What I've Learned in this Course

         

           Overall I’ve been very pleased with my experience in this course. I feel like there was a lot of useful information presented that has provided me with a good foundation for determining different types of materials and what their proper applications are from an Interior Design standpoint. I’ve learned a lot about the various types of fabrics and what their applications are, a lot about flooring, walls, countertops, etc.

            Completing the swatch book was one of the most useful parts of the course because it helped us all learn how to tell different fabrics apart from each other. I know now also what kinds of fabrics are best for upholstery vs. drapery or lining of some sort. Not only did I learn what to look for in different fabrics, I learned the names of all of them. This is really essential as an interior designer because no one is going to take you seriously if you don’t know what the names of things are. It will make you seem like you don’t know what you’re talking about. It also is important for ease in making orders and specifications for projects. It allows you to be clear and concise and leaves little room for confusion. Also in the course I learned about durability of fabrics and double rubs and how the higher count means higher durability. This is useful when picking out fabrics for areas that get a lot of use or especially for commercial projects.

            This course has also taught me quite a bit about different flooring materials. Our field trip to Leftwich Chapman I found particularly informative and interesting. I learned from Mr. Leftwich about different types of wood flooring and the different grades and price ranges of them. I learned that the most expensive woods are ones that are solid hardwood or have thicker veneers on them. They also end up being very heavy. A good way to easily compare quality and price without knowing much information is to compare the thickness and weight of samples. The thicker and heavier it is, the better the quality and usually more money it costs. On that field trip I also learned about different types of carpets and the advantages of each. There was also some products they had there that were relatively new technology and new to the market which were supposed to be much more durable but at the same time just as soft as some other types of carpets. A new product I learned about was luxury vinyl. I had no idea that there was such a growing range of products in this category and how good some of them can look. They are a more reasonably priced material than many others but can usually create a very similar and sometimes even more durable look.

            Another interesting thing to learn about was different types of countertops. I typically thought of countertops as being granite, marble, or laminate. From this course I learned that there are many other options when it comes to countertop materials. I learned that quartz is one of the strongest and most durable countertops. I also thought it was neat to learn about all the ways concrete could be used as a countertop and how it is growing in popularity. I thought it was very cool to go to Collins tile and see all the different types of stones they had as well as how they were cut and polished.

            I’m really glad that this class is part of our curriculum. I feel like it might be even more useful during our first year to give us an even more solid foundation. Also I think it would be cool to break it up into several different course. It would be really beneficial to have a class just dedicated to fabrics, and another just to flooring and so on. There are so many different materials out there and while I learned a whole lot in this class, I also know that we barely scratched the surface of what is out there.