apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Some community colleges have interior design tracks if school is the route you want to take. One thing about the pictures - I would break the placement up of the objects on the shelves. It is too symmetrical for my eyes.

Hi Brent! I am an interior designer and an educator and I am a big advocate for education. I know it is not necessarily ideal for you to go back to school right now, but I think that you might want to figure that into your long range goals. To get started though you might want to looking into any Adult Continuing Education courses in your area offered through community or technical colleges. A lot of times they offer a beggining class for the do-it-yourself crowd. It's a good way to pick up some extra knowledge and test the waters a bit.

I think to you should look into some job shadowing opportunities. Sometimes people's perceptions what being a designer is and what we actually do are very different. The other side of interior design careers is that they are vast and varied. There are a number of careers in ID that may surprise you. I think though that at some point a fundamental education that gives you the basics, technology skills and other development classes is necessary.

Best of luck to you....Dustin

I have nothing to suggest as far as your career future, but for heaven's sake, mess up those shelves a little! I say, if you love your books, keep them where you use them. Orderly stacks arranged with photos and other keepsakes look so much more natural than this grid-like configuration.

Hey Brent, I think that the first thing you should do is find out what your state's regulations are for interior design. In some states (like Texas) to be a licensed interior designer there are very specific requirements e.g. education, years in the field, etc. You should have all the facts about what it's going to take to break into the field-then decide what approach is best for you. http://www.accredit-id.org/ this website should be a good resource. Best of luck to you.

I am also a big proponent of getting some classes under your belt. I took mine at a local community college over time and it definitely made a difference. If you have an interest in Kitchen design, I think that would be an excellent route to pursue. I feel like people are more willing to invest in hiring a professional to do the planning for a kitchen as opposed to a living room or bedroom. Do you have an Ikea near you? I know they have a kitchen planning department.

As for the home staging, that's another good area to look into. I've done some research in the area and found a site called www.decorate-redecorate.com. I'm not in any way affiliated with this company, but I did think it has some good information. Good luck!

Thanks for the comments.
Unfortunately no Ikeas (in the US) within 6 hours Rochester.
Maybe I'll start with just one class.
No sense going broke by jumping in full time right off.

I suggest getting a degree. Most degree tracks require an internship which is a great way to start your career and get introduced to the professional design community in your area. A lot of people call themselves interior designers, but I've found that when you have a degree that really sets you apart from the rest. Plenty of people have the talent, but you will have that extra boost of confidence as an educated professional. As previously mentioned, many community colleges offer associates degrees in Interior Design which combined with your experience in kitchen design should help you land a job you like in the kitchen design industry or as a stager.

Best of luck to you!

Get a job at the Home Depot, Lowes, or Menards. These companies offer kitchen design services and they are well known for training their associates in these skills...education on the job, with the flexibility of retail hours. Also check out this association website for more information about kitchen design: NKBA.org

If you are interested in kitchen design, you may want to look into job opportunities with a store like Home Depot. I was a kitchen designer there several years ago. It was my first job after getting my interior design diploma. There were other kitchen designers I worked with there that had no formal ID education. The company provided a lot of paid training: Kitchens 101 & 102, an NKBA course, 20/20 software training. Not the most glamorous job, but I learned a lot about kitchen design working there.

Home Depot or Lowes sounds like a great idea.
The economy is the main hold up there.

I was working as a solid surface and stone counter installer for more than six months. The company I worked for was the major Lowes and HD contractor in upstate NY for counters.

Then came the layoffs.

Your own place is the best showroom. Start there and invite over friends. If they like it, they might start asking for your advice/help. For me, that was the impetus to begin classes (starting with the basic intro to int. design). If you can, look into continuing education courses at night (or whenever you can fit 1-2 in your schedule). They are less expensive, you don't need to do them as credit unless you want to. This way you can explore your options at your leisure until you decide you want to seriously pursue a degree/career. Even without formal classes, reading on your own and all the HGTV/DYI TV offer great ideas to develop into your own. A job in the field is great as well, even if it as an assistant to a designer. I had the opportunity to work for a high-end renovation company in NYC and it was amazing working with designers, architects, engineers, and even artists.

Brent, maybe your creative side is trying to break through and you just think interior design is your thing because of where you've worked. I think if you broadened your "search" a bit and took a class like painting or pottery (or both!) you'd lay down a really good foundation for yourself and give yourself a bit of creative space to see what in particular it is you'd like. Also, it's probably easier to find a reasonably priced art class than a specifically interiors course.

