Dear Thursday

It's just one of those days that coffee's not going to cut it for me. Ever had one of them?  When you swear to yourself that you won't fall asleep in class this time and you order a grande iced coffee, light ice, with two extra shots of peppermint...and you still end up waking up with an imprint on your forehead from pressing your head against your pencil?

Well guess what I've got to say to you Thursday...

Bring. It. On.


stina

Humbling Words

"Every experience you have, in any aspect that you might have it, in any field that you might have it, because you are creative, you will take that every experience and shape and form it into the designer you will become." All fields are relevant and feed and nurture us to become better designers.

"You're finding yourself becoming an engineer, an electrician, a mechanic, the collaborator...design isn't all glamour, you know." We use both the creative side and technical side.

"HGTV is a dis-service to what we do...it's not as easy and fun as it looks.  Don't go to HGTV looking for a definition of a designer."

We are entering the design industry of today where people can call themselves design experts.  But it is our job to educate people about our skill set, to educate them that design is a process, and a complicated one.  And that there is emotional value behind everything we design. 

"Good design comes from understanding other people's opinions and creating a lifestyle suitable for them, not yourself." Anyone can make a space look glamourous with a client that has no limits in budget or space, but not all people can accomplish that same feeling of glamour, of beauy, of belonging with a budget so small and a space so limiting.  It's being able to really tune in on what's important for your client.  It's not all about the fluff. It's about taking an existing space and making it a part of someone's life. You become a psychologist, an engineer, a communicator, one in business, a true designer.

"You are the communicator between everyone: the archiects, the electricians, the engineers, the clients...and you are the designer of it all. It is your plan that is putting everyone to action." Interior design is very much about relationships. The relationship between the deisgner and the client is one that is intimate and valuable, one that can change your life. It's a continous jouney of learning and of maintaining these relationships.

"Inspiration comes from life."

It's a humbling experience... being a designer. It's really about creating a quality of life. "It gratifies my soul to know that I can change someone's life for the better."

"We're not curing cancer, but we are improving people's lives."
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- unknown (an interior designer I truly and wholly aspire to be)

The above thoughts and quotes I scribbled in a little sketchbook this past Friday from an interior designer we were able to meet in Manhattan.  She's a superwoman.  She's a wife, a mother, a business owner, a furniture designer (although she won't admit to it), and an incredibly humble person.

Her words touched me and if I could be half the designer she is in fifty years, I will be so very happy.
So next time you watch that HGTV channel, just remember... (:

feeling inspired at 2 a.m,
stina

An Impulse

So let me start off with saying that I've never blogged before,  and what you're about to read won't be anything spectacular.  Maybe a spectacular, rambling stream of mindless thoughts... but nonetheless, here we go!

Why am I doing it? I'll be honest: I am one for those super cheesy, meaningful, and inspiring quotes and things in life. I'm a collector of them. Whether they are on the post-it notes on my desktop, scribbled in my sketchbooks, or written and put in a "quote jar" (yes, go ahead and make fun of me because I've already made fun of myself), I am a true hoarder of these!  And so, I thought to myself, why not start hoarding these quotes and mindless ponderings I have from day to day in a blog? I'm at a point in my life that I turn to means of inspiration for answers, support, and reassurance. 

25 random things you should know about me:

1. I never sleep. (I'm serious.)
2. I love camping.
3. I hate writing on a deadline.
4. I love peeling dry glue.
5. I love the summer rain.
6. I eat anything with avocado.
7. I enjoy early morning kayaking.
8. I love driving for hours and hours.
9. I'm an interior design/architecture major. (Hence the never sleeping part.)
10. I love country music.
11.  I'll prance through cornfields and farmland in upstate NY.
12. I talk to myself, and hum to myself as well.
13. I'm all about city life.
14. I don't like people who are constantly on their phones.
15. I will never eat shrimp.
16. I always procrastinate doing laundry.
17. I don't like the phrase "I'm bored."
18. I'm not one for hot beverages. (Even in the 20-degree weather I will order iced coffee.)
19. I will admit that I am a caffeine addict.
20. I've only eaten at a Taco Bell once.
21. I'm Russian. (I speak it, I read it, I write it, I live it.)
22. I'm not from Russia.
23. I'm 5'-flat.
24. I love watching scary movies in the basement.
25. I'm a sap for romantic comedies, novels, and Disney movies.

Yup, I think that's it for now. The rest you can find out in posts to come!

Happy readings!
stina