COLOR INSPIRATION: THE NEW NEUTRAL- GRAY

I am a Sherwin-Williams girl! I work for Sherwin-Williams as an In-Home Color Consultant. Through many consultations I've learned two things: 1. Everyone loves grays. 2. Many people don't know the differences between the grays. Grays are what I like to call the "new neutral." Whether the clients design is in a bedroom in humid Hotlanta, or a living room in rainy Seattle, grays are so versatile, they can be paired with anything. Here's a look at 5 gray paint colors to love.

1. Repose Gray
This light and clean color goes well with any style. Pairing it with white trim or dark hardwood flooring, repose gray is a gray that works well in any room. (MY FAVORITE)

                     








2. Agreeable Gray
What about this nice warm gray? If any project is looking for a gray with a warm feel, this is the color! This gray has a brown undertone that makes it a great warm gray color. With the color able to play with a variety of wood tones, agreeable gray is a great cozy gray to add to any traditional space.

 


3. Knitting Kneedles
This oh so cool gray works well with different lighting, styles, and materials. Knitting kneedles can go with anything. This paint color can stand alone and make an "aww" moment.

                   

4. Mindful Gray
Whether your class project style is traditional, modern, or rustic, this warm gray will work well for any room. Great for bridging up dark elements and white tones, this color softens up the space. Mindful gray has a green undertone that is very visible but not screaming.

5. Light French Gray
Under Sherwin-Williams Historic line, this gray is classy, light, and a statement. If you are designing a project for class that includes white/light gray tiles, light or dark flooring, Light french gray is the color for your walls or cabinets. It can be used like repose gray, either as a cool or warm gray. I've spec this color in consultations before and it is always a winner!

Sherwin-Williams have countless gray paint colors. You have your options of cool or warm grays that could go with any style project. If you need sample chips or small paint samples, go to your local Sherwin-Williams store. I like to put either the chips on my design boards or paint materials of the color as well. The small samples run about $5 during a sale(SW ALWAYS HAVE SALES).  Be creative and have fun!

What is your favorite gray paint color?

5 TIPS TO PREP FOR A NEW SCHOOL SEMESTER

It's that time of the year again, school time! A new semester! A new semester means new possibilities, new opportunities, new projects, and a new you! Every year requires a different you, an elevated you. With the month of August here, it is time to get our ducks in a row and start prepping for school. Yes, some schools are by semesters but others are quarterly. So many have started school already. That is fine! I still want to give you guys and gals tips on how to prep for a new school term! These are my 5 top tips on how to show up to school prepared and aim well for a great year!

1. Mentally Prepare
Come out of vacay mode and back into grind mode! Don't have your body in class but your mind in Miami. Yes, that trip was fun and much needed but you got to come back to life and get on your mode. Start doing quick refreshers! Refresh on Autocad, Revit, Roomstyler, SketchUp, or even Microsoft Office programs. Start getting back in the hang of those systems.

2. Purchase All Required Supplies 
Be a show off LOL! Show up to class with all your textbooks and supplies on the first day. Email your professors, ask them to send you the required books and a list of supplies you will need for the class. TIP: To save money you can always rent your textbooks from your universities bookstore, Amazon, or Chegg. Personally I love buying my interior design books because it will always be a good reference point in the future but my other electives I just rent. 

•Refill on already used supplies. Go purchase your vellum paper, new furniture templates, folders, low used colored pencils, boards, etc. Use these links to purchase a few of your supplies at a great deal! ClearPrint Vellum Paper Furniture Template Alvin T-Square Prismacolor Markers Prismacolor Colored Pencils

3. Join a New Organization, Club, or Sport
•Start thinking of more ways to get involved! Join a interior design organization like ASID, IIDA, NKBA, BIDN, NARI, or RESA! You can volunteer, network, and receive internships/jobs just by being connected to one of these groups. If your university's design program has a design group, join that as well!

•Always be involved with your school and peers! Look online, see what clubs and sports are looking for new members. It's always fun and beneficial to your career to be involved in school activities.

4. Start building your niche and brand

•Find your design style! Whether it's residential or commercial, you can learn what your passion is and what designs you are really good at. It could be modern, traditional, electic, contemporary, sustainability, or rustic mixed with mid-century modern. You decide!

•Buy branded resumes and business cards. You want both items to look cohesive and nice. Your resume and business cards will "tell" who you are and your personality(just a little).

•Get well-established on social media. Clean up your page or make two separate accounts-personal(private) and business. You want to show potential employees and clients you are professional and ALL about design!