As you mention home staging, and as you clearly enjoy clearing clutter (from the pictures and explanation of your shelves), maybe the ideal option for you would be professional home declutterer (I don't know if that's the correct title, but I do know it's an actual job) and amateur water colourist (for example).

I agree that school is a good idea for such a competitive industry.

I know I'm going to get flack for this, but these two photos are not convincing me that this is the right field for you.

Best of luck to you...

As a designer myself, I think the best thing you could ever do for your career is to go to design school. Keep in mind, that quality instruction is key. Interior design, or any design for that matter, is a very competitive field. Without a degree, and a great looking portfolio, it is going to be very tough for you to find work.

One of the most valuable things about a creative degree is the opportunity to work and collaborate with other designers. Your classmates are also your best networking tool. You would gain so much from that experience, no-holds-barred, painful critiques are of course part of the process.

Good Luck to you.

Honestly, I agree with Stephanie, and I don't mean to be rude about it. But if those pictures are a representation of your eye for design, I think you should either look into taking a lot of classes or think about a different career. =/

If school is not an option right now, keep learning from experience, read books and magazines, or maybe you could go to a design school and see what are they doing. But don't ever put aside getting a degree as a designer. While you may find you learn more working, on school you'll have the opportunity to explore your talents and receive critiques from professors and fellow students. Some may be tough, rude or not in your point of view, but receiving feedback in a learning environment will give you the opportunity to do whatever you want, without the constraints of a real job. Also getting a degree might be the right choice since it is a bit irresponsible, and not to mention disrespectful, to practice a design career without the proper qualifications, certifications and/or license.

I forgot to mention, I understand your situation.I earned my degree (in architecture) taking a few classes at a time since being a full time student was not an option for me, in the mean time, I worked as a designer and learned from real jobs. It may be a long run, but it is worth it 100% to get a degree.

I have a question for any designers. I, too am interested in obtaining a degree in Interior Design, however, I just turned 39 and would be, at least, in my mid-40's before I graduated. Am I too old to begin this kind of career now?

Thanks!

I have to say I'm on the same wave length as Suzan and Jamie...

"breaking" into the design world isn't going to happen if you're not a design rockstar/genius. You can slowly inch your way into it, but from the starting block you've shown us it's going to take some time and work on your part. Classes will be very helpful in teaching you the fundamentals about shape, color, texture, scale, and lighting. Hands on experience is good as well as a job, even if part time, at a home improvement center like the ones mentioned above.

The worst thing you can do for yourself (and your career) is to jump into an industry without the appropriate skill or talent. Not only does this set your customers up for disappointment or dissatisfaction, but it will ultimately bring you down as well if you don't give yourself time to develop as a designer.

People who seemingly "break" into an industry rarely actually do so, most have been working in that industry for years either semi-professionally or otherwise. The few who do "break" into the industry start off with an unparalleled level of talent that is quite rare to come by. And I don't mean to be harsh, but you do not seem to have an "unparalleled" level of talent. That doesn't mean you don't have any, it just means you need to spend time refining it and improving your skill set before jumping into the gigantic ocean of design.

Staging, is another beast all together. Go to the library, read some books on ID and Feng Shui, pay attention to spacial concepts and ways to make a house feel like a home without making it feel like somebody's home in particular. Play around with your house. And let any friends you might have in real estate or any friends who are moving know about your interests. They might be willing to give it a go for a cheap price. You'll get hands on experience this way. The key to staging is showing prospective buyers how beautiful and comfortable a home already is and at the same time showing them how easily they could turn it into their home.

Good Luck!

Hi Brent,
I am an Interior Designer and furniture designer. My best advise is:

MAGAZINES!!! Elle Decor, Metropolitan Home, Southern Accents, Veranda, Interior Design...magazines magazines magazines. They are cheap and readily available and they are showcases for the best designers and most current design trends. I paid a small fortune for my education, but magazines are where I started; reading dozens a month since high school. They trained my eye for composition and layering, exposed me to an enormously broad spectrum of styles, taught me how to "think outside the box" by reconsidering materials uses in unexpected ways, let me travel the world without the expense, and trained me to spot emerging trends.

Magazines are a wonderful way to develop a depth of design knowledge for virtually nothing. Most public libraries have a wide selection of design magazines. You can get older issues for as little as a quarter at thrift shops. Or you can spend a Saturday at Borders and read them for free.

Don't just look at the pretty pictures...READ the articles. The designers/clients in them are great about talking about how they approached and dealt the challenges, worked within a budget, where they sourced their rooms, and how the collaborative process evolved through the process.

