Home & Lifestyle, Design & Style

Life as an Interior Designer

Lesson time 07:19 min

Kelly shares how she manages her time, how she faces challenges and deals with design failures, and where and how she shops when in a new city.

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Topics include: Life as an Interior Designer

Kelly Wearstler

Teaches Interior Design

Award-winning designer Kelly Wearstler teaches you interior design techniques to make any space more beautiful, creative, and inspiring.

Preview

[DOWNTEMPO HIP HOP PLAYING] - Today, we are at the Santa Monica Hotel in Los Angeles, California, and it's a project that I designed. It took about five years, and I'm very excited to show you guys. I'm such a hard worker, and I'm focused and incredibly determined. But I had no idea that I would end up here, like designing a hotel, living in Los Angeles, having my own business, having a team, a studio. I mean, it's a dream come true. I didn't know, going into interior design, how many facets of design that there are, how many different hats I have to wear. So for example, there is the client meetings, and sometimes they're very intense. So if we have a hotel project we're working on, there are many different voices. There are budgets. There are timelines. You're working with so many different people, and so I really didn't know that going in. There wasn't a class that really exposed me to that when I was in school, so there are a lot of things doing the job that I still learn about today. Starting out, there were times that I would go to construction site. And the contractors asked me questions, and I did not have the right answer. And it really affected my-- my self-esteem and my confidence a little. And you know what I did? I asked a lot of questions, and I figured it out. And so going to the job sites and having different subcontractors come up to me and ask me very complex questions and having the confidence now and feeling empowered to give an answer and also to challenge them on it-- and that's amazing. I did not have that starting out, and it comes over time. It's all about putting in the time. It really is, and loving what you do and having the passion. Failures and design flops happen, and they still happen today. And you learn from them. It's like-- it's like boxing. You're going to get hit, and you're going to keep your hand up next time, right? So-- so you just learn from your mistakes. Sometimes they can be painful financially, because if there is a mistake, sometimes that I have to cover the cost. Sometimes there are ramifications, and they deal with maybe another party that is involved in the design project. And you-- you just learn from them, and you forge forward. And you keep going, and beautiful things will happen. [DOWNTEMPO HIP HOP PLAYING] The question that everyone asks-- where do I shop? Where can I buy a chair? Where can I buy a lamp? Where can I buy a table? When I go to a city, I just google like emerging galleries, emerging artists, and cool, unique. Always use the word "unique" because it brings up really special, interesting shops and galleries and places to see. And it's doing the research. Before I go to any city, I do research, and I ask friends. And if you go to a store that you love, ask the shop owner or ask the gallery owner, where would you go if you you're shopping for clothing? Or where would you go if you wanted to buy a lamp or a really cool chair? And that'...

About the Instructor

Eclectic and experiential, Kelly Wearstler’s style helped redefine modern American design and influenced the rise of designer hotels. Now the award-winning designer takes you behind the scenes to demystify interior design. Make any space feel larger, and choose colors, materials, and textures with confidence. Curate collections of art and objects, cultivate your own distinct style, and create spaces that tell a story.

Featured MasterClass Instructor

Kelly Wearstler

Award-winning designer Kelly Wearstler teaches you interior design techniques to make any space more beautiful, creative, and inspiring.

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