Best of 2014: Trish Johnson
This is the second post for our Best of 2014 Campaign. Over the past year, Old World Stoneworks has worked with some great people and we wanted to show our appreciation. With that being said, we chose the best Architects, Designers, and Builders we’ve worked with in 2014. The following interviews will showcase some of the people we’ve worked with and how they contribute to building such beautiful homes and buildings.
This marks our second edition of our Best of 2014 Campaign. We interviewed Trish Johnson, Owner of Trish Johnson Interiors, llc. She specializes in residential design with a background in real estate. She is one of the best in the business!
How did you get started in the interior design industry?
I’ve been in the design industry for quite some time now. I was intrigued by design back when I was selling real estate. I found that as I was showing homes, I was looking at the potential of the space and offering suggestions as to what could be done to create the home of their dreams. We would talk about things like moving walls, redesigning the kitchen or bath or adding windows and architectural details. So I was already recommending changes and helping clients plan their spaces. When interest rates went through the roof and buyers were scarce, I left the industry and moved to corporate work. I found that I missed client interaction and designing. It just wasn’t a good fit for me and there was no room for my creative expression. I decided to return to school and acquire my BA in design. It was there that I discovered my love of interiors design. I haven’t looked back since.
Has working in real estate helped you understand of the framework of a house and how it should function?
Yes. Design has to support the way people really live. The kitchen really has become the heart of the home and it has to multi-task to fulfill all of the forms of daily living it supports. If we design features into a home or interiors that are never going to be used then it’s a counterproductive use of the space.
Are there any designers that inspire you? How do you get your ideas flowing?
There are several designers that I am always inspired by. They exercise such a deft hand in their use of color, pattern and detail: Kit Kemp, Barclay Butera, Sarah Richardson, and Charles Faudree are just a few that come to mind immediately. Their work is visually exciting, they’re masters at it. I’m also inspired by color – whether it’s from nature, a piece of art or a beautiful piece of fabric. I am currently working on a project where the palette was inspired by the colors from the inside of a shell with grays, taupes, plums and soft greens. Texture also inspires me as does traveling. When I travel I’m find I’m always looking at paint colors on doorways, walls of buildings and the surroundings.
Where have your travels taken you to?
England, Whales, Scotland, Mexico, across the United States, France, to a number of different places. In each country, it’s always the colors that impress me. For instance, in France the crème colored houses with the blue painted shutters are just magical. In England, the doors are painted with super shiny saturated colors and the flower boxes are heaped with colorful flowers.
Amongst all the places you traveled to, which aspects of these places adapt to the US?
Well, I think today people are free to follow their own design vision. If they’re inspired by their travels, let’s work with that. There will always be those who are inspired by a romantic look to those that enjoy a minimalist look along with the whole range of design styles in between. I think we have moved away from doing thematic houses though. People are maybe inspired by a culture, but they don’t bring that pure style into their homes. The style is translated to create their distinctive look. I think inspiration from color and pattern is universal and traveling adds a new means of looking at how wonderfully diverse a palette can be.
What colors inspire you? What colors are you using right now?
Right now, one project is inspired by crèmes, browns, citrus-green, yellows, and coral-orange. Another client is working in taupe, plum, and grays with soft greens. Another project is a monochromatic palette but with lots of texture, so people are very diverse when it comes to the colors that express their style.
Any particular music you listen to?
Music-wise, I listen to jazz, female vocals, and classical. I find that any other music is distracting (I find myself singing or dancing) when I’m working, rather than inspiring. I have to stay on task!
Is there anything else that inspires you?
Nature – I can drive down the highways and the colors will take my breath away at this time of the year. The golds, the greens, and the rusts of the trees are stunning against the sky. Sunsets and clouds are also big for me.
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Do any smells or scents help with the creative process?
Cooking or looking at visuals of food help. There’s a gal on Pinterest that just does such amazing pins and it’s so full of color and texture and stimulating. I can see the smells of an Indian curry conjuring up those saffrons, oranges and all the reds, metallics and bright blues that are in Indian culture.
What was the most fun project you worked on in 2014?
It’s actually a house that isn’t quite completed yet where I used Old World Stoneworks’ fireplaces. We did a complete gut of the house and I have designed everything in it from the cabinets, kitchen, fireplaces, and everything top to bottom. We even took out floors. It’s been an amazing, yet arduous project, but it’s going to be very beautiful when it’s done. It will probably be completed within the next two months. It’s in East Troy, Wisconsin.
Do you see a trend for design in 2015? What are your clients asking for?
Overall, I think people have moved away from the traditional look and I think that’s been ongoing for the past couple of years. They are doing things much more simple, much more clean, more of a transitional look is what I’m getting from people. The Midwest is not an extreme area. The clean line transitional look has been popular for a while and that’s what people are asking for. Even when I’m working in a traditional home, we are doing clean lines, simple interiors. And they are also asking for color.
Any new appliances, functions, furniture clients are requesting?
I’ve noticed a lot of people want sectionals. But the colors and fabrics vary greatly.
When and where do you do your best work?
I’m probably a late-afternoon person. That’s when everything gets into gear and the wheels start spinning. It’s always been that way. When I was a student that’s when I did my best work! I’d be up really late working on projects, so it’s always been that way.
What’s your favorite room in your house?
Right now it’s my kitchen. Because it kind of a mix of things. I don’t have a typical island, I have two cabinets at either end of a table. It probably disagrees with every design rule in the book because my kitchen is smaller and I shouldn’t have an island in it, but it works!
Any websites that are a daily must for you?
Houzz. You can search for very specific things and that’s what I like about it. You don’t have lots of time to spend poking around websites. I need to find inspiration quickly for my clients. Because I may have an idea, but I need to find something quickly to show my client because they want to see what it could look like.