56,810 --> 00:16:59,290 works really great. I've had no issues with it. 293 00:16:59,650 --> 00:17:02,450 But once again there are designers that that's all they 294 00:17:02,450 --> 00:17:06,050 do is build virtual boards and that works me. 295 00:17:06,050 --> 00:17:09,050 I'd like to be handson. I like to show my clients, even 296 00:17:09,050 --> 00:17:11,170 my virtual clients, I send them samples. 297 00:17:11,369 --> 00:17:14,690 It's not like I'm going to build them a board and then hey, here 298 00:17:14,690 --> 00:17:18,010 you go, this is it. It's going to be a very handson 299 00:17:18,010 --> 00:17:23,000 experience, but just through. The mail or through a zoom call 300 00:17:23,079 --> 00:17:26,400 where they can see the samples and they can touch them and feel 301 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:28,640 them, because I do think that's very important. 302 00:17:29,320 --> 00:17:33,440 I think it's really hard to understand what a product looks 303 00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:36,800 like or how a product is without being able to see it or touch 304 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:39,880 it. So they're designers for 305 00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:42,720 everything and some designers, like I said, are wonderful. 306 00:17:42,800 --> 00:17:46,040 They can build a vision board and send that out and that 307 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:47,920 works. Yeah, we all have different 308 00:17:47,920 --> 00:17:49,350 strengths. Exactly. 309 00:17:49,350 --> 00:17:53,830 So for me, it's more I'm more personal, more hands on with my 310 00:17:53,830 --> 00:17:56,190 clients. I just like it that way, yeah. 311 00:17:56,190 --> 00:17:59,230 And they'll be clients that are attracted to that style of 312 00:17:59,230 --> 00:18:03,030 working with the designer as opposed some others want to just 313 00:18:03,030 --> 00:18:05,790 be a little more independent. So they like that more hands off 314 00:18:05,990 --> 00:18:07,390 approach. So exactly. 315 00:18:07,430 --> 00:18:10,070 So it's really the client finding the designer that 316 00:18:10,430 --> 00:18:13,190 matches how they want to work with a designer, yeah. 317 00:18:13,710 --> 00:18:22,720 Exactly, Yeah. So market is this week, but 318 00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:15,320 yeah, is really hard for me. Good. 319 00:18:15,320 --> 00:18:18,880 So you're in Atlanta. So do you go to the market there 320 00:18:19,120 --> 00:18:27,760 all the time I imagine? My kids are home from school. 321 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:30,640 It's kind of a weird time because we never really know 322 00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:33,920 when our travel, like when we will travel in the summer and 323 00:18:34,200 --> 00:18:37,360 even with camps with my kids, I try to keep it open because you 324 00:18:37,360 --> 00:18:39,960 know, we just, I don't know, sometimes I'm just like, hey, 325 00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:43,520 let's go here, let's do that. So summer is a little hard. 326 00:18:43,850 --> 00:18:47,810 Because I'm not a buyer, I have accounts with a lot of big 327 00:18:47,970 --> 00:18:51,570 market names and stuff for furnishings, decor and all of 328 00:18:51,570 --> 00:18:53,530 that. But because I don't have a 329 00:18:53,530 --> 00:18:58,330 storefront, market is not as important for me. 330 00:18:58,410 --> 00:19:01,490 Where if you have a storefront and you're having to constantly 331 00:19:01,490 --> 00:19:06,090 keep updated inventory or get ready for Christmas, typically 332 00:19:06,090 --> 00:19:08,730 market becomes more important for you to go to. 333 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:13,440 In Atlanta, we have a winter market that's in January. 334 00:19:13,440 --> 00:19:16,240 And I always go to that one. And I feel like that's a good 335 00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:19,400 time of year because it's like you get to kind of get a fresh 336 00:19:19,400 --> 00:19:20,600 start. It's like right after the 337 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:22,840 holidays, you're kind of getting into that realm. 338 00:19:22,880 --> 00:19:27,000 That's a busy time after Christmas when everybody's house 339 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:30,280 is empty and they're like, maybe I want to decorate. 340 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:34,240 So I'll go out for the day and spend the day and just kind of 341 00:19:34,240 --> 00:19:38,480 like see what's out there. I still have not made it to in 342 00:19:38,480 --> 00:19:42,560 North Carolina. I just it always lands on like 343 00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:44,960 our spring. Break Yeah, yeah. 344 00:19:45,960 --> 00:19:49,240 I am determined to go because I know that market that's the 345 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:51,120 biggest one like in the Southeast. 