Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Fridell.
Hi Ashley, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My 5 year old imagination used a rake and a pile of leaves on my family’s 3 acres to create a life size house floor plan for my sister and I to play in. Throughout elementary school, I created a mass amount of drawings that resembled perspective views of the class room itself, and even include floor plans referring to desk locations complete with student names on it.
In 6th grade, I “worked” for a day in a local architecture firm where my first ever CAD drawing was completed using AutoCAD R14, in which I created an actual full size stinky blueprint. It was apparent that programming and design was in my blood.
As I grew older, I began to have a passion for using my talents to help others. I found myself designing sets for school and church plays, I even sweet talked the school counselor in high school in to letting me take the 1 only 1 Computer Aided Drafting class 3 times just so I could avoid having to do band! For Semesters 2 and 3 of that class, I no longer sat as a student but I taught alongside the teacher and assisted her in answering questions from the other students. I began to be inspired by the joy that I found in seeing others’ excitement as they applied the knowledge that I was able to share with them.
In college, after failed waitressing jobs, I found myself with a job in the College of Human Sciences Computer Lab, which is where us Texas Tech grads at the time would spend most of our waking hours. I was tasked with helping students learn AutoCad, and it was there that I was able to assist many of my fellow classmates actually get their design ideas down on paper. Since I had a key and after hours access to that computer lab I spent countless nights in there helping others create extraordinary work, while my own fell to the way side. While I did manage straight A’s and produced some pretty stellar designs they never gave me a feeling of accomplishment and joy. I would always anxiously sit in the back of the class after a huge deadline waiting for my classmates to present their designs, and loved to watch the excitement on their faces. I was inspired by them. They inspired me to change my design direction to being more of a technical, code, guru that could assist them in making their amazing designs a reality.
I have 2 favorite quotes: “God is in the Details” Mies Van Der Rohe, and “Can’t Never Could Do Nothing” unknown, a quote my Father often told me.
As I began my career in the architecture field I found myself working for a 1 man architecture show. Tim Spafford, my boss, was my biggest and only mentor at the time. Being his 1 and only employee I was forced to bury my nose in code books, learn the architecture language, and figure out how to produce the drawings mostly on my own. I had a lot of “I can’t do this moments” but the words of my father always rang true in the back of my mind “Can’t Never Could do nothing” and I pushed through with great feelings of accomplishment and joy. Tim, was a great teacher and mentor and I was blessed to have him as my first boss in my first design job. His patience and willingness to stop what he was doing to teach me, inspired me to want to do the same for others and for my clients.
In every job I have had since working with Tim, I have aspired to be that same type teacher and mentor to others. Some jobs welcomed it open arms, while others just tried to shove me in a corner forcing me to use my talents but not share them.
Knowledge is Power, unless it is not shared.
Not being able to share my knowledge and my talents, put me in a state of depression. I had a hard time finding happiness when I couldn’t pinpoint my purpose through others’ excitement. At my previous 2 jobs, I found myself endlessly searching for joy and inspiration. I found myself lost and among employers that had no desire to inspire me or help me grow.
In the Spring of 2013, I found myself in San Francisco on a trip touring lighting facilities when I met, Jim O’Neill. As an owner of his own architecture and interiors firm in Houston, he could give a sales pitch like no other, and made you feel as if you were at Disneyland and all your dreams could really come true. Without knowing it he restored my faith in my career path, and inspired me to not settle for the “Can’t”. I went back to Houston, worked in my mundane job for the next 18 months and then called up Jim, I needed a change. I went to work for him and for the next 5 years he encouraged me to see out new opportunities, allowed me to bring in new clients and services, and constantly challenged my business and design senses.
In 2019, after having 1 beautiful little boy and while pregnant with another, I moved on to another architecture firm where I would be challenged to start up a Corporate Interior Division. This opportunity was exciting and yet scary. I had no idea if I would succeed or if I would fail. Loyal clients followed me in my path, while family and colleges supported me. It was hard move with a new baby on the way and a 3-year-old at home, and I questioned then if I should just start my own business. However, I pushed forward and gained confidence and validated the “Can’t never could do nothing” that seemed to have been haunting my career.
As we all know 2020 brought more challenges than anyone could have ever fathomed. The world of designing Corporate Interiors came to a halt as work places shut down, and mandatory work from home mandates took place. While this period of time was not ideal what it did bring to many was the sense of a work life balance. I had 2 little boys at home that I could now spend time with during the day, they needed me, they needed protection. To say God was in the details is an understatement, He was just beginning to start the details of my career.
With a leap of faith and trust in God, I started Fridell Design Studio in January of 2021. (Yes, in the middle of a pandemic!) Again my clients were loyal and my relationships with contractors from all over the city helped to make for a very successful 2021. While many might say this pandemic has ruined their careers and their life, for me it was the opposite. I grew in my faith, grew in my career, and grew in my relationships with my family. I get inspired by oldest son, Brock exploring this world around him, examining every detail and every object, asking the question “Why” and watching him pretend to work just like Mommy. Watching Brock mimic the world around him has reminded me that there is inspiration everywhere. Today I have great passion for what I love to do, design, and be a mom!
My passion and my inspiration has been found more in the details of what make good design good and what makes being a working mom still a good mom.
I will continue to teach others that “Can’t Never could do Nothing, that “God is always in the Details”, and should it ever feel like fall, I might just teach my sons, Brock and Jax how to make floor plans out of leaves.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
There have been many valleys among the mountain tops in my career but none that I have not been able to learn a valuable lesson from. We all go through seasons in our lives that are meant merely to make us stronger.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Fridell Design Studio is a local Interior Design/ Interior Architecture firm that specializes in corporate interiors, hospitality, retail, and capital improvements.
I offer a detail-driven design approach, and with budget conscious solutions to help showcase the full potential of every project. Quality control and quality assurance are 2 items that I take great pride in and I fully believe that every details, whether new or existing plays an important role in the success of a project.
The business motto is to provide Purpose Driven Design.
Purpose: To create spaces that have function along with aesthetics.
Driven: By going beyond understanding what the Client wants to uncovering why they want it. Good design is driven by aesthetics, function, intuition, trends, location, and budget.
Design: Creative and technical solutions are applied to achieve a built interior environment that is functional and enhances the quality of life and culture of the occupants, while also being aesthetically attractive.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
When taking the Meyers and Briggs personality test I tend to fall on the borderline between being an Extravert vs Introvert, being an Intuitive or a Sensor and being a Feeler or a Thinker! One thing for sure is that I am a Judger, I like to make a plan, set goals, follow rules, set clear expectations and see every task through.
I feel that I am borderline in so many categories because I can mold myself into being whatever the situation may call for whether that is a teacher, a commander, a provider, a supervisor, a counselor, a mastermind, an inspector or a protector. My personality and in my personal life does vary from that of my professional life.
I often promote myself and my business to prospective clients that I am a Jack of all trades and a master of none.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.fridelldesign.com
- Instagram: @fridelldesign
- Facebook: @fridelldesign
Image Credits
JayChay Productions (Jeremiah Chambers)
