If you’ve ever bought the sofa of your dreams only to discover that it overpowers the room — or worse yet, doesn’t fit the space — Kennesaw State University’s Continuing Education department has a course for you.
On three Saturdays (18 hours of total instruction) starting April 10, students can learn to use HGTV Home Design Software. Among other things, the course will teach you design changes to scale or to walk virtually through a room on your laptop before ever picking up a paint brush or buying a piece of furniture.
“When people put money into their house — whether it’s new window treatments or an addition for aging parents — they want it to work,” said Jan Britt, interior designer and instructor.
Virtual technology helps people think through a project, take creative risks and then re-think the design before committing to buying costly materials.
Advanced technology assistant director Melissa Vickery got the idea for the class when she and her husband were in the midst of a basement renovation and were looking for tools to make the project easier.
“This class is perfect for people who want to add value to their existing home or for those who have purchased distressed property in need of renovations,” Vickery said.
It’s also good for anyone who wants to give their house a face-lift before putting it on the market.
“No matter what the reasons, this software can save people time, frustration and money,” Britt said. “The manual that comes with the software is 698 pages long and can be overwhelming, so we wrote our own step-by-step guide to help people learn the skills.”
Anyone with average Microsoft Windows skills can learn to use this program, Britt said.
Students learn the basics by building a practice house on the screen and furnishing it. Along with the technology teaching, Britt offers design tips to help students learn more about their own style and color preferences as they consider their personal needs.
“Do they need oversized doors for wheelchair accessibility, for instance, in an addition for their parents?” Britt said.
The class also covers some design basics.
“Paint is your best friend,” Britt said. “Since walls [take up] the most square footage in any room, it’s the least expensive way to decorate and gives you enormous impact.”
The program allows users to try different color schemes virtually by choosing sample colors from real manufacturers. Before painting a room, Britt advises clients to buy a quart of the color paint they want, brush it on poster board, tack it up and live with it for a day and a night, because light changes color.
As part of a class, a kitchen designer also walks participants through the choices they’ll need to make about cabinets, appliances, flooring and window treatments before redesigning their kitchens.
Students leave the program with a blueprint of the living space they have designed and can apply to their room schemes. They also part with the skills required to create blueprints for interior design projects.
“Then if they see a chair they like, they can measure it or take a photo of it, size and scale it on the computer and incorporate it into their design,” Britt said.
The class costs $399, which includes the software. For information, call 770-423-6765 or go to www.kennesaw.edu/coned.
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