‘Design is thinking made visual.’

The quote above explains the event that was held on 13^th of April 2015 by Sonia Suri in association with Home Stop and JD Institute Of Fashion Technology. Sonia Suri is a  renowned, successful, talented Interior Designer based out of Delhi, currently residing in Bangalore and been in the industry for 15 years now working for bigwigs like ITC. She also happens to have her own venture dealing in residential interiors. Home Stop has been very encouraging as they gave us prior permission to use their space and their products.

The day begun on a positive note for the Interior Design students of JD Institute, basically they were briefed by the designer herself about the task for the day. The students were divided into groups of two and given 30 minutes time to study the space and pick up 15 props from Home Stop to either decorate the Living room or the Bedroom area.

And then came the fun part, so we followed the students around while they were picking the required props, we found out that all the participants were very clear in their heads about what exactly they wanted to portray. While some students were nervous, some were excited and some happy to be shopping. A few of them had mixed feelings and the boys had a tough time considering this was their first shopping experience for home interiors.

Each team had the opportunity to decorate the space within 15 minutes using their creativity and putting their knowledge into visual communication. Miss Sonia Suri gave her constructive inputs to each team individually. She was also more than willing to share her knowledge on the industry and her experience over the years, which was very kind on her part.

Now we would like to share excerpts from the conversation that we had with Miss Sonia:

Q1: Tell us about yourself and what got you interested in Interior Designing?

“I am basically based out of Delhi and topped my University in Interior Designing. I have been working in the Hotel industry for 15 years now and worked with ITC for 12 good years. Currently I have my own entrepreneurial venture named ‘IDesign’ and we deal in home interiors. Also I have been interested in this field since childhood”.

Q2: How did the idea for this particular activity come about?

“So firstly this is a one of a kind event in India happening for the very first time. I have been watching such shows on TV Internationally and always thought why not implement it in India. When Mr Nealesh Dalal approached me, I was reluctant to do the whole classroom teaching as I believe in practical learning”.

Q3: Have the students at JD Institute lived up to your expectations?

“Yes to a great extent, the students from JD Institute have been extremely innovative with their ideas and I loved the usage of colors in their work”.

Q4: What do you think about the current scenario of the Indian market?

“As both the husband and wife are working their purchasing power has increased from before.  And they have the liberty to spend more and afford an Interior Designer for their home. This has definitely increased the scope for interiors, also people’s mindset is changing by the day. We don’t get a lot of interference from our clients they leave it to us”.

Q5: How would you sum up today’s experience?

“It has been a wonderful day for me. I enjoyed interacting with the students of JD Institute. It’s been a great learning experience for both the students and me. The students have the urge to learn more and are very enthusiastic. I am looking forward to more such associations with JD Institute Of Fashion Technology in the future”.

JD Institute of Fashion Technology’s Interior Design Students Collaborate with Home Stop

(Written by: Manisha & Zeba, M.Sc Fashion Communication)