Interior Designer
What is your professional background prior to KLC?
I began working in banking over 20 years ago, specifically in foreign exchange trading. I always enjoyed art and studied it at both school and college where I took several different modules in visual styles. After having children, I moved to Hong Kong where I’ve been a homemaker and worked in various voluntary roles.
When you were looking for courses, what was it about the course that appealed to you?
My main objective was to have an industry recognised course and KLC was recommended by a friend in Hong Kong, who founded Altfield (now with showrooms in Hong Kong and London). She advised me to follow the Open Learning Diploma course as it was an industry-standard, rigorous program which she thought would suit me. I didn’t look at any alternatives.
How does the course fit your lifestyle?
As I live in Hong Kong, I needed a distance learning course and one which fits around my family’s commitments. We are American passport holders; my husband is a banker and although he’s very supportive of me doing the course, he travels widely, and I need to have the flexibility to accompany him.
My eldest daughter is in her final year at St Andrew’s University and her youngest daughter has just moved to Italy, where she is working. We’re a rather international family!
What are you enjoying most about the course?
The flexibility and the rigour of it! Before starting the course, I had underestimated the standard, not only of the work I needed to produce but also the amount and detail of the feedback the tutors give me – I was absolutely delighted to receive such detailed feedback on my work!
Where do you look for inspiration?
- The usual variety of interior magazines, but particularly ‘Wallpaper’ and ‘Kin Folk’ (a US based artsy mag)
- Attending trade shows
- Colour trending and forecasting
