What inspired you to become a designer?
I had wanted to be a fashion designer as a teenager. I was always drawing and sketching but also always rearranging my room. I struggled to decide what to do and with fashion design I didn’t love the idea of all of the international travel. Staying local and travelling occasionally suits my lifestyle more than jetting around the world constantly. There was so much pressure in high-schoo
l to figure out what to do. One of my friends was given the gift of re-decorating her room for her birthday and I really enjoyed helping with that. It was a light-bulb moment where I figured, I could really do that for a living! I enrolled in school and graduated top of the class.
What are your favorite spaces to design?
I don’t have a favorite space but my favorite part of designing is helping someone find that balance in a space that really shows who they are. Some people really love color, some people don’t, helping people showcase what is important to them brings me a lot of joy. Maybe a client wants to feature their book collection, helping people feature what they love and using classic elements of design is what I’m known for. I’m definitely not a trendy type of person, I can bring in current trends but in a way that will not look dated in a short period of time. If you start with quality foundation pieces and you add accessories and lighting that can be changed out, going from say a blue wall to a green wall is not going to be a big deal. I really enjoy that process of making something personal, making something that is beautiful and functional for them.
It is satisfying helping people no matter the size of their space or the budget they have, make their space something they love. During Covid I’ve been doing virtual consultations. Even someone with a total of $5000 for a whole living room makeover is possible if you are a creative and knowledgeable designer. It’s been great helping people with their own DIY type room makeovers during lockdown, I really like giving people the ideas and inspirations they need for the design of their interiors. It is a process whether the homeowner has a very large space and budget or has a smaller budget and compact space. But, I have really great clients and love what I do and the relationships I have with the homeowners I work with.
What are some of the biggest trends in interior design you’ve seen during Covid?
Up until now, a lot of people have been focusing on the outside, the exterior of their home. You saw this summer, pools were sold out! Anything to do with outdoors was popular, finding a landscaper was so difficult as they were all fully booked. Now people are tweaking their interiors so that it suits them better. People are purging things they don’t need, and recognizing what is it they want in their homes and what it is that they don’t want. When it comes to families, some have to put in home offices, places for their children to do homeschooling and not everyone has a basement, attic or completely separate space to make that happen. Some people have use their living rooms or dining rooms as multi purpose spaces.
Finding a way to make things personal but functional is key right now. Now people are spending so much time at home, people are decorating based on what is going to make them happy. People are really asking themselves what do they really want, do they want a plush lounge chair with throw pillows or a vintage rug that ties the room together? It is really important that people do what they can to enjoy their homes during this really challenging season.
What are some of the things you would do to help clients make a home theater?
Right now we are not having a bunch of people over due to Covid but that won’t be forever. Some people have to consider how many people they will want to accommodate in the future. If they are going to have lots of sports watching parties or movie screening events they are going to have to consider multiple seating arrangements. It really is about identifying what the end goal is for the space. When helping a client with a home theater, we often think about home theater seating as being individual. Each person has a seat and a place to put their drink. However, with a company like Valencia, home theaters can have a sofa style seating arrangement. If it was a family that wanted to create an ultimate media room experience with all the kids and dog piled on top they can with a Valencia sofa configuration.
So beyond putting in amazing speakers and a screen, they still have a comfort level with their seating. A big screen tv is great and if someone is going to spend on a great projector they can still have a cozy and comfortable experience with the right seating. Whether your end goal is a media room for just you and your family, or a more traditional idea of a theater room, Valencia has seats for each scenario.
Other than a home theater room, where else in your home can you put a Valencia theater seat?
First of all, I’m really impressed with the designs options offered by Valencia. When you think theater chairs or chairs that recline, you often think of a dated or out of fashion boxy chair. But, the client looking for the lumbar support, the comfort of a reclining chair and quality materials is not looking for dated furniture. The proverbial “Man Cave” has changed drastically. It used to be a place where old furniture lived and men were happy enough to have a place to sit and was usually in the basement. But now the modern day “Man Cave” is turbo charged!
I have seen completely decorated garages where collector cars or motor bikes are on display and the space features a lounge area. That would be the perfect place to have a few of Valencia’s theater chairs! Imagine having the guys over to watch a game, talk about cars or bikes and relax with some drinks in a series of Valencia chairs, it would be ideal!
Luxury cars features like leather and technology are also embodies in these chairs and are a much better addition to a space than something lower end from a big box store. I love the idea that Valencia offers customized chairs, or even the high-end design models like the Manhattan can really elevate a space. These chairs debunk the idea of a dated recliner, these are beautiful chairs that happen to recline.
Emanuela Little, owner and Principal Designer of Bella Casa Interiors in Hamilton, Ontario, loves the challenge of taking a space and seeing it transform. She feels that every space should consist of classic design that endures—whether modern or traditional–and be comfortable, livable, functional and beautiful! Emanuela loves her city and supporting local business and trades is an important part of how she operates—keeping things local means you aren’t spending extra hours on travel but instead making the best use of your time and budget on what matters.
Emanuela Little began her career in 1992 when she graduated from the Interior Design Program at Niagara College at the top of her class. Her experience in design started off in Event Planning, then moved to high-end Residential, and then to Hotel & Hospitality design. After starting her own Residential Interior Design business in 2012, she has helped numerous clients achieve a personal & livable look in their homes, on budgets that were both generous and frugal. She oversees every detail of the project from start to finish for a cohesive design, so the end result is even better than what you envisioned! Some would think that hiring a designer is a luxury, but Emanuela’s approach makes Interior design available to everyone.