Name: Kelly Ernevad
Company/Position/Years: Senior Interior Designer at YGH for almost a year (I moved from Seattle to Portland in 2020) and working as a Commercial Interior Designer for 25+ years. Current IIDA Oregon VP of Membership.
IIDA member since: 2021 as well in the past years.

Why are you a member of IIDA?
First and foremost I joined to be a part of a community of fellow creatives! The energy that I get from being with other interior designers and industry members feeds me. It inspires me to hear about what others are working on, allows me to share, and provides a venue to learn, lead, advocate, and celebrate our work and profession together.

What is your favorite IIDA event?
The Socials, so far!  I love meeting people and building relationships. Since I am fairly new to the area the socials have been a fantastic way to make new connections. I’m looking forward to the upcoming Design Excellence Awards and Design Crawl Series in the Spring too.

What gets you excited about design?
The unique ability to shape spaces and create environments that holistically connect who uses them. It’s exciting that each project brings new ways to be creative. The initial research and discovering phase are so compelling as they allow inspiration and collaboration to thrive and then communicating the design and all the details stimulate the process for me and bring it all to life working with the client.

Favorite design blog and podcast you follow?
Estliving – It’s an Australian design blog and magazine that highlights projects in Australia and all over the world. The modern simplicity and gorgeous details leave me in awe.

ONEder – Thought provoking conversations with designers, architects, makers and thinkers about design.

On a typical Saturday where can we find you?
Working in the garden or on a house renovation project, taking a road trip somewhere new in Portland, and wandering through a farmers market or a local arts festival.