I never proclaimed to be a ‘commercial’ interior designer, or asked for ‘commercial’ related design projects.  Picking desks and cubicle fabric just does not leave me imagining all the creative possibilities.  Some people are amazing at this, but not me.  That said, when a client I know I like, whose style I like, calls and says “Will you help me make my new work space look great”, we are 100% on board.

We have done this with great success for projects like a dental office, a retail shop, and now I am proud to bring share with a our client’s new office in an old home in downtown Austin.

Before:

When our hard-charging client needed a new space for her growing public affairs, events and communications business, she bought her own space right near the capitol.  This old house was about 1,800 square feet and in dire need of an update.  The upside was the outside was cute.

The inside, though, oh boy, does my client have vision!

This room was the lobby/conference room:

The kitchen:

And one of the offices.

After:

The great team at Clayton & Little did the architectural work, making sure the inside layout was the most conducive to my client’s business and her large staff who are always on the go!

The outside of the building and the footprint were essentially the same.  Just some new windows, front door and fresh coat of paint.

We wallpapered the main entry wall in Schumacher’s Feather Fest, added cool lighting and updated our client’s existing chairs with new throw pillows and accessories.

The adjacent conference room got a face lift with white paint, ship lap and metal doors.  As you can see from the ‘before’ photos, we were all very concerned about how ‘dark’ the house was.  White paint, light window coverings and some stylish light fixtures give this space all the light one could need!

The large bullpen area houses a bustling team with flexible desks, chairs and open communication lines.  We used neutral colors through out the whole space but added some fun pops like the mint green file cabinets and blue and pink art.

The owner’s office got metal windows and doors to allow the window light to travel throughout the main work space.  Sheer drapes can be drawn across a track for privacy.

We already shared some kitchen photos from the project, which included the gallery wall with some of the owner’s favorite quotes.

Pretty awesome philosophy for business and for life.  Clients like these help us remember why we do what we do.  The reward that we get from delivering a space that will bring joy to those who work there everyday is indescribable.   This reward is something that, for me, would be hard to achieve in another business venture or field.  With that realization, I am going to keep focusing on the projects and clients that bring me joy, and hopefully my team and I return the gift threefold for those we encounter.