Since in school I am currently learning more about commercial design I thought I would share with you something interesting about the difference between commercial and residential design. One thing that is very different is the use of exit signs. There everywhere in a commercial building, but if you put one in your home, people may look at you funny. Of course there probably are some homes that are big enough for you to need an exit sign as people may get lost if there is not one.

Why are exit signs needed in commercial buildings? Well really their main purpose is to guide you if there is an emergency, like a fire or power outage. Self Luminous Exit Signs are very handy when it comes to power outages, they do not require power, really they are glow in the dark signs that can last from 10-12 years.

There are also Photoluminescent Exit Signs that work a little differently Photoluminescents is a process in which a substance absorbs photons (electromagnetic radiation) and then re-radiates photon. Pretty much it’s a sign that will glow on its own for about 90 minutes after exposure to light. It’s really a very interesting product.

Of course their are also your standard LED signs and braille exit signs as most building codes now require these as well. It’s really very interesting that so much thought and work has gone into making sure we can all get out of a building safely and fast. I like the idea.

Technorati Tags: commercial buildings, led signs, photoluminescent exit signs, self luminous exit signs

I have not been able to post the last few days due to upgrade complications and a busy life. As you can see I have fixed the complications and my life should slow down a little now. I know I missed Furniture Friday again, but it will be back this Friday.

That said, last week was my last week of classes for a while. I’m happy to have some time though I plan on getting a lot done over my break. I do have a great picture of my model. Something I have spent a lot of time on and stayed up for 38 hours to finish. A model is something that many interior designers do if a client wants to physically see something, of course you do have to pay for the time put into it.Let me know what you think of my model. I’m still working on it as it was not complete to my standards when it was due.

Technorati Tags: design models, Interior Design

A designer should know a good product when they see it. Thats there job. This product I am going to tell you about is not exception. The company is called Big Ass Fans and they live up to there name. They sell large fans for Industrial Ventilation needs. They are used in places such as warehouses, retail stores, museums and stadiums. Sweet Gym in Philadelphia is one of the many businesses that use Big Ass Fans so do many home improvement stores.

I know this blog is mostly about home design, but I’m sure many of you reading this own business or at least know of a business that may need this type of equipment. The other reason I mention this is because interior designers need to know about these types of things. You design more then just homes, you design home improvement stores and gyms that would need these fans to be able to operate and stay in business.  That is the most important part of a designers job, to keep that business looking good so they can stay in business. Looks are important in this field

Technorati Tags: gym fans, Industrial fans, Interior Design

I was asked today by an online friend if they should think about going wireless. I asked them why and they replied “because it’s a mess”. Of course I ask what is a mess. Then they tell me, their home. I get it now. There are too many wires and HDMI cables all over the place that she can’t move.

This can be a problem of a home based business. Designers need to be aware of this because not only will you have to be the one to solve the problem for your clients, if you work from home you will have to watch out for this yourself. I love wireless, but there are issues that happen when going totally wireless. Things work on the same frequency and if your neighbor has wireless it could mess with your stuff.

Example, my mother has wireless Internet, phones and the satellite can be set up with a wireless connection to the phone. Well because most things out here in the middle of no where are wireless our neighbors Internet or satellite was messing with our cable. We got some interesting programming from pay per view. The weird thing is it was always ordered during our dinner time. So we knew it wasn’t us ordering it. That bill ran up to about $200 just for those movies.

So yes wireless is great for good interior design, it helps you to move things around more and make life easier, but when using wireless you have to think about the world around you and what others are doing, not just to avoid charges on your satellite, but to keep people from steeling your stuff.

Technorati Tags: using wireless, wireless office design

Many people may see an interior designer as someone who decorates a home and works in a cute little shop. Most interior designers are not this way many have to pack up their clothes and head off to other states or countries to work. One of my teachers has been to France, China and Egypt for interior design jobs. Many of these lasted around 6 months. Most of the time they are for major business, like hotels and corporations.

I am really not into that type of design, even though hotel design could be fun. I don’t think I could stay in a hotel that long. I like staying at home and knowing where everything is. I know that many people though prefer to travel to exotic places and get paid to do it too. I’m not saying I wouldn’t travel, I would just prefer not to be gone for long periods of time. I don’t think that will be too hard for me as I plan to do mostly personal homes, not big corporations.

Technorati Tags: Be an interior designer, Interior design professions, Travel and design