NEW BERN, N.C., Dec. 13, 2019 – The Educational Foundation (EF) of IFDA, the International Furnishings and Design Association’s third annual DesignEDGE industry summit at this fall’s High Point Market, featured not one, or two but three industry superstars who each shared interesting insights into their careers and the design profession. Titled, “Blurring Boundaries: Top Designers Who Defy the Limits of Design…and successfully navigate the crossovers between residential, workplace, hospitality and product in business,” the summit began with a Q &A session with Sheila Bridges, who has designed stylish, high-end residences and offices for prominent entertainers, entrepreneurs and business professionals, including former President Bill Clinton and his staff, as well as furnishings for manufacturers and national retailers Bed Bath & Beyond and Anthropologie.

Sheila shared many valuable tips, including the exhortation, “If you work for someone else, you help them achieve their dream,” and perhaps the most important advice of all, not to care what people think about you. Young Huh, whose double-height aerie at New York’s Kips Bay Designer Show House this past spring assured her place in the pantheon of great designers, told of her journey from attorney, which met with her parent’s expectations, to interior designer, which initially didn’t. She also shared essential Instagram how-to’s, advising to divide up your posts into five categories: Inspiration, Work, Shout-outs, Social and Personal Insights.

Lauren Rottet, Founding Principal and President of Rottet Studio and an internationally acclaimed architect, interior designer, furniture designer and art curator, provided insights into the worlds of hospitality, office and residential and how they had overlapped one another, starting with the idea of the “Social Hub” first pioneered at the Ace Hotel New York. She also outlined the varying requirements for each, with storytelling being a must for hotels, the varying timelines and how to handle budget with any client. She peered into the future as well, predicting future trends, like “Alone Together” where we want to be connected but we want to be alone as well.

Event sponsors included International Market Centers, High Point Market, Davis Furniture, Thayer Coggin, Steelyard, Sunpan, Vahallan, Company C and International Society of Furniture Designers.

Photo Caption: IFDAers join the speakers for a group, from left to right, Nancy Fire, Dawn Brinson, Sheila Bridges, Lauren Rottet, Young Huh, Wilma Hammett and Sarah Fletcher.

IFDA Educational Foundation is a non-profit, tax exempt, 501c(3) organization. It’s scholarships support both full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of interior, green/sustainable, product and textile design. In addition, 13 grants support professional development opportunities for IFDA members and other design industry professionals as well as needed resources for design schools. For more information, visit: ifdaef.org and follow us on Instagram @IFDAEF and @DesignEdgeSummit, and on Facebook @IFDA.Educational.Foundation.

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