Tuesday, August 19, 2014

INTERVIEW WITH CALIFORNIA HOMES

What Are Advanced (Interior) Design Techniques: An Interview with Theresa Mawson of Theresa's Interiors

Please tell us a little bit about your company and the services you offer.

Theresa's Interiors began 35 years ago as a traditional design firm offering fine furnishings and interior design services. After several life-altering events, I became passionate about how our environment affects us on so many levels. Interior Insights (tm) was born, taking a somewhat a holistic approach, wherein all three dimensions (physical, psychological and spiritual) are utilized to understand and execute effective uses of space for an individual's needs. My interests in health, science, physics, spirituality, cultures, behavior and how the brain works led me to study and apply areas that are directly related to how we respond and interact within our environments, in my design firm. I offer traditional interior design from concept to completion for both residential and commercial clients, or "Interior Insights" using Advanced Design Techniques, ADT (tm).

Can you briefly talk about what Advanced Design Techniques are and who they are for?

Advanced Design Techniques utilizes what we know in science, health, physics and spirituality and implementing that broad scope of information to create a beautifully designed space personally tailored for the people that live within that environment. It is my hope that ADT becomes a movement, a life-changing mindset . . . a shift in how people relate to their home, family and the items they purchase to create their home.

Are there any simple tips that someone without any interior design experience can start using now?

It has taken over 40 years to bring so many parts of a system together for the whole. Before my interior design practice I worked in the women's health field and have used that experience within my design work. There is nothing simple when working with personal interests, personalities, toxins within the body and home, hormones, energy, mass, emotional responses and philosophies!

How does a home's environment affect the people who live there?

The field of psychoneuroimmunology studies the interaction between psychological processes and nervous and immune systems of the body (or stress on the body). When I apply my ADT, my interviews are deep. They include discussions surrounding personal lifestyle, childhood associations, and how the client's particular belief system can be incorporated into their space. Any environment can affect chemical changes within our body, positively or negatively. For example, our surroundings, in all of its dimensions, have the potential to increase the fight or flight responses. This, in turn, impacts cortisol levels, heart rates and circulation. Therefore, the design impact in a home is especially important when one has health issues, relationship issues, or a high-stress occupation. Addressing these issues jointly with your physical environment plays a key role in health and well-being.

What is one of the most important things for people to keep in mind when they are decorating their home?

My favorite quote is, "You don't know what you don't know." In the last 20 years, there has been a shift in mindset toward interior design. There seems to be an old agenda that encourages an "anything goes" attitude when marketing to the masses, and it has worked. People need to keep in mind there is power in space, universal laws and energy in action. These elements can be enhancing or destructive. Sometimes we crave things we may be allergic to; sometimes we prefer the color red but have high blood pressure and should not have red walls. Many designers do not even know the right questions to ask of their clients to bring out the optimal design approach. Advanced Design Techniques will become a new interior design shift, the new agenda for the dynamics of well-being in home environments.

Is there anything that gets commonly overlooked that should be considered?

I believe that the impact of toxicity in our homes, as it relates to our health, has been significantly overlooked. The incognizant layering of toxic compounds, making chemical soup in our homes, and its effect on our health is often considered only minimally, if at all. I encourage completing one small task a week to eliminate the toxic products that relate to many chemical sensitivities that clients may not even be aware exist. These sensitivities include symptoms of fatigue, asthma, sleeplessness, headaches and more.

What's the best way for people to contact you and your company?

I can be reached in the following ways:

Website: www.theresasinteriors.com
Email: theresasinteriors@gmail.com
Facebook page
Phone: 661-742-6022.
Please leave a message and your return number, as I do not answer while in the zone or with clients.
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