We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Angela Ondayko. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Angela below.
Angela , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Day to day the world can seem like a tough place, but there’s also so much kindness in the world and we think talking about that kindness helps spread it and make the world a nicer, kinder place. Can you share a story of a time when someone did something really kind for you?
Oh, that’s a great question! Regarding my career, one thing stands out for sure. I had already been an Interior Designer for many years and I was attending a conference in Chicago, which featured a panel discussion of several different types of designers, each answering questions and giving industry insight. One of the panel members blatantly expressed that there was no glory in trying to live up to the pressures of designing how you THINK the world wants you to. I had wished that someone had presented that notion to me, in that particular way sooner because nothing could be more true. It’s like he gave everyone in that room permission to dig into their own internal, intuitive creative muse unapologetically. He was speaking to the entire room, but, everyone felt it individually and received that advice as a gift. It’s so odd because in a world filled with creativity and endless possibilities, so many individuals do not tap into their full potential because they are afraid of criticism. When a member of your peers addresses such a vulnerable subject head on, it just hits differently. Being reminded of your unique individual artistic gifts and problem solving abilities is truly empowering.
Angela , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
So, I grew up in the Midwest, kind of in the middle of nowhere and had always had a deep rooted love for art and music, even as a small child. My mother came from a very large family filled with creative, talented siblings. It seemed to me that they all had talents for drawing and sketching. I had an uncle who played the guitar, an aunt that is a painter, another that is a master gardener and my father’s mother was a singer in a traveling quartet. Looking back on it, artistic creativity was always all around me in some form. It wasn’t something that was forced or even discussed really, it was just part of who we were and how we lived from day to day. My brother, cousins and myself were always encouraged to draw or paint or participate in crafting projects or some such thing like creating our own musical videos or comedy sketches, which was a trip!
My mother used to rearrange the furniture in our home all of the time, create various wall collages and would change the paint schemes in the rooms throughout our home often. Really often. She would offer to put up wallpaper for friends and family or to change the paint for them. It was just normal to be around and certainly NO ONE referred to it as “interior design” at the time. She wasn’t formally trained, but she definitely understood the ins and outs of most of it. So, I would have to say that I definitely got the Interior Design bug from her. There’s no doubt about that! When I think back, I can see that she really understood scale and how to create vignettes with balance. She would often sew her own curtains and create clothing, so I was knee deep in fabric and patterns growing up too! If I told her today that she was an undercover Interior Designer back in the day she would probably laugh at me, but I don’t think that she would disagree! When you are around that stuff all the time, you just absorb it without even realizing that you are learning.
As I grew up, I originally thought that I might become an Art Teacher or maybe a freelance artist, but really I was intrigued at the idea of learning Interior Design as a career. When the college that I was originally focused on ended up terminating their design program, I jumped on the idea of moving to Madison, Wisconsin to pursue my degree there, straight out of high school graduation. I fell in love with the city, artistically & culturally, and I fell in love with the craft of Interior Design with my whole being! There was so much more to it than I could have imagined! I interned at an architecture firm while I was in the design program so, when I earned my degree I was off to the races as they say! I dove in head first and opened myself up experiencing all of the different aspects of design, color and materials, and the construction process. All of this led to working for or with architects, builders, fine furnishings establishments and of course I can’t leave out absorbing knowledge from all of the tradespeople who make it all tick. I wanted to learn about it all. The artistic creativity was always there of course, but, through this curious path of mine (a childlike undying need to understand all of the elements of design) I was able to build an accidental foundational legacy of practical technical knowledge that has made an incredible impact on my business!
To me, being a great Designer means knowing how to truly connect with and listen to your client, allowing them to open up, uncovering needs that they have, (sometimes things that they don’t even know that they need)… to find out how they live in their spaces and especially how it should function for them. The most important part is to be able to tap into how they want to feel when they are in those spaces. Every client is important and their needs should always dictate the path of design. A great design is usually one that is a sophisticated concert of materials that absolutely reflects the clients style perfectly and is supported by materials and workmanship of integrity. Not one single element should be glaring at you in a space, it should be incredible as a whole. It isn’t something that is learned overnight to be sure, and it is my opinion that each space should always look complete, beautiful, and balanced.
All of these things are definitely the heart of my business and what I feel we are best at. It is by far the thing that I am most proud of!
Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?
It was really important to me to start a brick and mortar design studio so that I could have a dedicated space to meet with both local clients and to establish a materials library. It was important for me to provide a space for other designers and to mentor students. It can be really difficult as a designer if you do not have a space to work out of/meet clients in, and not everyone can facilitate that on their own. How I started it all… that is a real trip! I honestly just used what I had. That’s it. I had more time than money and I had almost no time at all! Ha ha! I started the business with only the cash that I could scrape up and “did it scared” as they say. There’s nothing like doubling down on your own skill, knowledge and potential. As far as I saw it, I was going to do work as hard as I had to in order to pay the rent and the bills for the studio. The business started with what I had at the time, with my philosophy that when I could get more, or do more, I would. There is no better motivator than growth and there is no “perfect time” to follow your dream. People wait and wait and wait for the “perfect time”. It’s a ridiculous idea really. The beauty is in the journey and why put off helping people in your own way on your own terms besides?
Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.
The side hustle! Yesssss! I started my independent design business when I was in my last year of design school. So, no matter where I worked for a weekly paycheck, be it the architecture firm, or the builder, or the fine furnishings place that I worked at, I always took residential clients as my design business “on the side” since I was in college. However, I’m not kidding when I say that my marketing, social media, time discipline and refined muscle memory for business practices was HIGHLY elevated the minute I was involved with an affiliate direct marketing company that taught me productive habits and procedures that I didn’t know that I needed. I was also exposed to many authors who wrote incredible books about human nature, perseverance, and various skills to learn and practice, both personally and in the business world. It was incredibly unexpected and has been so valuable! Those tools absolutely gave me the knowledge and courage to scale the next phase of my design business which I am of course grateful for!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://aondaykodesignconsults.com
- Instagram: aondaykodesign
- Facebook: Angela Ondayko Design & Finds
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