Allow Me To Introduce Myself…

1 year, 5 months & 23 days ago I was sitting at my desk in corporate America full of anxiety & jitters. The day had finally come that I would be handing in my letter of resignation. Almost 4 years of torture (I’m being a little dramatic, but when you are doing the exact opposite of what you feel you should be doing, it sure feels like torture!) were almost over.

In October of 2010, I had made the very bold decision that I would quit my full time corporate marketing job to leap head first into the field of design. It was the scariest, most gut wrenching decision I have ever made. For 3 months I had to let that decision sit in the pit of my stomach and every day when I walked into the office I knew I was another day closer to my dream.

You see, I have LOVED design with a capital “L” since, like probably my first memory. I grew up with a dad who loved to fix vintage cars & tinker around; and a mom who either had crocheting needles or a paintbrush in her hand. I guess I took “art” and “creativity” for granted and brushed it off as something everyone possessed to some level. I would have loved to think I could make a career out of it, but the thought never really crossed my mind…I went the practical route in college and became a math teacher.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I should have known something was up when on the first day of college…as everyone else on campus was gathering their books & syllabuses; I was cutting out construction paper flowers to decorate my room.

After teaching 1 year of high school, I knew that was not my destiny. And after several other careers…cocktail waitress, banquet server, cheerleading coach, sales, cleaning business, product marketing specialist, yada yada…I FINALLY gave into my innate yearnings to design.

I went back to school for a certification program in Interior Design & Decoration after the hubs & I got married in ’09. After my first night of Intro to Design & Drafting, I felt like a teenager again…and no, I don’t mean in the sense that I was a student again, I mean like when you’re a teenager and you think you might be in love. Your heart goes pitter-patter, your palms are sweaty and your pulse is racing…I was in LOVE, in love with design.

I’m pretty sure my husband thought I was crazy when I came home that night and starting spewing all the amazing things I wanted to do with design…”I’m going to have my own business, and I’m going to design for showhouses, and OMG, I love drafting, I didn’t even know I could draw, this is amazing! And I want to have my own furniture line, fabrics would be great too…how about my own TV show, I could totally be on HGTV, right Johnny?” He just patiently listened and nodded…what an amazing guy…hehe. Love you babe! Couldn’t do this without you…my prince in shining armor…

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was the first time in my life that I felt “right”. I just felt like I was doing the “right” thing. It was so different from college, which felt like a chore, this felt like I was being born into the life I was supposed to live.

Fast-forward to the day I handed in my letter of resignation and again, it felt like it was the right thing to do. I had talked to my amazing & supportive husband about it and we made the decision together. At the time, it didn’t really seem like a “good” decision. I mean I had no idea what I was going to do in the field of design. I had been looking for a job and applying to just about anything that came up. I had a couple callbacks and a few interviews, but nothing played out. The only thing I was sure of was that I was not supposed to sit at that desk any longer.

Well, 1 year, 5 months & 23 days later, I am 100% positive that I made the right decision at exactly the right time. That feeling deep down in your gut that tells you something that your brain thinks cannot be logical…yeah, that’s the feeling I listened to, and I am so glad I did.

I landed a job at Calico Corners (4 days after my last day in corporate America) and gained invaluable knowledge on custom design & how things are done in the design world. 2 weeks after I started at Calico, I was hired as the assistant to a high-end designer on Long Island, Mercedes Courland (never underestimate how important networking is!). We did a showcase together (something I had dreamed about since that first night of design school), and we are now working on the 2^nd one…the end all, be all, Hamptons Designer Showhouse (Stay tuned for the inside scoop of how a designer showhouse is put together!!).

 

In the beginning of 2012, I started my own business. And here we are…

 

 

 

 

 

 

I live my life by 2 mantras:

 Everything happens for a reason.

&

What you think about you bring about.

If you read my blog, you are sure to see evidence of those 2 statements many times over. I decided years ago to take everything as a learning lesson and not get upset over the little things (that’s always a work in progress!) and that your thoughts determine your destiny. I decided to be a positive person as much as humanly possible and let me tell you, it is amazing what it will do for your life (much more on that later).

I’ve always wanted to have a blog…to share and to inspire. I hope I can do that. I hope I can inspire others to follow their dreams and intuition. On the natural level, my decision didn’t make sense…leaving a good, corporate job in the middle of a recession. But when you let the Lord guide your steps and speak to your heart, it doesn’t matter what makes sense in the natural…we answer to a supernatural God.

If you’ve actually read all the way to the end of this crazy little story, kudos to you!!! I wanted to introduce myself and share a little of my crazy journey. I’ll be doing much more of that as well as sharing some beautiful pictures & projects. I am a teacher at heart so I can’t wait to do some tutorials and share some of the amazing knowledge I’ve learned along my travels.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and stay tuned for upcoming posts on “Firsts” & the “Hampton Designer Showhouse”!!