The Spring Event was a Success!

The hard work of our dedicated members paid off last Friday, March 26th, in a big way. We held the 2010 Spring Window Fashion and Interior Design Event featuring Jackie Von Tobel. The event was also a table top vendor exhibit with 18 vendors taking part. The event was well attended by workroom owners and interior designers from the Charlotte metro area, as well as, from far away as Pennsylvania! Our marketing partners the AIDP Charlotte Chapter helped bring in new vendors and a number of designers that our chapter had not yet hosted. The day began bright and early at 7:30 am with breakfast and coffee. Attendees were able to browse many of the vendor tables before the workshops began. Our chapter president, Pam Dawes welcomed everyone and thanked the team of people that had worked to put the event together. The day went flawlessly as we awarded door prizes throughout the day and heard from our dynamic speaker.

Jackie Von Tobel is a superstar in the design industry. She is a 20 year veteran of the interior design world and has recently given up her design practice to write 4 books, design beautiful fabrics, and have over 1000 of her designs featured in Minutes Matters Studio. The first part of her time with us was spent sharing design trends that she gathered at the Maison de Objet show that she recently attended in Paris. Her slide show was fabulous and the trends she spotted were very interesting and helpful. The one theme that came out repeatedly in her forecast was the embellishment of fabrics. From embroidery to beads, ruffles to banding, it seems as though every fabric treatment showed some form of this application.

Lunch was a delicious buffet, and once again, attendees were given time to really chat with the different vendors and really take the time needed to see what was new. A number of guests reported really getting a lot out of just that, let alone the inspiration that Jackie shared. Following our midday break, Jackie began sharing how to achieve a high end look for less. Again, a fabulous lecture with stunning photos captured our imaginations and pushed us to be our most creative selves. The reoccurring theme in this half of the presentation was offering something unique to clients. She touched on this from both a workroom perspective in working with designers, to the designer paradigm working with a client. The day concluded with a wonderful bonanza of door prizes from the generous vendors that attended. Everyone that attended walked out with a smile on their face.

Jackie Von Tobel recently commented on a Facebook post from Jane Ann Maxwell, co chair of the event. She said, “I had such a great time and all of you did a fantastic job producing such a slick and professional event! Kudos to all of you.” That, my friends, says it all!