Celebrating Design at the ASID-Florida West Chapter Weekender 2019

Todays News

Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

This past weekend, the American Society of Interior Designers- Florida West Chapter celebrated its annual Weekender conference in downtown St Petersburg at the Hilton Bayfront hotel. Of the packed two days set aside for the conference, Holly Dennis, ASID-FWC Design Community Chair for Sarasota, Legislative Chair and Past President, as well as a three-time SRQ Magazine Home of the Year Award winner, organized and coordinated ASID's most successful Weekender to date—including educational seminars, site tours, an immersive trade show of industry contacts and resources, plus networking cocktail receptions, brunches and raffle prizes.  

Professional interior designers apart of the ASID, covering the Tampa Bay region and as south as Fort Myers, turned up for the Weekender conference with a kick-off at STABIL Concrete for a CEU, plant tour and lunch. Presented by OSSO Concrete Design by STABIL, the class largely discussed how to use GFRC (Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete) for better decorative panels, countertops, architectural furniture, etc. The concrete artisans educated the designers on the benefits of GFRC to customize products for future clients like fireplace surrounds, domes, statues, planters, fountains, ornamental wall art and artificial rock work.During the next day’s trade show, further CEUs included ‘Optimizing the Workplace for Innovation,’ presented by Haworth & Florida Business Interiors, ‘Recycled Glass Mosaic Tiles,’ presented by Design Works and American Glass Mosaics, and ‘Kitchen and Bathroom Plumbing,’ presented by Pinnacle Plumbing. In the mosaic tile seminar, designers learned the intricate differences between sintered glass, float glass and cast glass manufacturing, as well as translucent grout types and TCNA installation guidelines—a nod to the growing trend and custom demand of mosaic artwork in interior and exterior spaces. Other market trends were discussed in the plumbing seminar, including the redux of mid-century modern kitchens, two-tone color schemes, modern lighting fixtures, modular sinks, and the differences between cast iron, composite, fire clay and stainless steel. 

Throughout the rest of the trade show, members mixed and mingled with representatives of local touchstones such as Soft Square, Hydrologic, Wendover Art Group, SmartHouse Integration and Ferguson. Additionally, ASID brought in national and international vendors, with tables consisting of Phillip Jeffries’s specialty textured wallcoverings, Cambria’s natural stone surfaces, Momentum Group’s contract textiles, Brown Jordan’s patio furniture, Pindler & Pindler fabrics and many more. And to top off an inspiring weekend of contemporary design, ASID-FWC culminated its successful year with an annual Meeting and Awards Dinner—MCed by SRQ’s own Wes Roberts, executive publisher. Former chapter president Kelsey McKiernan, Allied ASID, stepped down from the yearly role, before initiating the incoming chapter president Alice Alexander, Allied ASID. “Remember, good design serves your clients well,” says McKiernan at the commencement of the ceremony. “It impacts their lives for the better.  In some cases it provides a healthier environment. In other cases it relaxes the mind, and in others it increases productivity.” 

The Design Awards were announced to the room of Professional, Allied and Associate members, design students and industry partners—all dedicated to the advancement of their interior design professions. Designers were welcomed to submit their entries within residential, contract and product design categories, to which submissions remained anonymous and were reviewed and judged by a distinguished panel of ASID judges from Washington DC and San Diego. “This year our judges scored the entries with very high marks,” says Alexander. “As the leading interior design association we take great pride in our members’ extraordinary body of work and celebrate the exceptional contributions and innovations from all of our talented members.” With a record number of entries, the 25 categories welcomed award winning achievements from fresh and fond faces of regional design firms.

McKiernan ends on a high note with a ballroom of applause saying, “Your diversity of talents represented by the broad range of projects and your own diverse styles of design solutions and influences, proves that Florida West Coast interior designers are truly leaders in the World of Design.”

SRQ Media was a proud media sponsor of the ASID-FWC Weekender 2019.

Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

Follow the ASID-FWC Chapter news and events here.

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