Textiles and drapery are at the root of who we are. We feel it’s what makes our homes feel good, cozy, welcoming, textural … textile materials always play an important part in the spaces we design!
Back when we were Woodlands Fabrics & Interiors (as we’re sure many of our Houston friends remember!), we carried bolts upon bolts of fabrics in a fully-stocked fabric and trim store. And when we decided to transition from a retail store to a by-appointment-only custom interior design firm in 2019, our love for those fabrics didn’t fade.
While we don’t sell retail from our Studio anymore, textiles are a big part of every project we touch. Today, we have a fully-functioning in-Studio workroom, full-time seamstress, and full-time Furnishings & Textile Specialist, available exclusively to our custom furnishings and textile clients to create one-of-a-kind textile experiences for their projects.
And today, we’re excited to give you a behind-the-scenes look into our in-Studio workroom, custom drapery, and custom bedding projects!
Meet Lead Seamstress, Munira
Long-tenured and widely loved, our Lead Seamstress, Munira, has had an incredible impact both in our workroom and outside of it. Through the hundreds of drapery projects she’s completed for our clients over the years, Munira’s high-degree of care and skillful craft is truly unmatched. Working closely with our team and clients, she brings textile visions to reality with an eye for perfection and touch for handcrafted care.
Munira is closely involved with every project that comes through her workroom — long before she starts sewing! Having worked with Nancy Charbonneau for over a decade, she has extensive knowledge around the technical craft of sewing, and brings that expertise to every single project — whether it’s a single drapery panel, or whole-home custom bedding project. Munira works closely with our team to ensure that yardages, measurements, and more are precise and accurate. She is a perfectionist in the best sense, and it shows in her incredibly well-crafted pieces!
Meet Textile Specialist, Allison
Passionate, personable and fun: the first 3 words that come to mind with Allison! As our Furnishings & Textile Specialist, she coordinates between clients and our in-house workroom to bring textile dreams to life. Whether sourcing fabrics, installing drapery, or consulting on custom furnishings, she does it all with kindness, care, and connection, turning our projects into a one-of-a-kind experience for our clients to enjoy.
Within each of the project pods she’s in, Allison coordinates between the client, lead designer, and Munira to manage the process that brings concept, to vision, to tangible plans, to execution. She has a keen eye for selecting fabrics, and works closely within our in-Studio Resource Library pulling fabrics, curating presentations, and ensuring that each selection she makes is the best choice for our clients. You’ll often find Allison in the workroom collaborating closely with Munira, as well!
From those days of wall-to-wall bolts at Woodlands Fabrics & Interiors now manifests in a highly-curated collection of fabrics, trims, sheers, and more in our in-Studio Resource Library. Frequently refreshed and updated (thanks to our rockstar Design Assistant, Ana!), this collection is for the exclusive use of our team and clients.
Nestled right next to our Workroom, you’ll often find our designers sifting through samples and curating presentations with our collection.
Did you know that right next to our Studio is our sister company, Designers Hardware? Founded by Dave and Nancy Charbonneau in the early days of Woodlands Fabrics & Interiors, Designers Hardware specializes in custom drapery hardware and ironwork, with a fully-equipped workshop in the back to create completely custom pieces. In addition to being a to-the-trade business, we use Designers Hardware for the majority of our projects.
Because of the long-standing and shared tenure between Charbonneau Interiors and Designers Hardware, our teams have an incredibly close relationship with each other. And, it’s ultimately our clients who benefit from it. With our drapery projects, we’re able to offer one-on-one hardware consultations right here in our Studio, alongside hardware professionals we love to work with. This is all part of providing a well-rounded, in-house design experience that our clients can feel confident in!
Installations & Bringing Everything to Life
While our clients only have to worry about selecting a fabric and enjoying their custom pieces after installation, there’s quite a bit more that we take care of in between (purchase requests, work orders, measurements, sewing, steaming, packaging … you get the gist)!
And, installation day is when that entire process becomes a hanging product. Our installation team is typically made up of Allison, one of our design assistants, and our jack-of-all-trades slash hardware craftsman, Cody. Because Cody is often the one who makes our custom hardware next door at Designers Hardware, he’s a great resource to have on-site! Throughout the install, our team ensures that each piece is in perfect condition, from the textile to the trim to the hardware. We’ll hang, adjust, and steam to ensure that what comes out of the bag looks like a dream on the rod. Teamwork really does make the dreamwork!
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