Designing in New Jersey

The library.

Some current projects.

My desk!

The other internship that I am doing in interior design has been equally exciting! I have worked on many different projects, such as learning about the brand essence of Ramada, Wyndham, Super 8 and Hawthorne Suites. When you create a brand essence in a hotel, a designer has many things to think about: who is going to be staying in this hotel, how long will they stay, what do we want them to remember about their experience, how can we demonstrate this through the furniture, wall coverings and other aspects of the hotel such as the front desk. All of these aspects need to be taken into consideration. This process has been very interesting. It has shown me the business side of interior design for a large company.

Wednesday the 23^rd, I went to an offsite visit with the design team to visit a fabric company’s warehouse. This was so interesting, we were given a tour and shown how their products were made from beginning to end. This showed us their quality of work and how quick their turn around time was for their product. This trip was a great experience; this internship is exposing me to so many different aspects of the design industry.

Thursday the 24^th, I was able to go to a trade show in NYC called the NEWH trade show. This was so exciting! George (my boss) knew everyone there so I was able to meet all different types of creative people. There were vendors that worked with mosaics, fabrics, bedding, bathrooms, indoor furniture, outdoor furniture, anything you can think of that goes into the decor of a hotel. This show was so much fun and educational. I was able to see and feel products in person and each vendor told us their process and how they were working hard to be environmentally friendly. I learned a lot about what makes certain materials quality materials and how important it is for some of these products to be made domestically. Wyndham Worldwide is doing their best to have green products in their hotels, and it is our job to learn how and where these products are being made before we use them in our design.

Last week the design team and I spent our time having the vendors come to the office to give us samples and spend more time with us teaching us about their product so that we could possibly use them in future projects.

I am excited to see what the next weeks bring!