346 00:19:51,320 --> 00:19:55,000 And so I do want to make it out there, but I do go because I do 347 00:19:55,120 --> 00:19:58,800 like to see what's going on and you know look at all the new 348 00:19:58,800 --> 00:20:02,450 vendors and samples and. I learned this like years ago. 349 00:20:02,450 --> 00:20:04,930 But like, I feel like at those types of places, if you could 350 00:20:04,930 --> 00:20:09,530 just pick up like 1 little Pearl, you know, one little idea 351 00:20:09,530 --> 00:20:12,930 or thought or, you know, inspiration. 352 00:20:13,170 --> 00:20:15,610 I call it a Pearl. Then you can, yeah, And it's 353 00:20:15,610 --> 00:20:18,130 worth it. Yeah, I often feel like when I 354 00:20:18,130 --> 00:20:21,930 go to market, it's it's like I'm storing these ideas and then I 355 00:20:21,930 --> 00:20:24,770 never know when they'll pop back up later on I'll be like, oh, I 356 00:20:24,810 --> 00:20:27,930 actually saw the perfect thing for that when I was at market, 357 00:20:27,930 --> 00:20:29,920 you know? And when I'm at Mark, I don't 358 00:20:29,920 --> 00:20:31,400 know what I'm going to use it for. 359 00:20:31,400 --> 00:20:33,240 It's just like getting some inspiration. 360 00:20:33,600 --> 00:20:37,760 Yeah, I had that last night actually on I was perusing 361 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:42,840 Wayfair, looking for some vanities just for some basement 362 00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:46,600 bathrooms we're doing. And I saw just this cool like 363 00:20:46,600 --> 00:20:50,920 little Insto and I just screenshot it and I'm like, oh, 364 00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:52,400 I'm going. To use this at some point, I 365 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:55,360 don't know where but. Yeah, it's back up in my mind, 366 00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:59,690 but I think we're inspiration. It's like, of course everybody 367 00:20:59,690 --> 00:21:02,730 likes to take credit and think that they're the founder of 368 00:21:02,730 --> 00:21:06,650 their own ideas. But we all use inspiration and 369 00:21:06,650 --> 00:21:11,650 come up with things, and I we do, and I think as designers 370 00:21:11,650 --> 00:21:14,970 we're always looking at other designers and we use them as 371 00:21:14,970 --> 00:21:17,530 inspiration. I have a few of my favorites in 372 00:21:17,530 --> 00:21:19,890 Atlanta that I just follow and just. 373 00:21:19,930 --> 00:21:22,130 Love their looks. I think that's just such a 374 00:21:22,130 --> 00:21:24,490 compliment. I've seen things of mine that 375 00:21:24,490 --> 00:21:27,990 I've done that have popped up and other designers, like the 376 00:21:28,350 --> 00:21:31,510 people will text me like, Oh my gosh, are you so upset? 377 00:21:31,510 --> 00:21:33,990 They kind of stole your idea and they're like, no, I think that's 378 00:21:33,990 --> 00:21:35,270 great. Like, I think that's like the 379 00:21:35,270 --> 00:21:38,910 biggest compliment. If someone takes a design that I 380 00:21:38,910 --> 00:21:43,150 did and recreates it in their own realm, I'm not offended by 381 00:21:43,150 --> 00:21:45,590 that. This industry can be very else. 382 00:21:45,590 --> 00:21:48,870 Talking with the client this morning, they're just, we went 383 00:21:48,870 --> 00:21:51,350 and picked out countertops and we rode together and we're just 384 00:21:51,430 --> 00:21:53,790 chit chatting. And it's one of the things I 385 00:21:53,790 --> 00:21:57,230 don't love about this industry is I feel like it's competitive, 386 00:21:57,230 --> 00:21:59,110 but it doesn't have to be competitive. 387 00:21:59,670 --> 00:22:03,230 I think if everybody can appreciate kind of what each 388 00:22:03,230 --> 00:22:09,470 person's world is and what they're good at and focus on 389 00:22:09,470 --> 00:22:13,870 that versus focusing on this competitive nature, oh, she 390 00:22:13,870 --> 00:22:16,870 didn't do this right or they didn't do this right and just 391 00:22:16,910 --> 00:22:20,980 appreciate each designer, each person in the industry for what 392 00:22:20,980 --> 00:22:23,820 they bring to the table. But it's just one of the things 393 00:22:23,820 --> 00:22:26,740 like, I've just never been, I've never cared. 394 00:22:27,220 --> 00:22:29,220 Like I don't care if my neighbor's a designer. 395 00:22:29,580 --> 00:22:33,620 Like I would think that's cool. You know, I think there's enough 396 00:22:33,740 --> 00:22:38,940 business out there for everybody to do well and be successful. 