Ashley as...THE GRINCH!

Christmas Social 2009

This year's Christmas Social was held on December 14th in the new special events room in the Manwaring Center.

As our service project this year our department wrote:

84 Christmas cards to families in the Rexburg community

9 Christmas cards to missionaries serving from our department, and

186 cards to our military around the world!

We then had an ugly Christmas Sweater Competition!

After breakfast we enjoyed a Service/Treat/White Elephant Auction lead by our great auctioneer Stuart Beal. It was a fun time to be had by all!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Alumni Student Panel

This week's design seminar gave students the opportunity to hear first-hand about post-graduate experiences from three industry professionals who previously attended BYU-Idaho's Interior Design program. Students were also given the chance to ask the panel questions about living life with commercial interior design. The panel was comprised of Cherie Terry of Kimball Systems Furniture, Justin Morris of FFKR, and Keri Wood who worked with Tanporan, GRAD, Gensler, and SNS.

Top 10 Words of Advice from the Panel:

• "Experts don't compete. They redefine the rules."
• Get involved. Do service. Interior design is about making sure everyone's needs are taken care of, not just the high-end clients.
• Do all you can to learn and prepare now. There is never time to re-do a half-done job.
• Have confidence. You have been given the tools to do a good job.
• Design is important, but there's more to life than design. Keep priorities straight. Be well-rounded and remember family first.
• Always do things for the right reason: the Lord is the perfect designer.
• Explore all the options and keep an open mind. Evaluate the work environment before taking a job.
• Don't just "get through" a project; attack it head on!
• It's all about attitude. If you want to stay around, you have to take initiative, manage yourself, volunteer to help others, be a teamplayer, and be proficient at what you do.
• If you want the job, do all you can to get an insider's name, research the firm, contact them, send your resume, and be confident and persistent with a followup.

Paul Fetzer and "Wood 101"

Foreground: Some of the many samples and one of the live trees Mr. Fetzer brought to the presentation.
Background: Tori helps Mr. Fetzer teach about types of matching with black ebony flitches.
Students discover you can blow bubbles through sticks of wood!


We were pleased to have the visit of Paul Fetzer, Vice President of Fetzer Architectural Woodwork, from Salt Lake City, on Monday, November 9th. Mr. Fetzer delivered a highly interactive and informative presentation on the nature of wood and the significance of its role in interior design. Mr. Fetzer had us blowing bubbles through wood sticks as he taught us everything from wood's hygroscopic properties and chemical composition to its design qualities. Mr. Fetzer's design presentation included the qualities of wood within the realms of color, cut, grain, hardness, figure, match, and flitch. His true passion for this natural material was truly evident as he explained the sustainable qualities of utilizing wood in design. We were able to handle beautiful wood samples from all over the world. One of the highlights was Mr. Fetzer's discussion of his project working with the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. He showed beautiful renderings of the pulpit and organ. He also brought a slab from President Hinckley's original black walnut tree that was used to compose the current pulpit. Additionally, Mr. Fetzer allowed us to see cut outs of the beehive and millenial star designed for the pulpit. The entire presentation kept us riveted in our seats as we learned valuable information about this beautiful natural material called wood.

GE Charette 2009

The GE Charette is a 3 hour drafting competition produced by GE and NKBA. We have many students participate and enter every year. Here's a slideshow from this year's intense competition...

Sun Valley {cont...}

Additionally, we were treated to tour Sun Valley's relatively new Catholic church. The church was beautiful inside and out, from its stained glass windows to the suede walls, and from the solid exposed trusses to the stained concrete floor. The most magnificent site was the church's ginormous chandelier created completely of fiber optics and abstract glass figures. Its beauty was truly astounding.

The Sun Valley trip was truly an unforgettable treat for all who attended this year!

Annual Intermountain ASID Meeting - Sun Valley 2009

Ashley Sargeant & Tori Hopkin
{it was an early morning...}

Enjoying the vendors during lunch

Stuart Beal being Dr. Gadget

Tehra and Caley enjoying dinner.

Classic TL McRae

We returned again to the Idaho resort town of Sun Valley for another fun day trip to attend the Annual Intermountain ASID Meeting. As students we enjoyed the camaraderie of other regional interior design students, design professionals, and vendors.
We were able to enjoy the beauty of the Sun Valley Inn as we attended seminars by Angela Merola and Sam Allman. They delivered tips on creating trust in client relationships and accurately reading others' body language. These seminars were both entertaining and informational as we learned crucial skills that will help us in the business world of the interior design industry. We also listened to John Troxell, Director of Design from Wood-Mode, Inc., speak on the upcoming design and color trends he has observed from his trips to Europe.
We were so proud of our own Stuart Beal who won the Student Design Competition and a $200 university bookstore gift card. Congratulations, Stuart!! We were also proud of all ten project entries from BYU-Idaho that really represented the excellence of our school's students and professors. Way to go!

Arise & Create

Opening Social 2009
Taken from Alma 32:41, “nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow… and it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life.” Students were inspired to nourish their talents, faith, and knowledge so that they too would be able to not only increase their design talents and skills but also build their faith in Jesus Christ.

Surviving the Clarke {display window}

model: tori

model: ashley

ASID & NKBA 2009-2010 Boards

Top to Bottom, Left to Right: Julie Snow, Ashley Sargeant, Brittany McPheters, Angela Miller, Whittlee Merrill, Tehra Woodman, Madison Butterfield, Ashley Seare, Caley Park, Anna Allen, Dawnelle Sarlo, Kayla Drebert, Corinne Chidester, Rebecca Coombs

From Interior Design Intern to Employee

During the Winter 2009 semester we received a visit from Jeanette Simpson, a licensed interior designer from Florida and founder of KidSpace Interiors.

She spoke to the students of the Interior Design Department about searching for internships, getting a good internship, and being an excellent intern. Recently she has published a book From Interior Design Intern to Employee: How to Be a Keeper that gives advice to interior design students on how to be a good intern.

In her book Jeanette covers everything from where to start looking for internships, the proper way to inquire about internships, and how to be a good intern. Jeanette gives advice on where and when to start looking for internships, including networking through many different organizations and associations. She explains good ways to contact potential employers and how to create a good, appealing resume. She also gives tips and tricks to receiving a job offer after the internship is completed. In addition to advice from the author, the book is full of advice from actual employers to help students be the best intern they can.

Personally, I would recommend the book to any interior design student looking for not just an internship but also an entry-level position in the interior design industry. It was insightful and eye opening.

For more information about Jeanette Simpson and her newly published book her website is http://www.interntoemployee.com. Her blog is also a wonderful source for updated advice, http://www.interntoemployee.blogspot.com. We also have a copy of the book in our department if you are interested! Leave a comment, if you're feeling up to it, about your thoughts and feelings on Jeanette's website and information!

Photo source: http://www.interntoemployee.blogspot.com/

North Carolina, KBIS, and Atlanta Trip 2009

The Biltmore Estate

Asheville NC

Kitchen and Bath Industry Show

Atlanta GA

High Museum of Art

Atlanta GA

The Swan House

Atlanta GA