Bio
My love
for coastal decor can be traced back to my young years growing up in the Tidewater area of Southeastern Virginia.
Great memories include
swimming, crabbing, waking to the sounds of sea gulls and going to sleep to the
sounds of sailboat masts clanking in the night breeze outside of my bedroom
window. Inspired
by coastal living and a great family life, I was always interested in anything
that shaped and affected the interior environment of a home. By age nine my
bedroom became my personal canvas in which I could experiment. I was sewing and
creating simple bedroom curtains, routinely rearranging my furniture, and trying
out new paint colors…. all with my mother’s support as well as a sigh of
exhaustion from time to time.
By my early twenties I began working for a well-known decorating firm in the area, training under the proprietor and gaining invaluable experience. Wanting a thorough knowledge of window treatments and fabrications; which I found surprisingly non-existent in my training, I simultaneously started working for a to-the-trade workroom learning the fabrication process as well as the installation process..... Gaining knowledge in these areas was invaluable for the next step I would take.
When I turned 24, I started my own decorating business and grew it to one of the most competitive firms in the Tidewater area, garnering work from residential clients, major home builders in the area, restaurants, and small businesses. I received two awards from the Peninsula Home Builders' Association in Virginia; won four large government bids from the Army/Air force Exchange Services including the unusual project of completing a 90 foot long rail car conversion in five weeks. This and the consistent repeat work that I garnered from all sources was a direct result of taking care of my clients and the confirmation that what I did… I did well.
Continuing what I had established, I graduated in 2002 from the FIDER Accredited, New York School of Interior Design earning a BFA in Interior Design; writing articles for the New York Metro Chapter of the ASID and IIDA. I have lived and practiced design in New Jersey for over ten years now as an Allied Member of ASID. My academic background has provided me with the historical and cultural references so rich and insightful to approaching each project, along with mechanical and technical skills acquired which allow me to present design work using both hand drawings and CAD-generated drawings, plans and elevations. Years of fabrication experience learned at a young age along with a multitude of project types and the willingness to take on unusual projects has provided me with an in-depth and unusually well-rounded design background, creating a comprehensive design palette.
Coming full circle, I now am a coastal dweller again.... and while my design work in the metro area over the past several years has involved a multitude of genres and design styles, my design focus is coastal decor. I offer clients a comprehensive change in lifestyle, not just a change in interior space. Whether living along the coast or simply yearning for a home that reflects all that is wonderful about coastal living, I design for those who love all things coastal.
Middletown, NJ 07748 (Monmouth County) - 732-495-0611 greta@coastaldesignanddecor.com
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