WELCOM BACK! Let’s take a tour of our LA Based Interior Design Studio…Our Happy Place!

A DESIGNER BLOG HOP

Ever wonder what the inner-workings and the “why” of an interior design build studio looks like, and how designer’s organize their spaces? Well, today, you will have a chance to peek inside OUR OWN STUDIO SPACE and the fabulous spaces of FIVE incredible designers and ONE powerful design industry business leader; all with wonderful unique approaches to design and organization, from different parts of the country, and all at different points of development in their journey!

WHAT IS A BLOG HOP?

A BLOG HOP is a linked list of bloggers that is shared within multiple blog posts and between a group of blogs with a shared theme so readers can easily “hop” from blog to blog.  This enables the reader to see the same topic (each with unique content) and list on each blog.  It’s a wonderfully FUN way to connect and share ideas with other talented and respected bloggers.  By pre-selecting a common theme or topic, it allows each unique blogger in the group to introduce and share new inspiration and wisdom with their subscribers, which ultimately, expands everyone’s creative roster.

So, here we go!

Let’s start with our VERY FIRST home office.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

Our first FOUR POINT interior design build studio was in our home.  In the early days, it was just Cliff and I, and was very easy and cost effective to work at home.  At the time we merged our two independent business it seemed so practical to let go of our office spaces and start our company from our new digs; together.

You can read more ABOUT US, our SERVICES, and our DESIGN PHILOSOPHY here.

What started in a small guest room, very soon turned into a pretty intense family room takeover-makeover, and before you know it, we had three full-time employees and an intern working out of our home.  It certainly was a wonderful convenience to work at home, and somehow we made it all work, until it didn’t. After three years at home, and loads of growing pains, we simply outgrew the space.  We found it increasingly difficult to create healthy home boundaries as our project roster expanded.

Here’s a look at our first family-room-turned-interior-design-studio home office.

TIME FOR A FRESH START…AND A LEAP OF FAITH

Our little interior design company was growing up fast, and after months and months of discussions, brainstorming, and looking for new interior design studio space, we FINALLY found the PERFECT space that checked all our boxes:

• Location. It had to be close to home so we could easily and frequently commute to home to care for our family and pets.
• Cost:  It had to be AFFORDABLE.
• Space: We needed enough space for us to expand over three-five years.
• Daylight: We HAD to have a windows.
• Parking: We required convenient parking for our clients and staff.
• Heart: Cliff and I both had to love it.

A MAGICAL HAPPY PLACE

Honestly, our studio space is magical.  (I mean, I think it actually has magical powers…LOL).  It may not be the “fanciest” of all spaces, or the “biggest”, and it may not have the most beautiful storefront, but let me tell you, it is the most wonderful place in the world and we love it so much.  And THAT, is truly all that matters.

We LOVE when clients and colleagues come in to our office and say things like, “OMG, I LOVE this space, it’s so peaceful!” or “what a GREAT office!!!”.  It’s so rewarding to know that we have built a creative space that EVERYONE loves to spend time in.  We often have our reps “stop in” to catch a little WiFi and coffee when they’re on the road or in the area (SO much better than Starbucks, and OUR donuts are FRESH), and when our clients come in for a quick meeting and stay for a “while”, it makes our hearts VERY happy.

This picture was taken during our first emotional office walk through. We were overwhelmed and so grateful for this perfect little space; we toasted, cried, and talked about new beginnings; so many dreams, possibilities, and opportunities to look forward to.

Pulling this space together took hard work, sacrifice, and clever space planning, but we always knew that THIS niche would be the perfect spot for a little kitchenette.

This beautiful Blue Dolphin marble countertop is a treasured and sentimental remnant from our first Designer Showcase House at Greystone Mansion. It is very meaningful to us both to have this installed in our first design studio.

PRODUCTION OFFICE

Within the studio is this center space. We call it the production room and it has had a couple of iterations over the three years we’ve been here. This configuration has been the most productive, as it allows for three full time staff and an occasional intern to work together semi-privately with plenty of room for storage, organization and production.  I love that each side has a window, which allows the space to be flooded with daylight.

Fact: Daylight is one of the most important natural elements that, when accessed properly, can contribute directly to increased productivity and creativity in the workspace?

CONFERENCE ROOM

The front conference room welcomes guests without encroaching on company operations and productivity.  The open space is perfect for resourcing, socializing, presentations, team meetings, and lunch.

Our large conference table serves multiple duties in our studio.  We customized a simple metal base with a Caesarstone top. (L) Fresh flowers are a MONDAY MUST HAVE and it increases the happiness levels, and stimulates creativity.  Data proves that beauty, daylight, and nature are very important elements for maintaining a healthy productive work environment. (R) The large table is great for plan review, staff meetings, and presentations.

INSPIRATION AND BALANCE

(L) This is our wall of inspiration.  Sometimes it easy to get bogged down and caught up with project and team operations, and the negativity and stress of deadlines.  This wall focuses on our success.  It reminds our team every day of our accomplishments and milestones. Below our interior design studio gallery wall is our sample rail which keeps large material samples off the floor and organized.  (R) Our extra large magnet board is the team’s FREE FOR ALL.  Whatever is creating inspiration at the moment is posted, and everyone participates in creating and updating this living vision board.

STORAGE

Our large sample library is kept organized with this IKEA wall system. With frequent visits from our fabulous reps, our samples stay current, relevant, and minimal.

These IKEA Alex drawers are our FAVORITE, and we configured them for double duty. By grouping them on a horizontal platform, we created additional organized compartments below for smaller sample storage. A simple countertop worked beautifully to unify the components, to create the perfect finish for a presentation credenza in our conference space.

OUR OFFICE

Cliff and I share a lovely office in the back with a ginormous window.  We work face-to-face and the set up is perfect for us.  It’s a great opportunity for us to communicate and share information in an effective smooth continuous fashion.

IN CLOSING

Thanks for “hopping” with us today! We hope you liked touring our much-loved interior design studio. Stop by if your in the area, there’s always fresh coffee and wifi.

IN CLOSING

We invite you to LINK, READ, AND FOLLOW these fabulous designers, and take a look at their beautiful INTERIOR DESIGN STUDIOS.

Special thanks to my dear beautiful designer friends Carla Aston and Leslie Carothers for inviting me to be part of this fun blog hop; and for their continued powerful influence in our industry and for their glorious inspiration!

You can link directly to all of my fellow blog hopping interior designer and influencer friends here:

CARLA ASTON | Instagram

JANA DONOHOE | Instagram

LESLIE HENDRIX WOOD | Instagram

SHERI BRUNEAU | Instagram

LAURENCE CARR | Instagram

As always, if you have any questions about YOUR next project, please say “HELLO” and contact us here, and we invite you to FOLLOW US on  Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest  

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Thanks for stopping by and we’ll see you next time!

Until then, be well and stay safe!

Blessings,

Laura