Latina Blogger Spotlight: Nicole Torres – Design It Girl
March 21, 2013
Topics: #LatinaBlogger Love, Blog
Nicole Torres, interior designer and founder of Design It Girl, a blog created to showcase her passion for design and refurbishing furniture.
I have been following Nicole for quite some time and knew that I wanted to interview her and find out where her love for design came from. As someone who will pass up on the opportunity to get down with tools and paint, I wanted to know what drove her to bring life, and significant meaning to furniture that to the average person looks non-salvageable.
Across the pages of her blog, she shares with her readers all of the stages and her craft. Looking through her work you can see she has immense passion for what she does and draws her readers in with her dedication and with an incredible eye for restoration.
1. When did you begin developing your craft? Why did you choose to be a design it girl?
I started writing and crafting my very own Christmas cards when I was six years old, I always loved to color and loved pencils and crayons. For Christmas my mother used to buy me artist supplies because I loved it so much, I even had an easel!
Networking and creating my own blog and my very own Facebook page was very exciting, This opened many doors and introduced me to a lot of new people, and allowed me to learn their likes and dislikes. I went ahead and jumped right into it and worked out the details later. The original title of my blog was My Passion 4 Design, which I liked for my blog but not my page or other networking sites. Design It Girl came about when I knew I wanted a name that would be remembered. Not only am I an Interior Designer, but a girl who loves her tools and can cut like a man too. So, I wanted to be known as Design It Girl, a designer and a girl who is ‘keeping it green’ and doing her best to teach other women that we can use tools too.
2. You mention in your bio- “you have a great passion for chairs and love to refurbish furniture”- why chairs? What’s so unique about chairs?
I love chairs, chairs to me symbolize power and makes a grand statement too. “take a seat”, in congress especially having a chair is extremely important being heard and having an opinion is just as important to having a place, a place to sit literally. Starving artists who struggle to be recognized, but has or owns a chair/seat of some sort to do their work, still feels some sort of power within knowing they still can count on themselves to create and believe in their artistic abilities. “Take a seat” is larger than the actual construction of a chair(s), its a place in society and a place in our history. If you found an antique chair, wouldn’t you like to know its history? “If chairs could talk”! the stories they would tell!.
3. How do you decide on the color of a piece? What is your process like for refurbishing?
The color comes to me as soon as I see the piece, I already know what color she wants to be. It’s the shape, the bones and the construction of that piece. If the piece has hard lines and a strong construction (bones) than you may want to paint a lighter color to show that off, just like you would for a women who has curves, right? It’s all about the shape (when it comes to furniture).
4. What is your goal for your blog and designs in 2013?
Blog more…lol reaching my readers more and know that I am extremely passionate about designing and one day bringing those designs to life. I want to share the good and bad with my readers, I am a real person with a passion. I have many goals and the one at the very top of my list is to own my own shop/business and share my passion with all those who visit. I want my shop to be the place to visit when in South Florida. Of course meeting new people and networking for sure and possibly (if it happens) making new friends (really good friends) along the way.
- What is your favorite process of designing?
Thats easy the painting part, sometimes I just want to skip the prep part and get to it, but I know I’d rather “measure twice, cut once”. One more thing getting the best feedback from my customers, thats the only way you will grow!
Follow Nicole and her design journey via her Design It Girl Blog, Twitter @designlilly and at her Etsy store.
Eileen is a New York City Public School teacher in Brooklyn by day and a freelance writer, contributor to Mamiverse, wife, and mother of two boys by night. Eileen is the founder of mommyteaches.com, where she shares her love of blogging about her pride in teaching, parenting, and the blessings and trials that life have to offer. She graduated from NYU with honors with a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education. Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY from a Puerto Rican mother and an American father. Eileen is married to her high school sweetheart for 10 years. Follow Eileen on Twitter @EileenCCampos.
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Nicole
Thank you so much for this great opportunity. I love networking with many of you on fb and cant wait to actually meet you at Hispanicize. I hope that you enjoyed my interview by Eileen, she is a wonderful person and I cant wait to meet her in person. Thank you Latina Bloggers Connect for giving me the “Spotlight”. I have so much more to share so follow me, for continuous updates.
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