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.