CDI Interviews : Alyssa

For this week’s CDI Interviews, I would like to introduce Alyssa, our Junior Interior Designer who joined the Cat Dal Interiors team a year ago.

Why did you get into design?

From a young age, I’ve always been creative, I loved drawing, taking photos, and making things. I would say that a big influence on my choice of career is my dad – he is a tinker. He loves making things and growing up he would often ask me to help him out with his projects. Also, moving to London, I was introduced to art and D&T lessons, which is where I discovered that I was actually good at art and it just developed from there. From a young age, I knew I never wanted to work in an office job, I wanted a career where every day was different. Interior Design is a multi-disciplinary job, no day or project is the same and that is what I love about it. It allows me to be creative, expressive and manifest my ideas, and I always enjoying the process and seeing the designs come to life. 

    

Photo credit: Paper & Paint Library Muga, Masai, Caddie & Truffle

Photo credit: Pamono Teak Chandigarh Desk Chair by Pierre Jeanneret, 1950’s

Current design obsession?

I am currently obsessing with the ‘earthy and warm’ style. I love love love colours like terracotta, burnt yellows and oranges. I also have a great fascination for handcrafted furniture, a favourite piece of mine would be any Pierre Jeanneret designed chairs. I think being from the Philippines, I always find myself drawn to colours, materials or furniture that remind me of my other home.

Where do you get inspiration from? Hobbies?

I love travelling! I often get my inspirations from visiting other cities and countries. One of my favourite countries to visit in Spain, last year I went to the south and Barcelona and I was able to immerse myself in Mudejar architecture and Antonio Gaudi’s brilliant nature-inspired work. I am also inspired by nature, I have a miniature dachshund named Lilo and we often go exploring. One of my biggest hobbies is photography, I love taking architecture shots, landscapes and close up design details which I use to influence my work.

Favourite part of the design process?

My favourite part of the design process would be the schematic and design development stages. This is where one can be really creative and explore different design solutions to meet the client’s needs. These stages are where a lot of sketching and design explorations happen. At Cat Dal Interiors, we use different media to illustrate and present our ideas to the client, through freehand sketching, 3D model visualisations and finishes renders. The sample board process is also fun, being able to mix and play around with fabrics and finishes and envisioning how this would work with the overall scheme. The completion stage is also my favourite part because you can see the months and months of hard work, designs and revisions finally come to life.