Magazines are an invaluable resource to a young designer.

Another piece of advice: specialize.

If you find you have a passion for one style of furniture over another...specialize in that period. If you love Biedermeier furniture, read all you can about it. If you find you love Mid-Century Modern study it...become the local go-to source for accurate info on mid century.

Search out info on the leading designers of the era/movement and radiate out from there. The internet means there are virtually no limitations (or excuses) to how much you can teach yourself.

OK, I have considered trying something like this as a career change in the past. I'm a librarian, so my method of approach is research.

I learned that there are interior DESIGNERS and interior DECORATORS, and part of the difference is the amount of architectural training they get. There are also salespeople and stagers, among other jobs that are involved with the overall field. Some careers require more training and experience than others.

I read a lot about home staging for sale on the net and in books, then staged our old house myself. It sold to the first viewers before the listing was even formalized. I'm sure the staging helped (along with price and location, and luck -- as I suspect all real estate deals include.) I think helping stage homes might be a way to experiment with the concept -- you would have to work cheap or free to start with, but you would get the idea of how much you like the work. THEN decide what training and ultimate career you want. (As for me, I decided it was fun to do my own place, but I think I'd get impatient and go nuts working with other clients. I do get some ID responsibilities at my job, though, as resident "how should we rearrange things now" consultant! It's enough for me.)

Thanks to all.
Comments and even criticisms appreciated.
No offense taken. I got a thick hide.

So, to boil it down:

Read a boatload of magazines,
start working on college courses,
get a 'flunky' job,
finish degree,
elevate career,
SUCCESS!

Works for me.
Thanks again everyone.

Interior Decorating/Design isn't the easy job we see on HGTV where someone sketches out a room, hits the stores and waits for the sofas to be delivered, then lights a few candles fluffs an few pillows and 30-60 minutes later the clients scream "OH MY GOD!" when the door opens...

An Interior Designer is a salesman/therapist/tastemaker/visualizer/mediator/facilitator/specifier/budgeter/communicator/entrepreneur/project manager and bill collector.

You not only have to have imagination and good taste, but you need to have knowledge of resources beyond the retail sphere, influence with merchants, craftsmen and trademen, the ability to communicate your vision to people who have none (otherwise, they wouldn't be calling you), the ability to manage projects and budgets and time constraints as well as the expectations of the people that you're dealing with.

I've worked in showrooms and seen "Decorettes" (ie: Bored, Rich Housewife with a Tax ID who likes trade discounts) who couldn't envision how a fabric or trim would appear on a sofa - and Interior Designers who can take two adjoining rabbitwarren apartments and transform them into a unified and spacious palace in the sky.

(Guess which one gets their photos in Architectural Digest...)

Ha! "Decorettes" - That's pretty much the best thing I have read so far this week. Thanks for putting a name to one of my pet peeves bepsf.

Brent,
I like your thinking--summing up the advice. You have a get it done attitude, for sure.
Tucked into "read a boatload of magazines" is the glorious task of developing your artist within. People who design and decorate successfully have a major quality in common.
They MUST love what they see in front of them. They eat color and breathe space, feel texture with their eyes, hold intense conversations with light and air. The visual elements you respond to ecstatically become your decorating vocabulary. These elements "speak" to the designer, and then help him/her express something vital. If you want to be involved in the creative aspect of interiors, the first step is to find out what you need to say. That's what creating is about. good luck!

Excellent advice here. Glad you recognize that design is first and foremost a business. Get some business trainig first. Actually, there is precious little "creative freedom" and all the other glamor stuff most imagine and the TV shows portray. It's grueling hard work satisfying demanding clients, dealing with unreliable tradesmen, and balancing budgets, even for the "design stars."

Also, beware of what education you get. Just getting a certificate from the Art Institute of WhoKnowsWhere isn't necessarily going to open any doors for you. Interview the designers in your area. Just ask for 15 minutes of their time making sure they know you're not job hunting. Get recommendations from them. All of us love mentoring new talent and talking about what we love.

Designer vs. Decorator
Not the same.
Home stager, even more different.

I have a degree in architecture and am working as an interior designer in a design-build company.

If you are serious, get a degree.
It's costly in time and money and requires more commitment. But it's worth it. I wouldn't trade my 4 years of education for anything.

Home staging is a bit of a joke to designers. As in, my mom could do it after taking a 5-day course.

(This is also not the best economic time to be getting into home staging).

As others have mentioned, your photos above show photoshop skill, but not really design sense.