Interior design forms the link between architecture and humanity. Anyone with a credit card can walk into a furniture store and fill a house. But without the proper understanding of scale and proportion and the right talent and resources to “pull it together”, it can be money poorly spent. Using an interior designer is not as intimidating as it sounds. In fact, it is guidance that is undervalued and underutilized. With 30 years of design experience and in conjunction with the launch of my new Troy’s Design (Click this link forTroysDesign) page on the TroysArt website, this essay is about Interior Design.
“Design is not just what it looks like or feels like. Design is how it works.” Steve Jobs
In a high rise, Perrault Design Associates created a mansion in the sky for an elegant River Oaks widow.
The difference between architecture and art is that the architect plans and defines space. But it is the interior design expert who not only enhances the space but defines how the end user relates to it. Through the interior designer, the space is made healthier, more aesthetically pleasing, and more useful. Some might consider architecture and interiors as the most necessary of all the arts. But it is less understood by the public than music, painting, theater, or literature.
Interior Design is the most personal branch of the decorative arts, but of all forms of art, it undoubtedly has one of the shortest lifespans. It is an art form that is temporary—much like installation art. While the genre of installation art is often meant to temporarily transform a site-specific three-dimensional space, many do not consider interior design to be so temporary. When considering that architecture, landscape architecture, and paintings, sculpture, and furniture will last for generations, interior design exists in an ever evolving environment subject to time and decay and trends and whims of the occupants.
For Perrault Design Associates, all of my drawings and plans were done by hand.
But this is the industry of which I made a career. And when I say that it is personal, it is indeed. To say that the designer knows what is happening in a household before the clergy and lawyer may be said tongue-in-cheek but there is truth to it. The designer knows your home from kitchen cabinets to the bedside tables. The relationship with an interior designer can be a lot of things, but first and foremost, there must be trust. And a good designer will likely have a keen awareness of the innermost workings of the household—a must in order to render a quality, usable space.
Edward J. Perrault Design Associates
My first design job was with Edward J. Perrault Design Associates Inc. I moved to Houston from LSU and started as an intern. And a young designer could never have asked for a better mentor.
In a 1920s River Oaks mansion, the above elevation drawing is transformed into reality with custom furniture, custom designed curtains, and antiques.
Edward J. Perrault’s first interior design job was in 1937, a contemporary apartment for an oilman in the Lamar Hotel in downtown Houston. He went on to design display windows, sets for the Little Theater, lavish debutante balls, weddings, and even USOs, Red Cross offices, and officer’s clubs during World War II. After the war he supervised the expansion of The Fashion, a building which later became Neiman Marcus and then Palais Royal. Because of this successful renovation, he was commissioned to redesign the River Oaks Country Club and then the original Petroleum Club atop the Rice Hotel with architect John Staub and an interior design budget of $1 million. He became regarded as the designer to the Houston elite.
Ed joined the American Institute of Interior Designers, AID, in 1954 and in 1971 he was elected national president. In 1973 AID and NSID merged to become the American Society of Interior Designers, or ASID. And Ed was in the middle of it all, becoming the first national president of ASID. In 1983 he was the first Texan given the Designer of Distinction Award. He was internationally renowned and respected.
At our office, there was a framed vintage cover of Texas Monthly Magazine with his photograph and the headline “Famed Designer Banned from Italy for Looting National Treasures for the Homes of Texas Millionaires”. I never knew if it was real or not.
Troy Broussard & Edward J. Perrault, Houston Country Club, 1998.
My first project with EJPDA was transitioning a River Oaks widow from her mansion on Del Monte Drive to a penthouse apartment. When floorplans, color schemes, and fabrics were approved during the initial presentation, her deposit amounted to $250,000. I had never heard of spending so much money for furniture but she simply asked, “Will you take a check?”
In 1994, Ed and I, with the other designers in our firm, became some of the earliest licensed by the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners after the passage of the Interior Design Title Act.
When long-time clients decided to build a 15,000 square foot mansion in River Oaks, our firm spearheaded the construction team. When the architect told Ed that his contract only included three meetings, Ed responded, “You’d better sit down and revise your fees.” For three years, Ed’s team met with the architect daily, when Ed wasn’t travelling the world to assemble appropriate furnishings, finishes, and fixtures.
In 2000, the University of Texas School of Architecture named him to the Design Hall of Fame and announced the Edward J. Perrault Endowed Presidential Scholarship as the first interior design scholarship under the School of Architecture. I put together a slideshow representing his lifetime of work and presented it to various groups associated with the University of Texas.
“Being a famous designer is like being a famous dentist.” Noreen Morioka
An ad from PaperCity.
I eventually became principle designer and, when Ed passed away at 92 years old, I took over the firm. I did design work in Dallas, California, New Jersey, New York, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. And I was one of the first interior designers consulting on downtown lofts and the revival of north downtown. Problem was, I owned a firm without my own name on the shingle. And few in the new generations of Houston knew the legacy of his design excellence.
