Hi there! My name is Haley and I’m a Junior Designer at Spade and Archer Design Agency. I have always had an interest in design, but in school I felt like it wasn’t something that I could succeed at, so instead I pursued a degree in Psychology. After I graduated from Oregon State University, I worked for the OSU Extension Service remotely doing website design. However, it wasn’t something that kept my passion burning, so I decided to explore my options related to interior design. That is when I found out about home staging. One day I applied for a warehouse position at Spade and Archer and after a couple interviews, I got the job! I wasn’t necessarily working in design yet, as I was doing more of the heavy lifting, but I was so happy to be one step closer.
A few months into the new job at Spade and Archer, we had a crazy day where one of the designers was suddenly no longer able to be apart of the team, so Dan, the Creative Director at the Seattle location and Justin, the founder and CEO, asked if I was up to playing the part of designer. They knew I was interested in design and I happily told them I would do my very best. It also helped that my fellow warehouse crew members graciously supported me as I tried to learn on the job. I’m not going to say it was easy to play this new role, and I’m still learning more as I go, but I have really enjoyed the journey so far.
At the warehouse, my job starts with picking out furniture to use in our home staging project for the day. Then I move on to picking out linens and pillows so I can get an idea of what colors I would like to use in each room. Then it’s on to art and accessories! Then it is time to load up and travel to the project for the day. At the stage my job is kind of like putting a puzzle together. We usually have most of the pieces, they all just need to work together to make something beautiful. It is so fun to see what comes together in the end.
Seattle home staging is so unique because there are such an array of houses, condos, and apartments that we work in. I’ve been in historical buildings in Pioneer Square, new high rises, and even a houseboat! Each day brings something new.
The best part of it all is working with such fabulous people! The Seattle crew really welcomed me as a part of the team, and I count them all as friends. We like to play music and crack jokes while we work, and even on tough days we are still able to smile and laugh. Working in the home staging industry doesn’t always make for easy days, but seeing the staged home that our team worked really hard on is always a great reward.