DIY Darling: Zenia Olivares of @styleitprettyhome
Tell us a bit about you and your style.
My style is a cacophonous mix of many styles put together. I love color, texture, layering, and mixing many elements from different styles to create my own. My style is constantly evolving but layering and texture are always big in my spaces.
Image Credit:Brigitte Chandelier. Design: Zenia Olivares.
How do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration through anything really! A color, an item, a texture, Instagram, nature, and books to name a few.
Who/what are your favorite Instagram inspo accounts?
@florencerevival, @jennasuedesign, @amberinteriors, and @jeanstofferdesign are some of my favorites.
When did you first know that you were destined to design? Was it something you always knew or was it more spontaneous?
I’ve always loved the visual arts. As a kid, I loved arranging and rearranging spaces in the house. I would paint walls, tear up the carpet and try to design my bedroom and all the spaces in my childhood house in different ways, using my dad's scrap wood to try and build things. I didn’t know I’d be destined for it, but I’ve always known I’ve loved it.
Was there a particular experience or piece of advice that helped shape the way you think about design?
One of my art instructors from high school once told me two things: don’t be afraid of making mistakes and you have to know the rules to break the rules—something about that made me want to understand the basic principles of visual design and continue pushing boundaries. It continually leads me to try new things. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
What’s your favorite room in your house right now?
My living room — it’s a small, cozy, and inviting space and it always elicits a feeling of calm.
Image Credit:Brigitte Chandelier. Design: Zenia Olivares.
What is your favorite part of the design process?
I think my favorite part about the design process is seeing the gradual transformation. I love the end result but seeing it slowly come together; each “milestone” is a mini celebration.
At what point in the design process do you begin to think about lighting?
Around halfway. When I see the space coming together I start to think about what direction I want to go in. Sometimes it’s exactly how I thought, other times it completely changes, but I love how lighting can become such a statement in any space.
Image Credit: Bryce Flush Mount. Design: Zenia Olivares.
How would you advise readers to think about lighting and how it affects a space?
Lighting can really help tie a space together, it can add texture and interest in a space. It can also help lead your eyes through a space from one element to another. It also creates the “feeling” in a space. Soft table lamp lighting can be relaxing and inviting which is exactly what you may want in a living room while brighter overhead lights can lead to a more energetic space letting you get things done and see well, like in a kitchen.
Do you have any tips for choosing the right lighting fixture for a space?
Consider the space and all the types of lighting you may need for it—task lighting, overhead lighting, ambient lighting—these are all important things to consider when you’re trying to get the feeling of the room just right.
The Aira Flush Mount is one of my favorite flush mounts, I love the juxtaposition of the soft globe light with the metal cube frame! I always picture this light in a hallway.
Cadence is also another flush mount I love, it’s a bold light without being over the top—simple yet a statement.
The Brigitte Chandelier is such a statement—clean and linear, with a touch of traditional. I have this light in my living room!
The Meta Wall Sconces are so good—they’re the perfect blend of modern/traditional I have these in my master bedroom.