Troy Broussard Design
I moved into a new building and put my own name on the door, giving it a good go. My firm not only specialized in interior design and architecture but also art consultation—building investment class art collections for clients.
In a downtown Houston penthouse, old and new mixes for a clean and evolved aesthetic.
And in accomplishing my new building with new employees and fresh ideas, I also modernized my methods. At Edward J. Perrault Design Associates I did all my drawings and floorplans by hand. But I took AutoCAD classes at Rice University and bought updated software for the new millennia.
In 2003 I was selected Best Interior Designer for OutSmart Magazine.
But a few factors worked against me—like 9/11 and Enron. Paying to keep the lights on, employees’ salaries, insurances, taxes, advertising, and so on is not easy when the stock market crashes. Clients tend to panic when the Dow Jones plummets, abruptly and indefinitely halting projects. Hemorrhaging money with dwindling accounts billable, things did not go well for Troy Broussard Design.
“The essence of interior design will always be about people and how they live. It is about the realities of what makes for an attractive, civilized, meaningful environment, not about fashion or what’s in or what’s out. This is not an easy job.” Albert Hadley
I moved to Louisiana as a full-time painter and executive director of a parish Arts Council.
Bassett Furniture
PBS’ “Big Switch”, my project room before make-over.
I became familiar with Bassett Furniture when I was asked to star in The Big Switch, a home design challenge program sponsored by Houston PBS KUHT, Houston Chronicle, OutSmart Magazine, and Bassett Furniture. Ernie Manouse hosted as Jennifer Lowe and I transformed the interiors of neighboring Habitat for Humanity homes. We had two days and a budget of $1,500, part of which had to be used for at least one piece of Bassett furniture.
PBS’ “Big Switch” after the televised make-over by Troy Broussard with accent tables by Bassett Furniture. #mybassett
The Big Switch was the most watched and top rated original program in the 2002 Houston PBS broadcast season. Not only were we featured in Houston Chronicle but I made the cover of OutSmart Magazine. Incidentally, after the show aired I was called to screen-test for a national prime-time design show; it came down to me and a designer from Dallas—I didn’t get it. But it was an exciting time.
The Bassett family ran a sawmill in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in 19th Century. And in 1900, John David Bassett, Charles Columbus Bassett, Samuel H. Bassett, and Reed L. Stone started Bassett Furniture.
“Here I was shipping raw lumber from Henry County, Virginia, to Jamestown, New York, and Grand Rapids, Michigan, where factories converted that lumber into finished furniture to be shipped everywhere, including the South,” J.D. Bassett said. “It seemed to me that furniture certainly could be made in Henry County at a tremendous advantage.
Bassett Furniture now has over 100 retail locations in the USA, Puerto Rico, and Canada.
The Bassett Furniture location near Greenway Plaza in Houston showcases stylish and comfortable custom furniture to suit every lifestyle and budget. #mybassett
A Bassett specialty, upholstered furniture is custom-made with thick laminated hardwood frames, drop-in coil foundations, engineered joints with interlocking unibody frames, and multi-layered high-density foam resulting in one of the best warranties of any furniture manufacturer. With about a 1,000 fabrics to choose from in the HGTV Design Studio by Bassett, custom furniture is American made and delivered within 30 days.
Best of all for the customer, professional interior design services at Bassett are complimentary.
“When you’re building a room, you’re building character, and character is the strength and wisdom of a home.” Rose Tarlow
For a client in the Museum District, a custom Bassett sectional wraps around a cement column. #mybassett
A designer does not just make a room beautiful but also makes a space functional. After the flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey, I met a couple who lost everything—a home in which they had raised a family. (They were one of many many couples starting over again after the flood.) They purchased a high-rise loft in the Museum District which, in itself, was a lifestyle change. No longer a traditional family house with crown moldings and a designated living room, dining room, and so on, the loft offered open spaces, hard surfaces, and cement columns instead of rooms. Trouble about the cement pillars besides the obvious layout complications—the man of the house is completely blind. My design solution was to wrap the column with a curved custom Bassett sectional which made the space not only comfortable but safe.
For a client in the Museum District, a custom Bassett sectional wraps around a cement column, as seen in the floorplan layout above. This room also includes oak bookcases, a TV credenza, and wool rug by Bassett. #mybassett
During some points following Harvey, I even had moments of feeling like a therapist.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle
I have worked as a Certified Design Consultant with Bassett Furniture for almost eight years with inclusion in the Pinnacle Awards 2013-14 as one of the company’s top 15 design consultants. Working on the retail side of the design business is not always roses and sunshine but I can save the horror stories for a subsequent post. Instead of five or six big design jobs a year I do that number in a month; it is a different scope and volume, though design is still design. I cut my teethton big budget jobs but I am proficient at any investment range. And everyday, I meet interesting people who present new design challenges. Putting a home together is an exciting and important moment in a person’s life.
