Mother of interior design

I am inspired by, and thankful for, the many designers who came before me, who helped create an industry that I am thrilled to be part of. More than a century ago a woman blew the lid off the interior design industry. Up until this point, men dominated the field and relied on their architectural acumen in place of a design aesthetic. Enter Candace Wheeler, the ‘mother of interior design’.

     This month is Women’s History Month and we are celebrating in style and with style – celebrating a woman who integrated interesting patterns, textile designs and flora wallpaper into homes.
     Decades before bees were all the buzz (pun intended), Wheeler created a honeycomb pattern textile, one that is currently at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Delicate and colorful, the wallpaper is a piece American art – which is appropriate since her style is described as “American.”
     Candace’s design was formal as was the time period: she was entrenched in the Victorian era. Her rooms displayed layers of textures and patterns, dark woods and textiles. Pretty much exactly opposite of today’s clean lines and clutter-free surfaces, Wheeler’s design was to ‘leave no surface untouched.’
       While making houses into showpieces, Candace also championed women’s rights and their economic independence. She was the Head of Associated Artists, a woman-run firm that produced her textile and wallpaper designs.
So let’s enjoy the lingering light, the shoots of green and the strong, formidable, interesting women who helped ignite an industry while creating new ways of looking at patterns, designs, textiles and all that goes into making our spaces into homes.

     This month's inspiration is brought to you by designer Oshi Gardarian, who is a Vail native and is inspired by Biophilic interior design that creates connections with the outdoors by incorporating natural materials or those that mimic nature and natural forms.