What Inspires Us
We often get asked how we come up with ideas for a design. It all depends on the project and the clients’ wants and needs. Sometimes we are given specific direction from the client. They might have a favorite painting that we pull colors from or recently traveled to an exotic locale and loved the feel of the hotel they stayed in and want to recreate that vibe.
When that happens, it’s often helpful in giving us a starting point that can help define the design direction. Creating a feeling can be more abstract than designing with existing furniture or pulling colors from a painting but it often achieves the most satisfying result. Does the client want to feel like the room is hugging them? Then we go cozy – warm tones and woods versus cool tones and metal or tile.
Other times the client has no idea where to start or how they want a space to look. If that’s the case, we start with a conversation. We find out what the client likes and doesn’t like. Do they have a favorite color? What will the room be used for? If it’s an office do they want to feel calm or energized in the space? This deep dive with the client helps us to understand exactly what they are looking for and we begin to decipher what we can do with the space to suit their needs.
We then begin to dream. We explore all the possibilities the project could be. We visit our favorite tile showrooms to see if something sparks our interest, flip through design magazines, browse through wallpapers and fabrics in our library, invite vendors to show us collections that we think might work. Occasionally something like a fabric or wallpaper that we’ve been holding onto for when just the right project comes along, is a perfect fit! Sometimes architecture from our travels or visiting a museum will spark our imagination. We then pool together all of our ideas and have a big brainstorming session to hone the best ideas into the beginnings of a cohesive design to show our client.
The crucial step after the brainstorm is sticking with the design. If we find things we love but they don’t fit with the overall composition then it gets edited out of the design. It can always be added to a pin board or Pinterest board for another project! That’s the thing with design. It’s always changing and each project is different from the last. Inspiration can come from anywhere.