397 00:22:38,980 --> 00:22:43,180 And I don't know, I just think that's important to just kind of 398 00:22:43,460 --> 00:22:45,900 And I think that, you know, you don't want to create enemies 399 00:22:45,900 --> 00:22:48,290 because you never know when you're going to need somebody or 400 00:22:48,290 --> 00:22:51,530 you're going to need help or you're stuck and you're like, Oh 401 00:22:51,530 --> 00:22:54,290 my gosh, like I just don't even know what to do. 402 00:22:54,610 --> 00:22:57,210 Yeah, because there are times where that happens. 403 00:22:57,330 --> 00:23:00,130 There are times where you get into a space and you're like, 404 00:23:00,450 --> 00:23:02,570 what do I do? Like, I'm stumped. 405 00:23:02,770 --> 00:23:05,650 I mean, if you do get stumped, I mean, it is not. 406 00:23:05,650 --> 00:23:08,890 I don't think if any designer tells you that they've never had 407 00:23:08,890 --> 00:23:11,810 a space that has just completely, like, blown their 408 00:23:11,810 --> 00:23:13,650 mind and they can't figure it out. 409 00:23:13,730 --> 00:23:15,940 They're lying. Yeah, because we've all walked 410 00:23:15,940 --> 00:23:18,540 into a space and we've gone. What do I do? 411 00:23:18,740 --> 00:23:19,980 What am I doing? Yeah. 412 00:23:19,980 --> 00:23:23,620 And so it's like you, you get into that realm and and you end 413 00:23:23,620 --> 00:23:27,260 up figuring it out, of course. But, you know, it's not instant. 414 00:23:27,340 --> 00:23:29,020 Like, you don't. Sometimes you walk into a space. 415 00:23:29,020 --> 00:23:31,260 You're like, Oh my gosh, I know exactly what I'm going to do 416 00:23:31,380 --> 00:23:34,340 right now through this space. Like this is what we're doing. 417 00:23:34,660 --> 00:23:36,220 We don't even need to go any further. 418 00:23:36,220 --> 00:23:38,460 This is what it is. But then you walk into some 419 00:23:38,460 --> 00:23:41,780 spaces and you're like, you know, what am I going to do with 420 00:23:41,780 --> 00:23:42,340 this? Yeah. 421 00:23:42,620 --> 00:23:47,860 I am not inspired yet, no. I have no vision all drained 422 00:23:47,860 --> 00:23:50,060 from my body. But I do think if the industry 423 00:23:50,060 --> 00:23:53,980 is very small, and I do believe that if we all just appreciated 424 00:23:53,980 --> 00:23:56,300 everybody, then you don't. You don't have that. 425 00:23:56,540 --> 00:24:00,540 You know, like I might not win the the deal down the street, 426 00:24:00,540 --> 00:24:02,460 but someone else does and that's Okay. 427 00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:04,480 Yeah, that's, you know. Yeah, I. 428 00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:05,680 Went something. Outlook. 429 00:24:06,560 --> 00:24:09,240 Yeah, yeah. Community over competition for 430 00:24:09,240 --> 00:24:11,920 sure. Do you have anyone else working 431 00:24:11,920 --> 00:24:14,440 with you than in your company or so? 432 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:17,120 I have an assistant who is amazing. 433 00:24:17,240 --> 00:24:22,600 She doesn't do design with me but she is like my right hand 434 00:24:23,080 --> 00:24:26,200 like everything. I can send her all the things 435 00:24:26,200 --> 00:24:28,720 and she will put them in boards and she'll put them in list 436 00:24:28,720 --> 00:24:32,340 books and coordinates all the admin stuff for me. 437 00:24:32,340 --> 00:24:36,220 And she's actually getting into organizing, which is really 438 00:24:36,220 --> 00:24:38,060 cool. It's kind of a new thing we just 439 00:24:38,060 --> 00:24:41,980 started taking on. I hired A organizer to do my 440 00:24:41,980 --> 00:24:45,380 house, and we love her and she's wonderful, but I learned a lot 441 00:24:45,820 --> 00:24:48,260 watching her. And then we were trying to come 442 00:24:48,300 --> 00:24:52,620 up with some just more creative ideas to kind of help her make 443 00:24:52,620 --> 00:24:54,940 more money. She's kind of taken that under 444 00:24:54,940 --> 00:24:56,900 her wing. And so we've been offering that 445 00:24:56,900 --> 00:25:00,740 kind of service up with clients and stuff and she'll go in and 446 00:25:00,740 --> 00:25:03,860 like for renovation clients, she'll go in and pack their 447 00:25:03,860 --> 00:25:06,740 kitchen up for them. That's so helpful. 448 00:25:06,740 --> 00:25:09,780 Yeah, we always recommend professional to do that. 449 00:25:10,260 --> 00:25:14,580 Yeah, like pack your kitchen up for you, purge, do whatever 450 00:25:14,580 --> 00:25:17,700 needs to be done and then going in and doing that. 451 00:25:17,780 --> 00:25:20,900 And so it's been great. She's done a great job with this 452 00:25:20,900 --> 00:25:23,460 and she does a lot of that. She's just wonderful. 453 00:25:23,460 --> 00:25:26,280 And then I work with a general contractor. 