Wellness Within Your Walls: Lita’s Experience

As reported on earlier, one of LD & Co’s design directors, Teresa Karpala, was fortunate enough to attend Jillian Cooke’s Wellness Within Your Walls (WWYW) seminar. It was an incredibly informative and empowering experience for Teresa and Lita was excited for her chance to learn more about creating wellness-focused design. Fortunately, schedules worked out, and Lita was able to take the WWYW course virtually last week. So of course, we had to sit down and “dish” with Lita to get her take on the seminar and her thoughts on creating wellness-focused designs.

Lita’s Insight into Creating Wellness-Focused Design

LD & Co: You had been looking forward to taking WWYW for quite a while now, did you have any specific expectations about the class? What were you hoping to get out of it?

Lita: I’ll be honest, I was a little fearful. Being healthy has always been important to me. I (try) to eat right and exercise often (I’m a big fan of the gym), but as far as overall wellness goes, it hadn’t been a huge focus for me. I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to grasp it all. But more than anything I was really interested in the content. I knew the seminar wasn’t about being “green” per se, it was about being healthy. And, I know health and wellness is the future.

LD & Co: Were your expectations met?

Lita: Absolutely! And then some. I have known Jillian for many years. We have a wonderful relationship and I was curious about how she put this program together. She and I are both incredibly passionate people and I wanted to experience her passion for wellness coupled with my passion for design. It did not disappoint.

LD & Co: What would you say are the top three things you’ve “taken away” from the class?

Lita: Wow. That’s a hard one. Truly, I learned so much. But if I must narrow it down to just three, I’d say:

    • More things are toxic than I ever considered. It seems so simple when you think about it , but we tend not to think about the toxicity surrounding us.
    • I need to pay attention to all labels. I’ve always read food labels but hadn’t considered that I should be cognizant of the makeup of design items. I need to read the “ingredients” of what we are putting on the walls, floors, and with our furniture selections.
    • And finally, I was thrilled to see that so many natural elements – things that I find beautiful – are healthy. I will enjoy using them in more design knowing that they are beautiful and health-promoting.

LD & Co: Can you envision how you will put them into practice at work? What about in your daily life?

Lita: They say knowledge is power. With this new found knowledge I feel so much more powerful in my decision-making abilities. I will definitely use this foundation of knowledge in all future endeavors be it at work or home.

LD & Co: After taking this class have you changed how you look at/approach interior design?

Lita: I’ve always watched what I’ve eaten, made sure I exercised, and now I will pay more attention to the “ingredients” of what I’m specifying or purchasing. It’s a natural process, just now extended. I’ve already found myself doing it and I just took the class a few days ago!

Lita already working at home on ways to incorporate wellness-focused designs.

 

LD & Co: What was the best part of the class? Or the favorite thing you learned?

Lita: I’d say the realization that we can all try harder to make sure the materials we put in a space are healthy. The flooring, the fabrics, the furnishings should all be looked at a little closer to make sure they’re as healthy as we can possibly specify. And then recognizing that even though you may try hard to do the right thing then somebody can come in and bring something into a healthy space and ruin its purity. For example, someone can plug in an air freshener and all of a sudden, all your hard work to make it a healthy space is voided by unwanted toxins. So really, I’d say my favorite thing I learned was my biggest takeaway from the day: be patient, thoughtful, and persistent – we can make a difference.

LD & Co: Love that. It can seem overwhelming, trying to do the “right” thing, I like the idea that a little patience, thoughtfulness, and persistence can make a difference. Is there anything else you’d like to share? Any tips, tricks, or parting words?

Lita: Read your labels. You need to know what potential toxins you are putting in your mouth, on your walls, and in your homes.

LD & Co: Thanks so much Lita. I know we’ll be seeing more wellness-focused designs from LD & Co in the near future.