•No matter where you are in your school career, it's always a good idea to start building your portfolio website. Make sure your projects, your contact information, and any information you want employees to see are updated. (Check mines out here)

5. Network, Network, Network
As my program director always said "Get a card, give a card"
•Networking will help you get that dream internship. You never know who knows who. Always have your business cards and tell everyone you talk to that you are looking for an internship.

•Tell everyone you are looking for a job. Reach out to those who gave you their business card.

•Never underestimate your peers. Networking with other students can help you not only in the classroom but in the business world too. Reach out to classmates to see if their internship or job is hiring, they could put in a good word for you. If you are lacking in one skill, reach out to your classmate who may be exceptional at that skill. We can all learn from one another.

I hope these 5 tips helped you get a good start on your awesome semester! If you have any questions or tips please contact me!

SHIPPING CONTAINER HOME DESIGNS

I AM BACK.! I took a slight hiatus from blogging due to my school schedule and finishing up my last huge projects my senior year. All projects are completed and I had a great success at my portfolio show.

I meet a few professionals that gave wonderful advice and congratulated me on my next steps...since this milestone is completed now I can hit the blogging world again and share my favorite trends, colors, and designs by awesome designers.

San Jose, Costa Rica

The latest trend that I am fascinated by is shipping container homes. Once I saw one design and did my research I realized this new idea is not going anywhere no time soon.

Shipping container homes are modified or re-purposed used shipping containers used to stick them together to build a house. Why are these 20-40 ft. containers so popular? With proper planning, you can design and build a fabulous home for half the price of a "everyday" house.
I can give four reasons why this new home design is a sure head turner.

1. Easy to Construct
It is easy to design and construct a home design. All you need is a shipping container(DUH HUH.!), buying or renting it from a company, and the container being dropped in your backyard or empty lot. Containers can easily be incorporated into another container. You will definitely want to add those windows, doors, and maybe some stairs.

2. Go Wild.!
Let your imagination and creativity go free. With container homes, you can design any flair to your new home. Ceiling to floor windows, have a garden on the roof, or paint it an awesome Sherwin-Williams color(Rave Red perhaps? Ha.!). Have fun with it.

Curacavi, Chile

3. Environmentally Friendly
Most companies sell used or new containers. If you choose to reuse a ship container, you are saving the environment by reusing steel. Use solar panels. Build a home that supplies its own energy. Build a patio out front or up top next to the garden. Eating outside can help save energy and makes friends and family coming together worth wild.

Jim Poteet

4. Bringing Personal Style
Living in a shipping container will sure get attention anyways, so why not design a home with its own personal style. Let this architectural design speak on its own. Go modern or contemporary, select colors that are not the norm. This is an awesome design that will let anyone be creative.

Coromandel, New Zealand

WOOD INTERIORS

Have you seen the latest designs of "Wood Interiors"? This is where wood materials are present and makes a striking focal point. Wood can be used in all kinds of ways in a residential space and/or commercial.

Designers and homeowners are finding more ways to use the texture and beauty of wood. Wood is just not only for traditional style, designers can use wood to add texture to modern, eclectic, transitional, glam, and contemporary design. 

What's hot this year? I have two trends with wood design that's my favorite. 

• Statement Walls- These walls are making more than a statement. Paneling are big trendsetters. With the wood material as a paneled wall or ceiling, it will add beauty, character, and appeal to any room. Different type of wood finishes reflect different styles. As a designer, you can mix different woods and finishes on accent wall to add visual depth to a room. Be sure to mix wood with other materials and colors to make the room a winner. 

• Woods Natural Color and Texture- I believe every tree has a story. As you know every species of wood has a grain pattern and natural color. The different natural color of woods set the tone for a room. Be careful when selecting the wood. Woods with a darker color can give the look of formality or even masculinity. Lighter woods are more feminine, airy, and easy on the eyes. Let the grain pattern tell the story of the item. Grain patterns can give away the style of the space. Woods with more heavy grain pattern heads towards traditional or rustic and light patterns are contemporary. 

ROOMSTYLER CONTEST

Right now, Roomstyler has a contest "Wood Interior". Design a space where the use of wood as a material is clearly present. Enter to win credits on Roomstyler and practice those rendering skills.!!

Wood Interior Perspective done by me.

BLACK HISTORY MONTH SPOTLIGHT

It's Black History Month.!! The month of February is that special time of the year where we can celebrate the success of African-Americans. From our history of our people to the success of where we are now, this country has benefited a lot from African-Americans.

For the month of February, once a week I will spotlight African-American designers who are doing their thang LOL.! I look up to them and aim to be an inspiration like they have been to me.