454 00:25:26,600 --> 00:25:28,800 It is a partnership, but it's not like a true, like 455 00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:30,840 partnership. Yeah, Yeah. 456 00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:33,360 Yeah. So it just kind of fell into 457 00:25:33,360 --> 00:25:35,560 place. I had a few clients that had 458 00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:37,800 reached out for renovation projects. 459 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:42,000 And so I kind of knew him through just the industry. 460 00:25:42,480 --> 00:25:48,280 And he was working with another designer team in the area. 461 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:51,040 I had asked him if you want to do a couple projects with me and 462 00:25:51,040 --> 00:25:54,300 he was like sure, wonderful. So we did a few projects and 463 00:25:54,300 --> 00:25:57,740 they went really well. And then he ended up deciding 464 00:25:57,740 --> 00:26:01,980 that he wanted to part ways with that other partnership and it 465 00:26:01,980 --> 00:26:04,500 just kind of organically happened. 466 00:26:04,500 --> 00:26:09,260 We ended up I got busier and just kept like piling more onto 467 00:26:09,260 --> 00:26:13,580 him and piling more onto him to finally one day he just came to 468 00:26:13,580 --> 00:26:18,860 me and said, I mean you're so busy that I can't take work from 469 00:26:18,860 --> 00:26:23,240 anybody else. And so he's like I'm not going 470 00:26:23,240 --> 00:26:25,560 to like basically work with any other designers. 471 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:31,240 And since then, So the way it works, if I have a renovation 472 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:34,640 like a client that needs a renovation or has a renovation 473 00:26:34,640 --> 00:26:38,040 project, I will bring him to quote the job. 474 00:26:38,480 --> 00:26:41,040 I always tell clients you do not have to use him. 475 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:42,880 Sure. I will not bring another 476 00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:46,400 contractor to the table personally, but if you have a 477 00:26:46,400 --> 00:26:48,560 contractor that you want to use, like I'm happy to work with 478 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:51,040 them. But nine times out of 10, I 479 00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:55,400 mean, he's such a great guy and just such a good communicator. 480 00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:58,800 And you know, I always tell people when it comes to like 481 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,640 renovations, listen, we all have had bad experiences in a 482 00:27:02,640 --> 00:27:06,640 renovation project, whether it's timeline or whether it's 483 00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:10,080 anything like that. You know, something didn't 484 00:27:10,080 --> 00:27:12,680 happen, right? What you can't change as 485 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:17,720 somebody's core personality and and their moral compass, you 486 00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:21,250 know he's really good at taking care of clients and addressing 487 00:27:21,250 --> 00:27:23,330 those things and communication is key. 488 00:27:23,970 --> 00:27:27,130 So that's kind of how it works. So I work with him and then we 489 00:27:27,130 --> 00:27:31,050 have kind of teams of people too that come in during that. 490 00:27:31,410 --> 00:27:35,090 But it it works and it's great and clients tend to like that. 491 00:27:35,370 --> 00:27:38,690 I think they enjoy that. I think they enjoy having 492 00:27:38,850 --> 00:27:43,170 someone like me to bounce. To they can share their 493 00:27:43,170 --> 00:27:46,250 frustrations like, hey, I'm not really happy with this that's 494 00:27:46,250 --> 00:27:50,130 going on and you know with the tile or whatever and I'll jump 495 00:27:50,130 --> 00:27:51,890 in so it works. Great. 496 00:27:52,410 --> 00:27:54,330 So where do you see your business going? 497 00:27:54,330 --> 00:27:56,370 I know, Home Improvement Magazine said. 498 00:27:56,370 --> 00:27:58,730 You're one of the top 10 rising stars. 499 00:28:00,370 --> 00:28:04,130 I know that was crazy. I know that was such an honor to 500 00:28:04,130 --> 00:28:07,370 be nominated and voted into that. 501 00:28:07,370 --> 00:28:12,130 I honestly, you know, longterm goals like dreams for me. 502 00:28:12,410 --> 00:28:16,130 I guess a dream for me would be to like Collab and like have my 503 00:28:16,170 --> 00:28:18,770 own little wallpaper line or something like that. 504 00:28:18,770 --> 00:28:20,490 Something fun. Yeah. 505 00:28:20,490 --> 00:28:22,330 And I think just keep pushing my vendor. 