The life of a designer is rarely one of routines. With every job, the basic job description remains the same: Make a space more beautiful than you found it. It’s every other variable that changes – the owner’s preferences, the materials and objects that need to be incorporated, the size of the space, the light it receives, the foot traffic, the lifestyle, pets or no pets … the list goes on and on and on.
Within a space, designing each element comes with its own infinite loop of variables. One key example of this would be the windows. Window treatments might be one aspect of an overall room’s design, but they serve as a sort of linchpin for the entire space.
It’s something that Casey Bryant is constantly mindful of and will focus on as the in-house interior designer at Carolina Window Designs.
A seamstress works on custom drapery in the workroom.
“It’s so important to have window treatments right, because without those balances to the space, all of your energy goes right out the window,” Bryant said. “You still want your beautiful views, because we are on the coast, but you need a beautiful frame around that artwork. You can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on furniture and rugs, but if you don’t have anything on the windows, you’re not keeping that energy, you’re not balancing that space, and you’re not tying everything together.”
She speaks from experience as a designer for her own firm, Luv Ur Space. For more than 15 years, before moving to the Lowcountry, she lived and worked in New York, where her designs graced some of the most lavish homes in Manhattan. The Upper East Side has a decidedly more metropolitan design philosophy than that of the Carolina Lowcountry, but to Bryant it’s all part of the same thread.
“It’s not about my style, it’s about the client. And that’s really what I try to stay true to. My philosophy is about working with what people already have,” Bryant said. “People still want their homes to be beautiful. There’s no difference. It’s just a little bit more laid back down here.”
Luisa, the lead seamstress at Carolina Windows (right), works with designer Casey Bryant on a pillow layout.
Ten years ago, she made the move South to begin a new adventure. One of the first professionals she truly clicked with was Carolina Window Designs’ Jennifer Kirkland. “I met Jennifer as I was looking around for people I wanted to work with, and we immediately just connected,” Bryant said. “I’ve been working with her ever since.”
Bryant and Carolina Window Designs recently made the relationship official, with Bryant joining the company as the newest member of the team. “They’ve always been like family to me, the whole group here,” Bryant said. “I still do my own thing, but I’m thrilled to be working so closely with Jennifer and everyone here.”
Bryant’s panache for putting the client’s style at the heart of a project, then putting each detail into its perfect place to create balance, works well with the elegant coastal style of Carolina Window Designs.
“A lot of people are moving down here to create their forever home, and they’re bringing their whole life down to intermix with a more coastal style. The key is to create that look without taking away their whole life story by intertwining their pieces with new upholstery and new artwork,” Bryant said.
Casey Bryant, an interior designer with Carolina Windows, is photographed in the showroom.
Naturally, window treatments play a vital role in pulling the old and new together. “We can do it all at Carolina Window Designs because the seamstresses are in-house and make everything custom,” she said. “That’s what sets us apart.”
For Bryant, it’s a fortuitous time to be focusing her energies on window treatments. Among the design trends she sees playing a more vital role in homes over the next few years, window treatments are going to be huge.
“Things like wallpaper and trim are leading the trends, but window treatments are something people are paying a lot more attention to – you’re starting to see more of the valances, more of the swag. It’s not just a blank window with some blinds anymore,” Bryant said. “And it’s just good feng shui to keep all that energy in the room.”
With her move to Carolina Window Designs, Bryant is taking the seasoned eye that she has cultivated through her celebrated and extensive career in interior design and training it on what could be the most important element of anyone’s home. And it’s helping her find balance in a job she loves surrounded by people she considers family.
“I just love what I do,” Bryant said. “I love bringing joy to people and making their home a beautiful space for them to enjoy.”