MEET TIFFANY BROOKS

If you've watched HGTV, you would know this familiar face and would've fell in love with her designs. Tiffany Brooks Interiors, Inc  is located in Grayslake, IL.Starting out in high-end residential property management and staging.Tiffany has over ten years in the industry. Tiffany's designs are well thought out, colorful, stylish, and just GORGEOUS. Meeting Tiffany at The African American Top 20 event two years ago, she was humble and sweet. As seen in The Huffington Post, Best of Houzz, HGTV, Domino Magazine, and Pop Sugar, this design studio is a brand to follow. Tiffany Brooks Interiors, Inc. has made an aesthetic stamp in the design industry.

Check out Tiffany Brooks Interiors website.!!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

CAREER SPECIALIZATION AND YOU.!

Are you a freshman in college? Are you a senior? If you are like me, you are in your last semester in school and now you are going through what I call "The Phase of Uncertainty." Are you trying to figure out where you want to go in Interior Design? From the Materials class to all the Design Studios, we have had our experiences of what we like and don't like. I have classmates/friends that say flat out NO to commercial design (LOL they'll see).

I am here to help you filter through the decision box and give you a few options of specializations in interior design. If you are a freshman, this list can get your mind flowing of what ID has to offer.

Residential Design: Residential deals with the private living spaces of others, single-family homes, also other types of private residences.

Commercial Design: Commercial deals with the design of public spaces, such as offices, hotels, hospital, restaurants, and so much more.
Commercial Design Specialties: 

• Facility Planning
• LEED Specialist 
• Professional Offices: Law, Advertising, Real Estate, Banks, Trading Centers
• Healthcare: Hospital, Nursing Homes, Veterinary Clinics, Dental Suites
• Hospitality and Recreation: Hotels, Motels, Resorts, Casinos, Amusement Park Facilities, Set Design(Movies/TV)
• Retail: Malls, Showrooms, Gift Shops in Hotels/Airports
• Education: College/Universities, Day Care Centers, Church and Other Religious Facilities 
• Transportation: Airports, Boats/Ships, Train Stations

Facility Planners are part of the facility management department, which is responsible for the physical plant, the building and systems. 

Lighting Designers continually learn about new products, science of lighting, and design application. 

Sustainable Designers focus on sustainable design, they help clients and developers of commercial buildings and home owners to focus on the environment through design. 

Journalism designers who love to write can find a position in journalism. They can write for a newspaper, magazine, or do a documentary. Why not serve as a design critic?

Professional Renderers clients and many designers continue to use renderings to relate the design concept. Are you skilled in perspectives, CAD, or even Roomstyler? You may be hired by a large firm or even become a freelance renderer.

Its so many roads that Interior Design offers. Research, experience, and you'll find what you love.

INTERIOR DESIGN TRENDS 2017: POWDERY PINK

If you seen my last blog post "MODERN BLUSH", you will see that this blush of pink is making a head way in 2017 as a trend color to follow. I attended the Americasmart market 2017 and saw many trends in interiors that we should look forward too. Of course, my favorite is this powdery pink 

According to The Lux Pad, "Earthy colours are set to become increasingly popular in 2017: powdery pink, terracotta, sand, ochre, cinnamon, rust, olive green."

Also, "They’re both warming and calming, and they look wonderful offset against neutrals. They’re incredibly versatile, too: you could start small by introducing a few earth-coloured ceramics, or go bolder and paint the walls."

This color is flirty, sweet, classy, and such a focal point when used in a room. Paired well with neutrals, this color can make a statement with any interior style. You have to agree, right? 

This sweet hue is moving through lines like: Bliss Studio, Moss Studio, and Handley Drive

Check out The Mart photos:

Olivia Chair

Lili Alessandra

Lili Alessandra

Handley Drive

 XoXo

Photo Credits: Dale Carithers 

MODERN BLUSH

Modern Blush: Target

OooOo that evil eye.... I believe that Target's logo is a hypnotizing eye that screams as you are walking in "Buy, Buy, Buy, and if you bought enough buy more" LOL. I have literally went to Target to buy two things and came out with SEVEN extra items; five home decor pieces and two from the discount section. I love Target.! They have the most awesome goodies, well thought out home decor collections, and great prices you can't beat. My favorite right now is their MODERN BLUSH DECOR COLLECTION BY THRESHOLD. Check it out:

1. TABLE LAMP
2. WALL ART
3. TALL CERAMIC VASE
4. SMALL CERAMIC VASE
5. FAUX FUR THROW PILLOW
6. GOLD LUMBAR PILLOW
7. ACCENT CHAIR

Here are my favorites:

Great minds think alike.! I LOVE Sherry Hart's blog, Design Indulgence and her post about "Black and White at Target"

XoXo