506 00:28:22,850 --> 00:28:24,210 Yeah. So I would love that. 507 00:28:24,210 --> 00:28:27,610 Like, that would be so cool to like do the little collab and 508 00:28:27,610 --> 00:28:31,130 like design a couple papers. So that would be something that 509 00:28:31,210 --> 00:28:33,330 a dream of mine. I don't know. 510 00:28:33,330 --> 00:28:35,690 I mean, every year I learn new things. 511 00:28:35,730 --> 00:28:39,490 Every year I learn what I like more and what I don't like more. 512 00:28:39,490 --> 00:28:42,450 And I've passed up so many great opportunities. 513 00:28:42,450 --> 00:28:46,570 And I think my husband sometimes just says, why did you, Why are 514 00:28:46,570 --> 00:28:47,850 you, why do you not want to do that? 515 00:28:48,170 --> 00:28:51,870 I think you Start learning really what you like, really 516 00:28:51,870 --> 00:28:55,750 what your, you know, niche is and you know what's worth it. 517 00:28:55,830 --> 00:29:00,590 So I think for me long term, for my business, I don't know, I I 518 00:29:00,590 --> 00:29:03,390 just, I really don't open. To the possibility, I'm just 519 00:29:03,550 --> 00:29:07,750 open to all the possibilities and constantly being innovative 520 00:29:07,750 --> 00:29:11,230 and trying to grow. I also do believe in that 521 00:29:11,230 --> 00:29:13,750 customer service experience with people. 522 00:29:13,750 --> 00:29:15,790 I just think clients deserve that. 523 00:29:15,790 --> 00:29:19,630 They deserve to have that person and the time that you give with 524 00:29:19,630 --> 00:29:23,290 them is very important. I'm not like a one stop shopper, 525 00:29:23,290 --> 00:29:24,930 you know. I'm not going to just put the 526 00:29:25,290 --> 00:29:27,370 product in your house. It's going to make me the most 527 00:29:27,370 --> 00:29:28,610 funny. It's going to be. 528 00:29:29,170 --> 00:29:33,210 Who knows, you know, it may come from Target, it may come from 529 00:29:33,530 --> 00:29:36,530 Wayfair, it may come from a big name brand. 530 00:29:36,770 --> 00:29:40,050 We really do a lot of that. We source a lot. 531 00:29:40,170 --> 00:29:41,810 My job is hard. I always tell my husband. 532 00:29:41,810 --> 00:29:44,170 I feel like my job is harder than most of the designers out 533 00:29:44,170 --> 00:29:47,650 there because I am sourcing from everywhere. 534 00:29:47,930 --> 00:29:51,670 A lot of designers will only source from vendors that they do 535 00:29:51,670 --> 00:29:53,950 the most business. With or they make the most money 536 00:29:54,190 --> 00:29:56,710 or it's just sometimes doesn't even have anything to do with 537 00:29:56,710 --> 00:29:58,150 that. It's just the easiest. 538 00:29:58,350 --> 00:30:01,190 There's a designer in the area and every single paper that she 539 00:30:01,190 --> 00:30:05,510 puts in like a house, it's the same vendor and it's just easy. 540 00:30:05,590 --> 00:30:09,190 So for me, I think it's more of just taking the time to find 541 00:30:09,190 --> 00:30:11,670 unique things for people and something different. 542 00:30:11,710 --> 00:30:14,150 Of course there's always going to be that person that's like, I 543 00:30:14,150 --> 00:30:17,230 saw this on your Instagram. I want this exact look for my 544 00:30:17,230 --> 00:30:20,500 household, this exact paper, this exact everything. 545 00:30:20,740 --> 00:30:23,300 And that's totally fine. And we do, because at the end of 546 00:30:23,300 --> 00:30:25,940 the day, it's the client's decision what they want to do. 547 00:30:26,300 --> 00:30:31,660 But we try to constantly bring fresh things to a home. 548 00:30:31,660 --> 00:30:34,100 Like, I know you really like this paper, but maybe you should 549 00:30:34,100 --> 00:30:36,460 look at this one because we've done this one like 12 times. 550 00:30:38,060 --> 00:30:40,500 But you know, it's just because we want to bring, you know, we 551 00:30:40,500 --> 00:30:41,540 want to bring. But I get it. 552 00:30:41,540 --> 00:30:44,420 And when I first started this business, I thought, nobody is 553 00:30:44,420 --> 00:30:47,510 going to ever pay me to design their house. 554 00:30:47,710 --> 00:30:51,550 Like I really thought that I was my, my friends, a real estate 555 00:30:51,550 --> 00:30:55,990 agent was like, Selena, you are missing, you're calling. 556 00:30:56,710 --> 00:31:00,270 And I'm like nobody. But what I learned is that 557 00:31:00,270 --> 00:31:03,350 people really don't. A lot of people don't. 558 00:31:03,670 --> 00:31:05,750 They know what they want. They just don't know how to put 559 00:31:05,750 --> 00:31:08,750 it together or they know what they want. 560 00:31:08,910 --> 00:31:11,800 But they're so scared. They need someone to hold their 561 00:31:11,800 --> 00:31:14,120 hand and say, no, you're you're right. 