Profiles in Design: Meet Kellye

Next in our Profiles in Design series is Kellye, Junior Designer!

Profiles in Design: Meet Kellye......!

Who are you? and where are you from?

I am Kellye - Junior Designer at Laura U! I graduated from Texas State with a degree in Interior Design and a minor in Technology. I grew up in Houston, but I have also lived in San Antonio, Austin, and San Marcos. The parks in Austin are amazing, but Houston is still by far my favorite city!

Who shares your address? (dogs, cats, significant other)?:

I am currently dating the most amazing guy, Kyle and we have two German Shepherds - Sage and Braver (Braver means "good" in German) Sage is the big boy and Braver is the "little girl", who is really not a girl - go figure!!. We have had a blast designing and landscaping the new house together!

Favorite Restaurant:

My favorite restaurant is Marks; it used to be a church, which is pretty cool - the best American cuisine ever!! I love brunch, so my favorite brunch restaurant is Backstreet Cafe. I also could eat Sushi everyday for the rest of my life! (or Indian food!) - Taiko has the best Sushi!

Outside the office, you can find me:
Working on a new DIY project! Right now, I am repainting some chairs in a metallic color and reupholstering a chair!

                                Designer(s) I'd like to meet:

The set designers for Ligne Roset (furniture design company); they're photo shoots are amazing. I love so many images, it is really hard to pick one!

Wish I had Designed:

The Gardens at Loire Valley in France

Photo by ACM Photography

I Can Always Watch:

Cinderella! because she is able to talk with animals (my secret wish is to someday be like the dog whisperer). Plus, I have been told I can whistle like the birds… :)

In the movie about my life, ___________would play me because:

I think Mandy Moore would play me perfectly in a movie about my life. People have said we act alike, especially in the movie, “Because I Said So”.

I own too many:

Books! I love collecting books, old and new - I am just a book dork, seriously! I want to have a library full of anything I have read! I really wished the books that open up in the beginning of the old Disney movies were real.

Photo by Scott Frances

My Guilty Pleasures:

I love baking and I am always coming up with something new to create in the kitchen. My last experiment was wedding cakes! I loved baking and decorating them! But the only problem is that I tend to eat a ton of cake batter in the process - yummy!!

P.S. I Made This!!

If I wasn't a designer, I'd:

be a Graphic Designer  (I must admit - I would be designing). I think it would be a blast to design invitations!

OR I'd be the Dog Whisperer - I would love to train dogs - police dogs! (that’s why I own German Shepherds)

These are all my family dogs - I told you, The Dog Whisperer!

My Perfect Day!

Going on a walk with Kyle and the dogs through a really pretty neighborhood, eating brunch somewhere like Backstreet, complete with mimosas, hanging out by the pool and finishing the day off by going to dinner. Then out for dessert and cappuccino at another restaurant like Tony’s. (Hhhmmm… souffle is my favorite!!!)

Stay tuned while Kellye hosts our next design discussion.........

Profiles in Design: Meet Kristina

Over the past few months, the design team at Laura U has grown by leaps and bounds. Because we have such a great design team with different design styles, and from such different backgrounds, it would be unfair not to have them involved in giving you a glimpse into our design world. Today, we start a new series: Profiles in Design: The Laura U Design Team. The first profile to be unveiled is our Senior Designer, Kristina!

Profiles in Design: Meet Kristina......!

Who are you and where are you from?:
I am the Senior Interior Designer at Laura U. I've been working in this industry since 2002, working in the Memphis area and in Chicago, prior to settling down in Houston.

Who shares your address (pets, child(ren), significant others)?:
I live with my amazing common-law husband slash fiance, Brad (aka B-Rad, or SugarBear). We are the proud parents of Ginger and Steve, both Chihuahua mixes, and three extremely overweight cats: Judy, Ramona and Annika. We had some hermit crabs for awhile, but our cats thought they were delicious.

Favorite restaurant:
We have so many fabulous restaurants in Houston, so it's tough to pick a favorite. Plus, the hubs is a major foodie (whatever that means), so we spend a lot of time eating out. We have sushi at Soma on Washington at least once a week. Tony Mandola's is a great spot for seafood and local celeb-spotting. I also love Mockingbird Bistro and Mark's for special occasions.

Outside the office, you can find me:
At a Flea Market. Going to concerts. Reading US Weekly. In my Arts-n-Crafts room, making pillows and jewelry.

Designer I'd like to meet:
Barbara Barry. What a classy lady. Actually, I have been a Babs Barry fan for a really long time. For starters, she really knows what she's doing RE: Interiors. Two, she was one of the first designers to branch out and start designing a line of EVERYTHING: including furniture, rugs, fabrics, lighting, tile, linens, dinnerware, etc., So, I have always looked up to her as a homegoods visionary. Plus, she always looks impeccable!!

Wish I had designed:
Coralie Bickford-Smith's line of hardback classics for Penguin Books, aka the Clothbound Series 1 & 2.

I can always watch:
Forgetting Sarah Marshall. It NEVER gets old or not funny. Spoiler alert, though: it is not for kids.

In the movie about my life, _______________ would play me because:
Chloe Sevigny, because she looks enough like me to be believable, plus she's a fabulous actress. I like her wack-a-doo style, which is comprised of mainly vintage clothing, and she's got that perfect mix of super-awkward, yet confident. Also, she tends to blurt out whatever comes to mind, appropriate or not, so we have that in common.

I own too many:
Cats.....does anyone want a cat?

Guilty pleasures:
I've started to let our housekeeper do the laundry. Although I feel like the laziest woman alive, you simply cannot beat coming home to a freshly folded stack of underpants.

If I wasn't a designer, I'd:
Spend a whole lot more time in my Craft room, and I'd probably start an animal rescue non-profit. I really, really love dogs.

My perfect day:
Late scrambled-egg breakfast with B-Rad before heading over to Fiori Spa for several hours poolside and mineral baths with my girlfriends. I come home later to watch Love, Actually and open up a giant box containing one of everything from the JCrew catalog.

....and that was your first Profiles in Design.....catch us next week, when we profile another fabulous face from the Laura U design team.....