We were lucky to catch up with Pamela Bergmann recently and have shared our conversation below.
Pamela, appreciate you joining us today. Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?
I have made the mistake over and over of listening directly to a client and taking their word as law. In many cases, there are more than one client because most often I’m serving a couple in their home or for a special occasion with two sets of opinions and fuzzy idea of what they like at best. Most people who hire a designer don’t have the ability to visualize the end result without experiencing examples because if they did they might not hire me at all. They’d manage just fine with Pinterest, Instagram and their own imagination.
As a people pleaser, I am inclined to take exactly what the client asked for and deliver it as literally as possible. As a manifesting generator in human design, once I have a vision, I execute very quickly and rarely get stuck. So I find that I blow through the finish line without enough checkpoints for clients that don’t have as clear a vision as I do. The result is that they realize there are aspects they don’t like or that they didn’t consider out of the gate when they requested this outcome.
A recent example with an interior design client working on a living room.
The initial design prompt was to work with a neutral sepia-based color palette to make a very white space with high ceilings, more cozy for a gathering as a family and with guests. The caveat was incorporating a giant set of ’80s style Club speakers in a shade of purple that Prince would be envious of. No problem I said. We decided that this wall would be the pop of color that was needed to contrast all of the neutrals. In a desire for authenticity they chose some traditional rugs from Uzbekistan in a pallet of bright colors, knotted into geometric diamond patterns. The subwoofers would support a grand banquet bench with cushions made from these rugs. No problem I said. The rugs arrived and as we played with them we realized they were a bit too rough to sit on and that they wanted a softer more cozy feeling cushion. We talked about patchworking the rugs on the floor but as a family with small children they spend a lot of time sitting there as well. What to do?
The original plan called for that large white wall above the banquet to be home to an expansive gallery of artwork. However, we struggled to find any artwork that they really connected to. And the longer the rugs were in the home, several weeks by this point, the more they realized that they were truly their favorite thing in the space. After a little more indecision on their part and exhausting a few more options, We decided to get together with the three of us in the hopes of deciding what to do with these rugs. They had to stay but they were too scratchy to sit on. And then it clicked, why don’t we use the rugs as artwork on this giant 14-ft wall?? At first, the clients were a little skeptical, but after a few concepts thrown out, they suddenly became very emotional with the realization that they could play outside the boundaries of conventional. Who says you can’t splatter them across the wall?
We’re still in the process of designing this art piece, but the energy went from frustrated to creative and all because I did not rush through execution of clients wishes. I paused to understand the client’s unique journey through the design process, not just mine. I paused to let them match my energy.
This time that only cost a small portion of the budget. It delayed completion which fortunately is only important to half of the client couple. And it made me feel like I had wasted all of this time sourcing the wrong thing and doubting my ability to translate clients wishes to design.
What would I change in the future?? First of all, I would add a lot more in person collaboration to my project plan. Secondly, I would expose clients to a lot more materials and concepts that are outside of what they asked for. Third, and probably most important, I’m going expand my intake survey to focus on lifestyle, family history, and even traumas in order to get to know people better before discussing design.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am a manifesting generator and a Gemini by birth with a tendency towards ADHD traits. I spent 15 years directing teens in the silicon Valley Tech world before I walked away to feed my soul and follow my passion. I went to school for fashion design prior to entering Tech but after building space balloons and robot greenhouses, dressing people just seemed too small. And my favorite creative pastime was designing my own home. I added my sustainability itch to the whole thing and developed a design brand that focuses on incorporating pre-loved items anywhere possible. And because I’m an artist myself, I see old things as purely potential. And the transformation process brings me so much joy. Turning trash into treasure while preserving the nostalgia and energy of the original items. I help people design their homes, gardens and special event spaces. I love taking what they already have into their dream Vision. The bonus is that you can do more with a smaller budget when you buy pre-owned. It’s a win:win.