562 00:31:14,160 --> 00:31:16,120 Like you, you've got it, you've got this. 563 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:19,960 And so that's where I think designers are very important and 564 00:31:20,040 --> 00:31:21,800 a lot of people have a problem spending the money. 565 00:31:21,800 --> 00:31:24,200 They don't want to spend the money on a designer, and I get 566 00:31:24,200 --> 00:31:27,640 that, I totally understand that. But a designer will save you 567 00:31:27,640 --> 00:31:31,440 money in the long because we have all been that person that 568 00:31:31,440 --> 00:31:35,500 has gone to HomeGoods and bought 400 pillows and we have 400 569 00:31:35,500 --> 00:31:38,300 pillows in a closet because we could not find the right one and 570 00:31:38,300 --> 00:31:40,980 we just never returned them. You know, we've all been that 571 00:31:40,980 --> 00:31:44,980 person that goes out and we buy things and we impulse shop. 572 00:31:45,100 --> 00:31:46,900 You know, we go out and we impulse shop. 573 00:31:46,900 --> 00:31:48,780 I have a client. I love her to those. 574 00:31:48,860 --> 00:31:52,740 She's super sweet girl. She has so many chairs in her 575 00:31:52,740 --> 00:31:55,220 house. She would impulse shop and buy 576 00:31:55,220 --> 00:31:58,220 chairs and more chairs and more chairs. 577 00:31:58,220 --> 00:32:01,240 And so it's like she finally hired me and I'm like, we don't 578 00:32:01,240 --> 00:32:04,040 impulse shop anymore. Like they're very selective 579 00:32:04,040 --> 00:32:05,560 about the. Plan what chairs are by. 580 00:32:06,120 --> 00:32:09,720 So I think it is hard to swallow that pill of like, Oh my gosh, 581 00:32:09,720 --> 00:32:14,560 I'm paying someone money. To do this, but the value is. 582 00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:18,040 There, as you do save money, you make the right decisions. 583 00:32:18,040 --> 00:32:20,280 The first time. You want to pick the right paint 584 00:32:20,280 --> 00:32:23,200 color for your house because you're paying $10,000 to have 585 00:32:23,200 --> 00:32:25,600 your house painted. You don't want that to be wrong. 586 00:32:26,210 --> 00:32:27,370 I don't want that to be wrong either. 587 00:32:27,490 --> 00:32:31,610 But yeah, let's be honest. One of the scariest things ever, 588 00:32:31,610 --> 00:32:34,210 especially an exterior. Someone's like, hey, I'm gonna 589 00:32:34,210 --> 00:32:36,210 paint the exterior of my house what color? 590 00:32:36,210 --> 00:32:38,770 And I'm like, yeah, you know, you're pretty. 591 00:32:38,890 --> 00:32:41,210 Sure, this is gonna be good, but then you're still holding your 592 00:32:41,210 --> 00:32:44,290 breath until you see it. You're like, what day are they 593 00:32:44,290 --> 00:32:45,690 painting? I'm going to show up right when 594 00:32:45,690 --> 00:32:49,050 they put that first stroke on, you know, no going back. 595 00:32:49,210 --> 00:32:51,690 So yeah, I don't know. I don't know where I I don't 596 00:32:51,690 --> 00:32:53,050 know. That's such a tough question 597 00:32:53,050 --> 00:32:56,910 because I feel like every year I grow, I know more about who I 598 00:32:56,910 --> 00:33:00,870 am, what I want to be when I grow up, who I want to be when I 599 00:33:00,870 --> 00:33:03,310 grow up. And I just think all I can do is 600 00:33:03,310 --> 00:33:07,990 just look forward to whatever it brings, you know, whatever this 601 00:33:07,990 --> 00:33:11,390 industry. But I do say the hardest thing 602 00:33:11,550 --> 00:33:14,790 and one of the things that's totally unrelated to really 603 00:33:15,190 --> 00:33:18,030 interior design is just trying to find that balance for 604 00:33:18,030 --> 00:33:20,470 yourself. I think you can understand, and 605 00:33:20,470 --> 00:33:24,710 I think anybody that is either selfemployed or even if you're 606 00:33:24,710 --> 00:33:27,830 not selfemployed, but I always joke, I'm like running my own 607 00:33:27,830 --> 00:33:29,230 business. It's been the hardest thing I've 608 00:33:29,230 --> 00:33:33,670 ever done in my life, you know, it's been the hardest thing I've 609 00:33:33,670 --> 00:33:35,870 ever done. And my boss, she's such a slave 610 00:33:35,870 --> 00:33:40,990 driver, she never gets any time off and I don't ever get raises. 611 00:33:40,990 --> 00:33:43,630 It's just so, so unfair. I think that's been the hardest 612 00:33:43,630 --> 00:33:46,150 thing. I think for me it's just finding 613 00:33:46,150 --> 00:33:49,310 some balance to like, hey, hey, like, this is important. 614 00:33:49,310 --> 00:33:53,230 And I know you give your all to everybody, but you got to rein 615 00:33:53,230 --> 00:33:55,670 it in and give it all to you sometimes. 616 00:33:56,390 --> 00:33:59,430 Maybe give yourself a raise. So yeah, exactly. 617 00:33:59,430 --> 00:34:01,990 I need to give myself a raise and I need to give myself some 618 00:34:02,030 --> 00:34:03,510 time. But I think that's important. 