Green & Solar Home Tours

Being a volunteer at the Green & Solar Home Tours in Spokane was a lot of fun and educating. I volunteered with Ellie Lokken and our duty was to hand out brochures and bracelets before visitors entered the houses, we also directed cars because the houses were difficult to locate. The home owners were extremely nice and offered coffee and donuts to us volunteers and we had a great experience touring all of the homes after we were done staffing. Meeting people in the industry and seeing the amazing houses was something I'm glad I didn't miss. I would like to continue volunteering for the next couple years, it was a wonderful experience.

Design Fair in Spokane

Attending the Design fair in Spokane ended up being a great opportunity to meet a lot of people in the design field and also learn how to be involved and learn about all the different products that were available. It also gave me the opportunity to sign up to be a student member of the International Interior Design Association. I received a lot of brochures and catalogs that show the products and how to contact people if I had further questions about their products. Some of the businesses I got to learn about were Meyer Wells, Design Nine group, Formica, The Masonry Center, Trikes, Pulp studio, T & A supply Company, Wieland, Kimball Office, Forbo, Roppe, LG Hausys, and a couple more. All of the people I talked to were extremely nice and excited about future designers. I'm glad I took this opportunity to learn about all these products, and have the opportunity to learn more. This photo on the right is an example of what is created by Pulp Studio and their glass imaging of SentryGlass Expressions.

Jim Olsen

Jim Olsen is a well respected Architect and has brought a great touch to the world or design. One of his main influences came from his father, who somewhere along these lines, told him, "If you want to be happy, do what you love." Olsen took this advice and ran with it. He realized designing houses and building was what made him truly happy. Many of his designs are influenced by nature and include natural light throughout his spaces. Some of his favorite designs come from Ancient Egypt and Traditional Japan. Olsen expresses how it is important that when working with clients, the end product should be a little bit of them and a little bit of yourself. Art is also another way to express yourself throughout the built environment of your creations, because art inspires design ideas. In his designs, you will often find cement walls and natural light. The photo on the right is one of his creations. In his
lecture, he wanted to get the point across that becoming friends with your clients is important and you should take the opportunity to achieve the goal that they want because they will be life long friends and they are likely to love your work and want more! Olsen left us with some last words that, "Stars are about endless possibilities."

Habitat for Humanity

Being a part of the construction crew half a day at this cite for habitat for humanity was an unforgettable experience that I would love to do again! My job throughout the day was blocking, which consists of the sawing of boards that were placed and nailed in between the wall boards to have a place to nail things into when the walls were put up. It was more difficult than I thought it would be, but the product was worth it and I had a fun time sawing the wood pieces. I never have seen this beginning process of a house being built, so it was interesting to see all of the cables and foundation of the house coming together. The lunch that was provided was also great! I had an overall great time and I'm happy we got the opportunity to be involved in this experience. 

Photo of the first hard working group!

Wheelchair Experience

My wheelchair experience with Ashley Arnold was very interesting, but a little fun was added into it. Going through the process of having to go in and out of doors, even though accessible, was difficult. In the Architecture building, the library doesn't have an accessible door, which also made it hard to figure out how to get through, but after a lot of turning and nudging it was possible. A space to be accessible has never seemed so important until I had experienced it for myself. Wheeling around in the corridors and seeing how the bathrooms were difficult to move around in and the mirrors were too high, seems as though those in wheelchairs have it harder than most people think. 

Photo of me getting a book from the library bookshelf.

Photo of what might happen since there is no place in this curb for a wheelchair to go through. Safety should be a big part of designing, and making sure everything is accessible is important. 

Seattle Field Trip

I had an amazing time on the Seattle trip with this years design students. Being able to see different firms and job shadowing Melinda SeChrist at SeChrist design was an experience I will never forget. Job shadowing was hands down the most fun part of our time in Seattle. I got to experience the process of the steps in an actual project. SeChrist design specializes in hospitality, so I got to see a designer choose certain fabric materials that would be placed in a nursing home. Also, I got in on the idea of which wood to choose for a project that involved 3 different apartments. Even though hospitality isn't the field I want to pursue, it opened my eyes to the reality of design and how important it really is. I would love to go back and visit the places that we did. I had the greatest time!