Saturday the 21st of April saw an early start through many parts of the country. Lights went on and coffee was brewed from Galway to Limerick and Cork to Dublin as an excited group of Interior Design Enthusiasts prepared to make their way to Griffith College in Dublin. The first seminar of the year was to be held and glue, scissors, magazines, note books and rulers were packed and ready to go.
We all eventually found our way to room A007. Our group was comprised of existing students and other like minded artistic, interior design fanatics. I tried not to bore anyone with an introduction to Interior Design. It's funny but only when you actually write it down and verbalise it do you realise the important role an Interior Designer can play in helping a client through the designing of their home. We also discussed ideas about networking and setting up a design practise which will hopefully be helpful in the coming year to students already working through the course.
Olga wowed us with her transformation of a typical Irish bungalow to a light, country chic home using simple techniques and clever designing. We discussed the benefits of insulation and grants available to clients that are looking to upgrade their existing homes windows, attics and external insulation. We also saw how modern technology has improved the quality of life for a client confined to a wheel chair as Olga designed a fully automated environment for him including access to his patio!
I tried to convince students that my apricot coloured pants and bright blue top were a classic example of a complimentary colour scheme and that this worked very well...there were some sceptical looks. After going through colour psychology and colour/sample boards we broke for a light lunch.
Olga and I felt it was time that the students got their hands dirty so we introduced our workshop topic. Students were broken into groups of two and each group was given a different client profile brief. They were instructed to design a sample board and room layout for their client using fabric, paint and furniture samples that we had provided. They plotted their furniture on a scaled plan of the room using furniture cut outs supplied and in some cases sketching or drawing their own. Discontinued fabric books were dismembered and catalog and colour charts were devoured. The brainstorming was epic and the creativity floating through the room palpable.
The styles chosen for models, retired fishermen, pilots, vets etc ranged from French country chic to minimalist and from traditional comfort to eclectic elegance. The standard and quality of the boards produced in just 2 hours was awesome and the applause after each presentation was confirmation of their peer's agreement. I think that I can safely say that an educational, creative and enjoyable day was had by all. The time flew as we raced to finish by 5pm and my brain buzzed as I wound my way out of Dublin Fair City and back towards my home County of Cork.