619 00:34:03,510 --> 00:34:06,310 I think anybody that's going into this industry and working 620 00:34:06,310 --> 00:34:10,070 on their own and trying to start their business and design or 621 00:34:10,070 --> 00:34:13,429 anything, it's hard. I mean, it's a hustle and it's 622 00:34:13,429 --> 00:34:16,429 it's a lot of work and there are a lot of nights where you're up 623 00:34:16,429 --> 00:34:20,030 late and a lot of days and weekends, you know, and 624 00:34:20,110 --> 00:34:22,449 evenings. It's not just the wife makes the 625 00:34:22,449 --> 00:34:25,090 decisions anymore. I mean, yeah, ultimately happy 626 00:34:25,090 --> 00:34:27,770 wife, happy life. You know, that's motto still is 627 00:34:27,770 --> 00:34:29,489 said all the time in my industry. 628 00:34:29,489 --> 00:34:33,530 But spouses want to be involved more and more. 629 00:34:33,530 --> 00:34:35,889 I have. Too, Yeah, they are. 630 00:34:35,889 --> 00:34:37,530 And more. And it's their money too. 631 00:34:37,530 --> 00:34:40,130 And it's an investment and they do. 632 00:34:40,130 --> 00:34:43,570 It's more times than not it is a spouse. 633 00:34:44,010 --> 00:34:46,130 Both spouses are involved in the decision. 634 00:34:46,130 --> 00:34:50,510 So you might you sometimes are like on a Sunday running over 635 00:34:50,510 --> 00:34:55,510 and meeting a client or you are on a an evening taking a call 636 00:34:55,510 --> 00:34:57,710 late because that's just how it is. 637 00:34:57,950 --> 00:35:01,390 So I think you know, just anybody going into this just 638 00:35:01,390 --> 00:35:04,750 knowing like it's hard, it's a lot of time, you know? 639 00:35:04,950 --> 00:35:09,710 Yeah, So what would you say to an aspiring designer who is 640 00:35:09,710 --> 00:35:12,630 being told, like, you're missing your calling, and then they're 641 00:35:12,630 --> 00:35:14,950 thinking like, oh, no one's going to pay me for this, but 642 00:35:14,950 --> 00:35:17,190 like, they're thinking about maybe becoming a designer? 643 00:35:17,190 --> 00:35:20,200 What would you tell that person? Just do it. 644 00:35:20,320 --> 00:35:23,400 I will never forget those conversations. 645 00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:27,000 They still are very like, dear to me and just those people that 646 00:35:27,480 --> 00:35:29,760 and I had thought about it and I had reached out to a few 647 00:35:29,760 --> 00:35:32,760 designer friends of mine that had schooling backgrounds and 648 00:35:32,760 --> 00:35:35,360 they were like I said, what school should I go to? 649 00:35:35,360 --> 00:35:38,440 Like what if if I want to like, do this, where should I go to 650 00:35:38,440 --> 00:35:40,200 school? And they're like, you don't need 651 00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:42,160 it, you don't need it, you have it. 652 00:35:42,720 --> 00:35:47,210 And I'll never forget the moment when I got that call from my 653 00:35:47,210 --> 00:35:51,450 friend and she was like, hey, ready or not sending you your 654 00:35:51,450 --> 00:35:54,610 first client. And I said, what do I do? 655 00:35:55,330 --> 00:35:58,130 And she said, just be you, just be you. 656 00:35:58,690 --> 00:36:02,970 She called me. And yeah, it just all was from 657 00:36:02,970 --> 00:36:04,770 there and it just never slowed down. 658 00:36:05,050 --> 00:36:09,530 You've got to have some faith in yourself and know that it's not 659 00:36:09,530 --> 00:36:12,130 overnight. And it is a lot of work. 660 00:36:12,450 --> 00:36:16,500 It's so rewarding when you make those clients happy and when you 661 00:36:16,500 --> 00:36:20,820 see those finished products and when you go through that, it's 662 00:36:20,820 --> 00:36:24,420 rewarding and it it just drives you even more to want to do it 663 00:36:24,420 --> 00:36:26,500 more, You know, it's like you get that taste and you're like, 664 00:36:26,540 --> 00:36:30,700 OK, I want to do more, but yeah, I mean, just go for it. 665 00:36:31,020 --> 00:36:34,460 I get it where it's scary because I think that's with 666 00:36:34,500 --> 00:36:39,820 anything design, anything new that you want to endeavor. 667 00:36:39,820 --> 00:36:42,220 And I think that that is, it's scary. 668 00:36:42,570 --> 00:36:44,770 Yeah, Because unknown territory, Yeah. 669 00:36:45,090 --> 00:36:46,250 Yeah. And I think you just have to 670 00:36:46,250 --> 00:36:48,770 have confidence in yourself, which I know is hard. 671 00:36:48,970 --> 00:36:51,650 Trust me, everybody has issues with that at times. 672 00:36:51,650 --> 00:36:55,410 But having that confidence and understanding that you can do it 673 00:36:55,810 --> 00:36:59,290 and you may you might fail. I failed a lot. 674 00:36:59,290 --> 00:37:02,210 I'm sure at different things and there are sometimes where I 675 00:37:02,210 --> 00:37:05,210 don't always get it right and sometimes things happen, but you 676 00:37:05,210 --> 00:37:07,970 just have to just know that that's just part of growing. 