Thinking About Becoming An Interior Designer?
Are you thinking about becoming an interior designer?
Is interior design a good career?
Is it hard to be an interior designer?
What qualifications do you need to become an interior designer?
What about interior design school?
Do you need an interior design degree?
Which school should you attend?
What’s it like attending interior design school?
What happens when you graduate?
Will interior design school prepare you for the “real world”
What kind of job can you get after graduation?
What does the future hold for newly-graduated interior designers?
SO MANY QUESTIONS. To get some answers, we’re going to be speaking with a wide range of interior design professionals, students & educators.
Today, we’re speaking with Emily Kirst.
Emily is a new and emerging designer. She is in her final year of the Bachelor of Interior Design program at Yorkville University., AND she just landed her first design job as a Junior Designer at a high-end residential firm – Megan Crosbie Design, in Toronto, Canada. Congrats Emily!!!
As a soon-to-be interior design graduate & employee at a residential design firm, Emily provides us a unique point of view. Unlike all those experienced interior designers & educators, Emily is here to give you a sneak-peek into what your next few years could look like…if you decide to become an interior designer.
Interior Design Toronto : What made you think of interior design as a career? - Your natural abilities, feedback from existing designer, HGTV, etc?
Emily Kirst : Funny enough, I started my journey into Interior Design later than I would have liked to if I had to do it all over again. Growing up, I watched HGTV with my parents, helped my mom pick out furniture and accessories for the house, helped my parents paint and put together furniture, and always rearranged my room and tried out different DIY projects.
However, Interior Design was not a traditional career path and was not an option discussed, especially in my high school career's class or guidance counselor. I took the safe route and went to Wilfrid Laurier University for my Bachelor of Communication Studies. I got a full-time job right out of school, but something in that career path just felt like it was missing.
After two years, lots of research, and conversations with friends and family, I took some time to think about my strengths. What I could do that would encompass my creativity, passion for helping people, and my organization and attention to detail - Interior Design was the answer. It was one of those things that were right there my entire life, but it took me a long time to realize it was what I was supposed to be doing.
Interior Design Toronto : Why interior designer & not interior decorator?
Emily Kirst : I knew that I wanted to be a designer because, for me, function is more important than just the aesthetics of the space. How people can move and navigate the space and design every detail for a space to both function well and be aesthetically pleasing. Being a designer allows me to combine my creativity with science and psychology to understand how people and spaces work in harmony.
Interior Design Toronto : Did you research "what's it like being an interior designer" AND if so, was there anyone thing that made you decide to take this career path?
Emily Kirst : Yes, lots of research. Since it was a big move for me to change career paths, I wanted to make sure that I had all of the information to make my decision. In my research, I came across a YouTube channel of a designer in Vancouver, Karin Bohn, who shares her whole design journey and path and some great information about being an entrepreneur. Karin gave me a good understanding of what the job entails and a great behind-the-scenes experience of her day-to-day life. She instilled confidence in me to hear about how many designers out there are where they are because they changed their initial career path, so I knew that I would be okay even though I was a little late to the game.
Interior Design Toronto : What kind of interior design are you interested in...residential, commercial? and why?
Emily Kirst : I actually am interested in both.
I love residential design because homes are such a significant part of many people's lives. It is the place where you make memories with your family, destress from a crazy week, and have a sense of place, comfort and belonging. Designing for residential is personal because it is where a lot of your time is spent and really needs to function well for you and your family and be an expression of your style and what makes you unique. Creating a space that will foster many memories for people and families is something exceptional to do.
I also am interested in small-scale commercial design - looking at things like small businesses, boutiques, spas, unique restaurants etc. I have only done figurative work on this scale in-studio projects at school, but I do have an immense interest in doing some of this type of work in the future. I love walking into a restaurant or small business that has a great design. Making the whole experience for your customer or user unique and telling a story just from the design of the space is something I am passionate about. There are lots of opportunities to be really creative and unique with a focus on user experience.
Interior Design Toronto : Do you have a favourite design style (or style hero)?
Emily Kirst : This is a difficult question! I don't think I necessarily have a design style – which is part of the fun of it. I don't want to be known for a particular style because part of our job is to infuse our clients' style into the space. If I had to pick a style, I would say I am more drawn to a classic, modern style with a bit of eclectic influence mixed in. I do also love nature and working with natural elements and textures – bringing a sense of outdoors inside.
Interior Design Toronto : Re the business side of the industry, do you want to work for a big design firm, a small (boutique) design firm or build your own business? Maybe you want to gain some experience first with a big/small firm before heading out on your own???
Emily Kirst : I was recently hired by a small boutique firm as a junior designer, and that has always been my goal starting out. Small firms are great to see the whole design process from start to finish and get your feet wet in all aspects of a design project. You can work on a variety of tasks and learn and grow as a designer quickly. You get to work closely with the principal designer and really learn hands-on with them. Ultimately my goal is to gain some experience, probably about 4-5 years and really learn about all facets of the job, and then eventually head out on my own and have my own small firm.
Interior Design Toronto : Where did you go to school for interior design & why did you choose that school?
