Registered interior designer Allison Jaffe takes inspiration from a number of sources, including her town of Austin, Texas, her clients and even antiques. “As a child, I remember being hauled around by my mom to the Austin Antique Mall on weekends when I would’ve rather been doing something different,” she says. “But now I spend time with my mother strolling down aisles and aisles of antiques, and learning about their heritage from her and the sellers, and speaking about authentic finds with worth versus knockoffs. The entire experience has improved my professional life as an interior designer.”
profile: Allison Jaffe
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
What is a recent job that you are still excited about?
I finished a job in Rising Hills a couple of months before, and I am still basking in the afterglow of this undertaking. We chose a 1980s kitchen and transformed it into a stunning, family-oriented space for function and entertainment. The family room is visible in the kitchen, so there’s always a feeling that nobody is too far off and is always within plain view. Yet each space is clearly defined and has its own purpose. The use of natural materials such as travertine, onyx and glass creates a warm and inviting surroundings, while the powerful contemporary lines of this space lend itself to a transitional style of design.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
Is everything in your design process digital or do you draw?
I have to draw by hand; I love that everything is electronic today. I believe designs look cleaner using digital applications, and nothing gets lost since it’s all neatly stored on my personal computer or hard drive.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
I utilize CAD for drawing floor plans and elevations and Google SketchUp for renderings of projects. I grew up in an era of technology, therefore it just makes sense that I operate my business in the exact same method. I get a fantastic laugh whenever someone asks me if they can fax me some thing. Who utilizes faxes nowadays? The majority of my correspondence with clients are either electronic files or scanned printed stuff; it only makes more sense to send and save everything digitally. This image is my board for the Rolling Hills job.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
This image shows the execution of this space. I love this room since it utilizes lots of gray-based neutrals that are very online trend. The room comes alive with splashes of orange, peacock blue and chartreuse accessories and cushions. I love the way this room also gives a nod to Pantone’s 2012 Color of the Year, Tangerine Tango.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
What exactly are you working on now?
A kitchen and bath remodel in Westlake, Texas. The house is quite gathered, but I want to inject some warmth to the space.
historicstyle.com
William Morris Chrysanthemum Wallpaper
Which famous designer would you have liked to utilize?
I would have loved to have worked with William Morris, the iconic 19th-century English fabric designer and artist. My business card holder has one of the famous wallpaper designs onto it. I really like background, along with his prolific designs and usage of color are still applicable in the market today.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
Who do you admire?
Jeff Lewis is somebody folks are speaking about today, and for good reason — I really like his sense of personality, and he’s done a great job educating the television viewer about the challenging work that occurs behind the scenes when running a design company. A lot more people know having an interior designer goes beyond choosing pretty things in a space; there is a lot of time and hard work entailed when working on a project and seeing it through until the end.
Allison Jaffe Interior Design LLC
Which city has inspired your work?
Being that I’m from Austin, Texas, I really don’t see myself living anywhere else; this city is so unbelievably inspiring. Austin is one of the most amazing cities in the United States; it is an unbelievable town that has a healthy mix of authorities, technology and instruction. And the landscape is so picturesque; we are nestled in the Texas Hill Country along with a branch of the Colorado River, making for spectacular sunsets and highway drives.
What else inspires you?
I allow my clients be my inspiration. The clients I have worked with are distinctively different from each other. We as designers need to remember that we aren’t designing for ourselves — we are designing for our clients. In each undertaking, my clients inspire me with their culture, passions and life experiences. I certainly have my own group of private pursuits, but it isn’t for me to inject them into my design for my customer. What I bring to the table is my own expertise and knowledge of style.
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