The Problem With Using Social Media as Design Education

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Twenty-five days were left on Shawn Henderson’s countdown to the Kips Bay Decorator Show House opening when I caught up with the AD100 designer . At that point, his north-facing bedroom on the home’s fourth floor was all but a rosy pink rendering—with its share of accompanying showcase headaches. Crunch time in session, he was still more than willing to offer real talk for fellow designers considering their first show house, air qualms with today’s design monotony, and underscore the importance of a design education. Enjoy the read—and check out Shawn’s dashing bedroom now on view on New York’s Upper East Side.

—Mel Studach, Editor, AD PRO

Mel: This is your second go at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House in New York. Have your past learnings come in handy this time around?

Shawn: The last time I did the Kips Bay Decorator Show House was back in 2012, and at the beginning of this year, I had been feeling like it might be time for me to do it again. When [design co-chair Alexa Hampton] emailed me to participate, I was like, OK, it’s a sign. They assigned me a bedroom, and it's going well—but these things are a moving target, right? Decisions are made and changed constantly based on availability and quantities. It’s all hands on deck up until the minute we’re installing. There's a lot of energy going into this one little room!

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