We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Laneel Perry . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Laneel below.

Laneel, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

I started my company Design Dezign in 2001. The first few years I researched current trends, finishes, furnishings, and pantone colors of the year. My approach to design was about WHAT was IN and what others were doing in the lane of TRENDS. My approach to design is 100% different and has been for years. What a successful project looks like to me now….is….when one walks into a room/home, does the space reflect the one(s) who live there?
I feel strongly that a home should tell a story of those who live there. Design is a feeling first, the best designs are personal.
When I work with clients and the question of trends comes up …. I invite them to do a deep dive to discover what they LOVE and to get personal in design process , forget the trends!

Laneel, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I will be celebrating 23 years of marriage with my sweetheart Brian. Brian is a Director of foods at Peach Tree he is also a contract Chef for Thermador
We have two incredible sons…
Taylor is 21 ~he is in the welding program at DATC , he enjoys snowboarding and fishing
Wyatt is 18~ he is also is in the welding program at DATC, he enjoys long-boarding and ALL his creatures.
I am an interior designer by trade and a DESIGNER at heart. I love creating!!! I have always loved fashion and style. Over the years I have played around with denim and have created some kickinnnn denim jackets, denim skirts, jeans. I think it would be fun to have my own denim line!
I got into interior design by discovering that science was NOT my thing thanks to an anatomy class exploring a cadaver with a scaple. I was quick to change my major after graduating with an Associate of Science degree. I transferred schools, I was accepted into the interior design program at Utah State University the three years I was there the Interior Design program was FIDER accredited. Some of my favorite memories of my time in the design program
1~ a three month internship in Georgetown, 2~ a study abroad in Italy
3~ Brent Windley my Architecture teacher, 4~ time in the studio drafting with classmates
After graduation I was hired to work in Denver at Design Works and Hamilton Jones Design Group.
Denver is the city I met and fell in LOVE with my Brian. I spent 2 years living in Denver, it’s such a RAD city.
Bri and I moved to Utah~we got married July 13, 2001 …. I got pregnant a second later with Taylor.
September 11 happened (the design world slowed way down for a moment)
A design opportunity was given to me and Design Dezign was born.
Design Dezign offers
Consulting, color schemes, space planning, finishes and furnishings, new construction, renovations, holiday decorating, design styles.
The approach of discovery….discovering what clients love is one of my favorite parts of the project. Part of my job is to take clients into uncomfortable. Change is all SORTS of uncomfortable. Uncomfortable is where incredible design is born. I ask clients to lean into uncomfortable and to trust in the design process and in me. That is something I don’t take lightly. I respect and value clients dearly. Something that sets me aside from mainstream is COLOR. I am a color specialist, I have researched the positive impact color has on us humans. I think there is a place for neutral colors IF you LOVE them…however…in my experience the clients I have worked for leaned into neutrals because that was what they saw on HGTV or Pinterest or what they had been told by others was the best way to approach color and color combinations. So I love showing another way. In my opinion life is WAY better in COLOR! Color is one of the easiest ways to get personal in the design process.
What I am most proud of is my family…they are THE BEST things I have ever EVER done! I’m so grateful my hubby and sons have supported me and cheered me on.
The imprint I want to leave in the world of interior design is to get personal! When one gets personal in design a house FEELS like home and reflects the ones who live there!
Shortly after my grandma passed….my family was given an opportunity to move into her home. This was the home my mom grew up in. My mom knew having a daughter who is an Interior Designer the home she grew up in was going to go through changes. I know those changes were so hard for her especially after the loss of her mom. Structural changes were made and cosmetic changes were made. My husband may have freaked out when I shared I wanted the living room to be hot pink. When I suggested a horizontal striped accent wall he really went into uncomfortable. What I remember most when the room was finished was he looked into my eyes and said he absolutely loved it because he saw me everywhere.
When my sweetheart said that to me it changed me…I felt that so deeply…it was the biggest pivot on how I wanted to approach design going forward.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Two things/ concepts believe in. 1. Design is always a feeling first.
One of the first questions I ask my clients is how they want their room(s)/space(s) to feel.
Once they are clear on that feeling then every decision in that room needs to support that feeling.
2. Only IF you LOVE it!
This helps in editing, letting go of things.
What I have shared as a visual with students and clients is the impact of editing at a level of love.
Imagine walking into your living room knowing you have let go of things you are not loving and kept only what you love imagine putting a color on your walls that you love. How would you feel being in that space surrounded by what you love…how would that feel?

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I love LOVE before and after pictures. It’s so rewarding seeing the beginning of the journey and the end of the journey side by side. Knowing that the finished project is personal and full of feeling and love!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: design_dezign
• Facebook: Design Dezign
• Linkedin: Laneel Perry
• Other: Laneel Henderson Perry