Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Meredith Pominville. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Meredith, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
One of the things I figured out early on is that whether you are designing for homes or businesses, you are involving yourself in their personal maelstrom of passion and finance—two very tricky and potentially fraught emotional spaces to inhabit.
Too many designers provide some sketches and color boards and walk away, leaving the heavy lifting of how the design gets implemented to fabricators who weren’t a part of the design process and don’t know the whole story. Clients get overwhelmed with the details left unfinished and don’t know how to bridge the gap between the design drawings and the finished work. Frustratingly, it’s left to contractors and fabricators to make decisions that often short-circuit the design, and Clients feel defeated and frustrated that the project the designer “planned” didn’t turn out the way it was promised.
Our design process is completely different. During the design phase, we provide detailed budgets and scaled, dimensioned drawings that consider how their structure will change in the big swing moments (engineering, foundation work, major surface materials) and continues all the way down to nitty gritty details (door handles, cabinet pulls and individual paint samples).
This allows us to make a design they will love while showing them how much it will cost and how to value-engineer that work to get it built to meet the budget. I’ve found that this thorough attention to detail is the single best way to earn Clients trust and confidence in the work, and most designers simply do not do this. While I can’t foresee every obstacle, this deliberate approach provides Clients with the most complete picture, anticipating and answering most questions before the first hammer has swung.
The other aspect of this work that I do differently is to project manage the design all the way through construction. Some designers provide limited oversight to check in on the work, but I am involved in every aspect of the construction process. I partner with Clients during the bidding, permitting and construction process, so that there are experienced eyes on the project looking out for their bottom line and the integrity of the design. They know I am as deeply invested in having a good outcome for them as they are and when we are done, there is a jubilant shared feeling of success.
Recently, I designed an exterior portico using teal plexiglas as the patio cover . While the color looked beautiful, the material the fabricator provided was an 1/8th of an inch thinner than I had specified, and on an unusually windy day, the material failed and hairline cracks formed over most of the panels. Because my Client had engaged me for full design services, I was on hand to help them select an alternate 1/4″ material that came in a different color in real time and navigate how to think about the impact an unexpected color change would have. Together, we selected a brighter, more primary green which really popped against the home and accent colors. The final result was more atomic and authentic to their home and groovy energy.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’ve had the pleasure of providing full service interior design services for residential and boutique hospitality clients for the last 18 years. I still feel like I am just getting started, so when working with me, you’ll get the benefit of all my experience, without the jaded attitude. Working for myself allows me full freedom to decide which projects to take on, how best to prioritize multiple projects and how to keep my work/life balance in check so I’m rested and recharged. I’m not part of a big machine and my work is tailored to expertly service the select clients see the value in what I offer. We take our time, and we develop the work over the course of several meetings so Clients feel fully included in every aspect of the design process.
After getting my undergrad degree from Bard College in Theater, I began designing sets and producing theater projects while living in NYC. These skills gave me the grounding I needed to start Charlie M, but seeking more formal training, I enrolled in UCLA Extension’s Professional Certification Interior Design Program and finished with my Masters of Interior Architecture degree from Cal Poly Pomona. My years of practical and educational experience gives me the confidence to see that there are many solutions to a problem, and that the right one will assuredly arise from our explorations together. I’m an experiential designer, so how the design works is as important to how it looks and until both are satisfied, the design is not done.
Boutique Hospitality projects start with the branding and how the values of the company define how customers should feel when inside those spaces. Residential projects start with a focus on how the family functions, what we need the spaces to offer and how folks want home to feel like. All these big concepts get broken down into the details of the design and by the time we are done, clients have a clear vision of what we are doing, how much it will cost to make, how long it will take to complete and how they will survive during the construction.
I’m a big believer in process. The journey of the design should be a pleasurable, exhilarating experience. There will be highs and lows but whom you choose to journey with is as important as the destination. I think that the passion I have for the design/build environment is contagious and that it’s what keeps my clients coming back to start their next renovation project with me.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Creatively, I have always known that I move outside the normal and expected route. never wavering from my vision to conform with the way things are normally done. I had a very clear vision of how I thought a thoughtful design process should proceed and following that directive allows me to dive deeply into a select group of projects, giving them my full attention. The design process and construction process are equally important parts of the same equation, and I give both the same amount of creative juice and intense oversight.
My reputation as a designer is that I bring every bit of formal and informal training I’ve experienced and pour it into designing precisely what satisfies that Client’s needs, not what the current trend or “design experts” would have expected. My eternal optimism, intense curiosity and collaborative nature allow me to MacGyver solutions and move projects forward that seem impossible. Clients pass my name onto their friends and family after working with me and those who are looking for a singular design and a quality experience will find me. I am also known for working with clients over a span of years on multiple projects—which has been my greatest joy. I get to see how my work enriches the lives of the people I have worked with over time and how our next adventure can be woven further into the story.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Hands down, my favorite thing about being a creative is making things that people use and love. It’s highly rewarding to put your ideas out into the marketplace and have people value the work you do, for the intrinsic pleasure it brings them. Trusting my instincts, listening to the little voice inside my head that says “yes, try this, that is what it needs”, and then hearing that what I felt in my bones was right, that it has resonated with the folks for whom the design was made….that’s the best feeling in the world.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.charliemdesign.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/charliemdesign/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/CharlieMDesign
- Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/charlie-m-a-design-company-pasadena
Image Credits
Marisa Vitale Photography