A Design Philosophy
As a designer, I take a sophisticated, curated, and tailored approach to my designs with a touch of whimsy and southern charm. And I am definitely not afraid of color. For interiors, I especially love colors like coral, shrimp, terracotta, moss green, coffee milk, apple green, harvest gold, and Confederate blue. When I was a kid I loved the big box of 64 Crayons—and I used every one of them.
“Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.” Jack Kerouac
For a home in Pebble Beach, California, custom furniture in a peaceful monochromatic neutral color palette showcases an 18th Century Japanese screen and views of the Pacific Ocean.
Design has become very homogenized in recent years. Looking at home design and real estate photos, it can be difficult to tell one room from the next or even one home from another. There is a place for white on white or for gray on gray or for beige on beige or for greige on greige, but there is nothing cutting edge about boredom. Monochromatic neutral color schemes are often used to enhance a spectacular view or unique architectural elements. And by no means should tone on tone be mistaken as simple—done properly, there are many design nuances that are not overtly evident. But too often, in this decade, a monochromatic neutral palette has been substituted for the ability to make a decision or for a commitment to distinctive design.
In a downtown loft, monochromatic neutral tones and rustic furniture creates a relaxed yet tailored environment.
But no matter what is bought for the home, instead of following trends, invest in pieces with timeless style. And I advocate buying the best you can afford. Quality never goes out of style. Great basic elements are the foundation on which to build and showcase your best life.
And always start with a floorplan. A layout to scale, with detailed elevations if necessary, eliminates guesswork and creates a detailed shopping list with precise measurements. A good designer is a master of scale, proportion, and placement.
All Fun and Games
Some designers will meet with a client and pledge to “play” with the floorplan. “Let me play around with this and see what I can come up with.” But that statement is never part of my vernacular. I take my job as seriously as my clients take their homes and their money—and I am not playing. It is not that I do not enjoy my work but I do it for my customers. The HGTV Design Studio by Bassett is not a “playpen” but rather a valuable resource for my craft.
Designers Troy Broussard, Elizabeth Tigar, & Alton Tucker at a Houston art venue.
But I keep myself plenty busy outside of work and enjoy a fun filled life. I like to travel, whether abroad or a simple camping weekend. Delta Dawn, my bubbly English Springer Spaniel, joins me for as many road trips as possible. I enjoy riding my bike; I collect cufflinks; I visit art galleries and museums; and I can often be found anchoring a booth for hours in a nice restaurant—I am a foodie and enjoy lunches, dinners, and happy hours with an incredible circle of friends.
I also paint and write—a lot. My paintings have shown in galleries and museums in Texas and Louisiana and I am often commissioned to paint pet portraits. I also had a novel published in 2018 with three more novels in various stages of production, though book money does not roll in like some expect.
Seek Professional Help
A 2019 mix of old and new glamour without going overboard in Sugar Land.
Finding help should be a joyful, easy, and rewarding mission. Word of mouth is a phenomenal resource for hiring a designer. It is a compliment in a lovely home to ask who helped with the interior—combining a compliment with a solid referral.
And that initial meeting is a prime opportunity to gauge the degree of compatibility between client and designer. While it is interesting to see a sample of the designer’s work, whether in a portfolio or in actuality, keep in mind that a portfolio is not a catalog. The group of photographs presented may or may not relate to the specifics of your project. Rather, looking at the work in a broader sense will give understanding of the designer’s sense of proportion, style, practicality, and other insightful details. The reputation of the designer is often more important than specific photographic examples of his work.
In my current home, I mix styles, periods, and origins for a cozy and gentlemanly retreat.
One time I had a potential client who wanted to see my own home so that she might have a better comprehension of how I “really” design. While I think that my homes are always handsome and normally would not mind showing it off, I got the idea that she expected her house to end up looking like mine. I declined the request and did not get the job. A good designer creates for the client, not for his or herself. A designer who decorates in a manner that suits only his or her own tastes should look for another profession. Every job should be specific to the tastes and needs of the one who is signing the check.
“Architecture is basically a container of something. I hope they will enjoy not so much the teacup, but the tea.” Yoshio Taniguchi
It is rare for a layman to possess the vocabulary necessary to effectively communicate ideas to a design professional. It is wise while building or renovating a house to keep a folder with magazine clippings of room settings that are appealing or create a Pinterest board. Pinterest is a phenomenal resource for design ideas. Even if there is only one design element per photograph, it could be just the key the designer needs to understand desires.
In an uptown highrise, an art collection blends with modern furniture for an interior more dramatic than the skyline view.
Professional design is money well spent, considering that most people buy and sell three cars in the lifetime of a good sofa. A savvy interior designer is a guide through the decision making process, the process of making a house into a beautiful and comfortable home. The design professional is the conduit for making reality exceed expectations.
Click here to follow me on social media: Troy Broussard – “TroysArt” on Facebook; @troysart on Instagram; and Troy Broussard to follow my boards on Pinterest.
And for more information about design services, email TBroussard@BassettFurniture.com.