I'm Back, New Name- New ME!

So, I know it's been a while, but as you can see... I've been busy! My longtime love and I finally tied the knot after nearly thirteen years of unwed bliss. Always in fashion and ahead of trend, I wore a silver gown and Jay wore a sexy ascot. We shared our day with our closest friends and all the family that could actually make it. There were so many snags in our day, I could write a book. Even a last minute venue change prevented some of my most cherished guests from attending. Nevertheless, the union was beautiful and now life continues with me as Mrs. Dunbar.

Planning a wedding from head to toe and trying to run a design firm at the same time is impossible. Many avenues of my business had to suffer, as they could not get my full attention. My blogs were two of the most neglected parts of my world. It was hard not sharing my experiences with you, it's my therapy! Now, trying to get back to business has proven to be a challenge and a half. It's funny how some clients can disappear at will, living their life on their terms, yet can become unaccepting when you have chosen to finally take some time off- even to do something as important as GET MARRIED! It doesn't happen very often that a client cares nothing about you and views you as merely the labor that puts their (whole entire home) together. There are many clients that actually understand that, in addition to their designer, I am also a mother of four gorgeous children, a wife, a businesswoman, a creative. I have family, and friends. I like dancing and movies, culture and fine dining. There are so many months that go by consisting solely of planning, designing, meeting, researching and the highlight of those months are the few hours you get to network with others at some stuffy function hosted by a vendor serving small bites of food in decorative glassware. There are times when the life of a designer is either all or nothing at all. Well, I am trying to change that!

My new approach to life is "GRAB IT"! If you want it, take it! If you're good at it, prove it! Sadly enough, if nobody knows, it doesn't seem to count. I design gorgeous and unique interiors and I WILL change the way Arizona sees interior design! Neutral, Tuscan boredom... you're going down!

Possible New Blog Site

TESTING A NEW BLOG SITE... So, I have been blogging for over a year now, but am still new to the whole technology aspect of it. I am trying a new site to see which I prefer. My blogger site is no longer a desirable background for my posts and I don't know how to create a custom background for my work. The new site has lots to offer, but I don't know how to add the essentials like subscription pages, etc... So, we'll see which way I go. I'm experimenting, in between working like a chicken with my head cut off. For now, I will link back and forth!

PLEASE CHECK OUT MY MOST CURRENT POSTS AT www.interiordesign2you.weebly.com

GOOD RIDDENS TO 2009- THE COMEBACK OF DESIGN!

If I had to find one word to describe this year, it would have to be "survival". Not survival of the fittest, but survival of the smartest; and that's not always a good thing. This year I saw many large home improvement businesses vanish. Contractors went out of business, many design firms closed around me, furniture stores shut down and far too many went bankrupt and lost homes and assets. Some saw this coming and prepared by downsizing their companies quickly, to avoid total financial chaos. Most though, still kept on their normal business course, and before you knew it, the clients were gone and so was the income. We never thought the bottom would ever fall out of the high end market, but it sunk like a stone. Through the ashes of the companies that couldn't survive grew newly formed companies run by unskilled laborers trying to make a quick buck on unsuspecting customers looking to remodel their homes for cheap...and this is now where we are.

Where have I been? I abandoned my blogs and much of my normal life while I attempted to figure out my next move. When the going gets tough, sometimes the tough have to meditate! Although I am still standing, this year has brought many trials and losses. I probably should have been here talking through them, but you know what mommy says, " If you can't say nothing nice..".

Personally, I am in a better, more positive place, ready to take on the nay-sayers who feel that they no longer need an Interior Designer in their lives because they can get discounts, or shop at wholesale stores and watch enough DIY to figure it all out. Truth is, you can't. Sure you may be able to get the job done, but most often times for more money than you would have paid me to help you, or with mistakes that will make the job sub-standard at best. Designers were put on this Earth for a reason. We have a valuable skill that you can't absorb by watching endless episodes of "Divine Design". There is far too much that goes into designing a room. It's not just picking pretty colors for paint and fabrics that match; and SHAME ON YOU so-called "designers" who are merely bad decorators acting like you know what you're doing and working on projects beyond your scope of understanding and experience. You are cheapening what we do and making it harder for clients to see the value of our worth. Where product selection might mean the difference in their property value, a safety issue or even housing codes, a blind woman should not give directions! I have seen enough tacky interiors this year to last a lifetime! And because the design bucket is currently filled with so many bad apples, this design diva has had to take a second job. Good designers are like actors in Hollywood now, most are waiting tables or getting by on whatever can consistently pay the bills. I am designing kitchens for a second company that allows me the freedom to still run my firm part time. Thank God for his blessings and for the patience it has taken to get through this year.

I am back WORLD, better and stronger than I was. And if you think I had a lot to say before, wait till you see me now!