677 00:37:08,610 --> 00:37:11,380 So good. So where can everybody find you 678 00:37:11,380 --> 00:37:15,060 if they wanted to reach out and see more about wallpaper or 679 00:37:15,060 --> 00:37:18,580 about your business and keep track of, Yeah, I'm on 680 00:37:18,580 --> 00:37:21,540 Instagram. I'm getting better. 681 00:37:24,380 --> 00:37:26,860 You know, that's one of the things that's like I always 682 00:37:26,860 --> 00:37:28,620 joke. I'm like I'm a creative, I don't 683 00:37:28,620 --> 00:37:31,500 do the technical stuff. So I'm doing that for every now. 684 00:37:31,500 --> 00:37:34,620 So we're getting there. But it grew so fast that that 685 00:37:34,620 --> 00:37:39,020 was kind of like one of the my business has been all referral 686 00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:41,920 and word of mouth, which is crazy. 687 00:38:03,960 --> 00:38:08,160 Call me doing all the things and it's been fun. 688 00:37:41,920 --> 00:37:45,160 I just started kind of getting into a little bit of marketing 689 00:37:45,160 --> 00:37:47,440 and really pushing through my social media. 690 00:37:47,960 --> 00:37:50,840 It's always been that way. But I am on Instagram. 691 00:37:50,840 --> 00:37:54,880 It's just Selena Lewis designs. I have a website and then but 692 00:37:54,880 --> 00:37:58,000 you can contact me, you know, same thing Selena Lewis designs 693 00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:01,000 that you can reach me. I think my personal cells on 694 00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:08,860 there so anybody can text. Yeah. 695 00:38:08,860 --> 00:38:12,140 Thank you so much for sharing all of your insight and your 696 00:38:12,500 --> 00:38:14,300 where you started and where you're going. 697 00:38:14,300 --> 00:38:17,180 And it's going to be exciting to follow your journey there. 698 00:38:17,180 --> 00:38:20,260 So thank you so much, Selena. Yes, and thank you so much for 699 00:38:20,260 --> 00:38:29,660 having me. So I love that conversation with 700 00:38:29,660 --> 00:38:32,460 Selena. I love always hearing how other 701 00:38:32,460 --> 00:38:35,660 designers have started and built their businesses. 702 00:38:35,660 --> 00:38:38,570 And I love. Also, talking with her a little 703 00:38:38,570 --> 00:38:43,450 more about wallpaper because that is such a niche that a lot 704 00:38:43,450 --> 00:38:48,410 of designers don't know a lot about or educate their clients 705 00:38:48,410 --> 00:38:50,450 about or even incorporate into their designs. 706 00:38:50,450 --> 00:38:53,330 And as you know, there are so many different types of 707 00:38:53,330 --> 00:38:56,290 wallpaper and different types of applications that it's 708 00:38:56,290 --> 00:38:59,450 definitely fun to meet someone so experienced in using that 709 00:38:59,450 --> 00:39:01,930 product. So you can check out all of 710 00:39:01,930 --> 00:39:04,210 Selena's information in the show notes. 711 00:39:04,210 --> 00:39:07,340 We have links to her website. And her social media. 712 00:39:07,620 --> 00:39:12,260 And if you'd like to know more about the three things I wish I 713 00:39:12,260 --> 00:39:14,780 had known before I started a career in interior design, you 714 00:39:14,780 --> 00:39:18,660 can get the download there on the website, as well as the 715 00:39:18,660 --> 00:39:21,780 roadmap to interior design. So you can find all those links 716 00:39:21,780 --> 00:39:25,980 in the Show Notes our wardesign.com podcast and that 717 00:39:25,980 --> 00:39:28,500 will get you to all of the information as well as. 718 00:39:28,890 --> 00:39:32,650 A summary of today's episode and all the other episodes that you 719 00:39:32,690 --> 00:39:34,930 may have listened to or missed in the past. 720 00:39:34,930 --> 00:39:37,770 You can find them all there on the website, so check that out. 721 00:39:37,770 --> 00:39:40,930 Don't forget to also leave me a 5 star rating and review. 722 00:39:41,250 --> 00:39:43,810 I love to hear from you and you can also reach out to me on 723 00:39:43,810 --> 00:39:47,690 Instagram at our award design and let me know what you think 724 00:39:47,690 --> 00:39:51,050 of the podcast. All right, Until next week, stay 725 00:39:51,050 --> 00:39:54,370 creative. Thanks for listening. 726 00:39:54,750 --> 00:39:57,750 If you love this episode, please leave a rating and a review. 727 00:39:57,990 --> 00:40:00,630 This helps me reach other curious creatives like you. 728 00:40:01,390 --> 00:40:04,870 If you have a topic request or would like to contact me, simply 729 00:40:04,870 --> 00:40:09,830 head over to my website rwardesign.com or e-mail me at 730 00:40:09,830 --> 00:40:12,590 podcast@rwardesign.com.