Emily Kirst : I am currently finishing my Bachelor of Interior Design at Yorkville University (I will graduate in December 2021!). I ultimately chose this school because I wanted to make sure I attended a CIDA accredited program so I can at some point write my NCIDQ. It also was the only program in Ontario that offered a part-time and online version. I had to make sure that I loved Interior Design before quitting my full-time job and changing my career path. I did school on evenings and weekends while working my full-time job for the first year. Once I started, I knew I was on the right path; I became a full-time on-campus student to fast-track my degree after that.
Interior Design Toronto : Would you recommend that school to future interior design students?
Emily Kirst : Yorkville has some great teachers and mentors in the Interior Design program. The courses do a great job of getting you familiar with the software and the different interior design specialties through the various studio courses. It also depends on what you are looking for. Suppose you are fresh out of high school and are looking to go to a college or university for Interior Design. In that case, other CIDA accredited programs will allow you to have the full post-secondary school experience. However, if you are like me and want a career change, to get your degree done quickly or be flexible and part-time, Yorkville is a great option. Many of the students are mature, which is their second program, so it was the perfect fit for me.
Interior Design Toronto : What was it like going to design school? Workload, time commitment, quality of education...do you feel that you're ready to help a potential employer and/or potential clients?
Emily Kirst : Design school is TOUGH, but as it should be, it is not an easy industry; it prepares you for being able to juggle multiple projects and deadlines. If you take a full course load of 5 classes and back to back semesters (Yorkville has 4 semesters a year, and you can take them without a "summer break" if you so choose), it is a lot. It is a large time commitment, and projects are very rewarding to create but also very time-consuming.
My husband and I have a running joke that he will ask me how much longer I think I have left for an assignment, and I will say something like "oh, not too much, probably 2 more hours," and he will go, "okay, see you in 4". Most assignments take double the amount of time you think they will. Like any post-secondary education, I believe that school has given me many great tools to be somewhat prepared to work for a firm – but there is still so much more that you learn hands-on in the industry that school would never be able to prepare you for.
Interior Design Toronto : Now that you've graduated, what's it like being a new interior designer looking for employment and/or clients?
Emily Kirst : Pre social media, residential designers (and to a lesser degree...commercial design firms) thrived on word of mouth. Do a great job, and people will tell their friends and/or industry contacts. Now, you can share your designs, your ideas, your personality with the entire world and build a brand for yourself much, much faster than in the past. How do you see social media impacting your interior design career?
Social media definitely plays a considerable role in creating a brand and being able to share my work with a much larger audience than ever before. Coming from my communications background, social media is such a great tool to not only build a following, but it also helps you speak to your potential clients on a level that they will understand.
Portfolios are a huge part of the design industry and perfectly curate the work you have accomplished and tell a story about your design ideas and thinking. But almost everyone is using some social media platform now, and it is such a great tool for potential clients to see how you work, your style, your brand, and feel a deeper connection with you as a designer. It helps to instill confidence in your work before you even start a project with a client – if they connect with your work, style and personality, it is a great way to make connections and gain potential clients. I will admit I am not the best person for posting regularly, but I know that it is something I will have to work on and use it as a place to share my work with others.
Interior Design Toronto : Did your education focus solely on interior design or did it teach you about the business side of the industry? If yes, do you feel that they gave you a great start on running a business or being a great asset to an established design firm?
Emily Kirst : Most of my courses have been design-focused, but a few are focused around the business side – creating contracts, a brand, budgeting, etc. I think it is enough to be a great asset at an already established design firm, but I believe there is still a lot I will need to learn before I have the education to run my own firm.
Interior Design Toronto : Where do you see yourself in 1 year, 5 years, 20 years in terms of interior design?
Emily Kirst : I will finish out my degree this year and continue working as a Junior Designer. I plan to use the time to be a sponge and soak up all of the information I can about the design industry, working with clients, making connections with other industry professionals, and just fully immersing myself in every aspect as a new designer.
In 5 years, I hope to be at a point where I am starting my own firm and working with my own clients, and hopefully being in the position to take on new designers and fostering them in the same way I have the opportunity to right now.
In 20 years, I would love to be very well established, working with a small team and creating really meaningful and unique projects for our clients. I also hope at this time to be able to give back to the industry and look at fostering the next generation of designers by teaching a class or two at a design school and being able to pass on some of the knowledge and experience I have gained throughout my journey.
Interior Design Toronto : Knowing what you know now about going to school for interior design, would you do anything differently?
Emily Kirst : I would have liked to go into it right out of high school, haha…but you can't change the past, and I have learned so much along my journey and am thankful for the opportunities I have had. I do plan in the future, once I am an established designer, to make it a mini-mission of mine to encourage more creative professions in high schools. It is so crazy to me the number of designers I know or have heard of that went to school or had a job in a different industry first because Interior Design is just not really talked about as a serious career option.
About the Author
Emily Kirst is a new and emerging designer. She is in her final year of the Bachelor of Interior Design program at Yorkville University. She works as a Junior Designer at a high-end residential firm – Megan Crosbie Design, in Toronto, ON.
Emily loves to solve problems and create functional, innovative, and creative places for people to spend their time. She believes successful designs should function like a second skin for the client and enhance the space while also telling their story. She wants her designs to spark joy and bring happiness to their users.
Website: emilykirst.com
Instagram: @atelier_ek
