Pink Door Designs works with homeowners across the Greater Houston metro. (Courtesy Pink Door Designs)
Despite interior designers' reputation for putting together large-scale home renovations or transforming rooms to be unrecognizable, Jamie Olivarez said her studio also offers a more affordable option.
Olivarez, an established interior designer and founder of Pink Door Designs, said she is able to offer clients consultations by the hour. For instance, if a client has the majority of their ideas laid out but has a few questions, Olivarez can help provide clarity and a professional opinion.
“To sit down with the designer who has a ton of resources and knowledge, they can get a lot done within that two-hour time frame and help you make decisions that maybe you hadn't even thought of,” Olivarez said.
The approach
Olivarez started the business while studying interior design at Houston City College in 2005. She said that as a child and young adult, she was always creatively engineered to make things come alive, even if she only had a few tools to work with.
She describes her job as taking someone’s personal style and amplifying it, as she believes people’s homes are meant to showcase who they are.
“[The house] is supposed to say ‘this is my place, this is what I'm doing and this is what I'm about,’” Olivarez said. “I always tell clients the powder bathroom is the one place that you can just go crazy because it's the powder bathroom.”
Read all about it
Olivarez said she is seeing trends shift with clients moving away from the modern farmhouse look that was popular a few years ago and asking for more tradition and character. Other trends include color drenching, where paint is used on walls, doors and ceilings, and the incorporation of more woodwork and trim.
Additionally, Olivarez said the use of artificial intelligence has changed the industry because designers can quickly show clients ideas, such as color combinations or room mockups, in visual renderings.
Jamie Olivarez started Pink Door Designs while studying at Houston City College. (Courtesy Pink Door Designs)
Her thoughts
Olivarez said hiring a designer would be the biggest asset to indecisive homeowners who have a hard time committing to a decision or are terrified to make the wrong choice.
Her advice to clients is to “stay out of the cereal aisle,” where it’s easy to keep wandering and looking around at options without making a decision.
“We're here to work, but also get organized and help make the streamlined process easier,” she said. “There's a lot of decisions to be made, and a lot of people get very overwhelmed with that decision-making process, and they don't make a decision because they just don't know where to start.”