I am a materials driven maker, which means I’m inspired when I see things with potential and I love being surprised about the pivot in direction based on finding something we really love. I’m a seamstress by trade so I’m naturally drawn to textiles and do a fair bit of custom products for folks that want to turn old fabrics into something usable again. And I grew up in my dad’s wood shop so I’m pretty handy around power tools and not afraid to Google how to do something I’ve never done before. What this means for clients is they get custom above anything else. You want to turn that old quilt that you never use because it’s a little moth eaten into some beautiful pillows that remind you of a special someone, no problem. You have an old rickety chair that’s a family heirloom and not really good for sitting on, cool, let’s hang it on the wall and use it as a shelf.
While I’m a “Jane of all trades”, the thing that I’m most proud of is my ability to connect with people and listen to more than their words. I’m not happy until you’re. When clients love their space, I am satisfied. When clients discover unexpected joy as they experience their new space, I have fulfilled my purpose.
If you love old stuff, you want something no one has ever seen, and you want it to inspire stories that make you feel good, then I’m your designer.
Have you ever had to pivot?
When I started Turtle and Fig as a textile artist, I began thinking about things I could make with fabric. And because I’ve spent 15 years in silicon Valley Tech, I knew exactly how to build a business model that would be profitable and how to draft a value proposition and a marketing strategy to boot. But honestly, in practice, it resulted in a soulless product. I took vintage fabrics, cut them up into handkerchiefs and sold them as versatile “squares” that you could use both as wearable or in your home decor on a human or on your pet. While I still love my squares, there wasn’t really local market that was hungry for the product and an online sales direct ship platform didn’t fit my sustainability brand values.
Life gave me the pause and perspective I needed because my family needed a breadwinner and my startup textile business wasn’t going to provide that. I put it on pause for a year while I returned to Tech management. I always say the worst experiences in life are the ones that transform us the most and this was definitely one of those. I commuted 2 hours a day 5 days a week to manage a team under a tyrannical organization of leaders who I could not shelter from the toxicity. As someone who practices extreme ownership, this was a recipe for burnout and I am a textbook example. So after setting clear boundaries and having them bulldozed, I quit.
This sent me spiraling through a journey of self-discovery. I know I’m a wonderful director so why did I fail? I know I’m stubborn and tenacious so why did I quit?? And for months, I mourned.
People wanted to know what was I going to do next because Pam always has a plan. But this time I didn’t and I didn’t make one either. I spent 6 months looking for another job just like the one I left; it was almost like a zombie version of a previous version of myself but it felt like she had died. During that time customers came out of the woodwork, asking me to design their space. Another patient at my chiropractor found out I was a designer and is a sustainability freak like me so she asked if I would do her living room. I leaned in to the fear of unknown territory and blundered through a crash course of my first bid, my first collaboration, the first clients I didn’t know and my first execution in a home that didn’t belong to me.
And when this project was finished I felt the pilot light in the furnace of the new me catch fire. I had found it.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
About a year ago I started following @mami.onami on Instagram who runs an occult school for teachers. I thought, I’m not a teacher but was magnetized by where her no-Bullshit approach. I guess people have always come to me as a mature source of advice, which inflated my ego and made me feel like I had it figured. So why wasn’t I achieving my goals and manifesting things into my life? She spoke directly to my bratty bitterness and called out my self-doubt in a way that snapped me back into reality. Her teachings made me feel small and humbled. She was asking me to ask myself the toughest root questions that I had ignored my entire life. I’d always been an A+ student and a people-pleaser but she was asking me what was my purpose and what shortcuts was I taking that were keeping me from getting there. She called me out. And I felt seen. Mami Onami what’s the first teacher that I couldn’t excuse my way out. The first person who inspired actual results. I highly recommend you follow and buy her book and take her classes.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @turtleandfigtextiles
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089961717289&mibextid=ZbWKwL
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamela-bergmann-68b54922?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=android_app
Image Credits
Chris Matthews