b'product featureright: Thanks to Di, a combination ofResene Di enjoys bringing new talent into the fold of her business creative lighting and bold colour useAlabaster and finds it rewarding to mentor younger designers that are just sets this Queensland commercial officeResene Resene starting out in their careers. We have a small team, including an apart. Walls in Resene SpaceCote LowTea St Tropaz assistant to the design team who is currently studying interior Sheen tinted to Resene St Tropaz. Resene design. She absorbs so much and gives so much back; it is thrilling Build by Woollam Constructions, Masalaconstructions.woollam.com.au. to see her unfolding like a flower as she gets more confident.I wish I had been given more advice when I was starting out, says Di. There are three things that stand out to me that I do wish Resene younger designers would adopt. Firstly, to listentruly listendesign schools who either have a diploma or aCoast to clients without planning in your head your response to them. degree in Interior Design. And then we also haveTake some breathing space before replying, so you can absorb the qualified draftspeople and business graduates thatunderlying messages that are being given in their conversation.support the design team. Another one is to take a tape measure with you everywhere While residential projects are always challenging, Di finds themyou go and practice measuring things, even mundane things in equally rewarding and considers them her favourite typology toyour own home such as heights of hanging rails in wardrobes, work on. It is vital to get inside the head and heart of the client inheights of drawers, heights of tables and seats. They dont teach a very short space of time so that I can understand how far I canyou how to measure in uni or design school, and you will be move them, how they will respond to certain colours, textures and so forth, explains Di. amazed how, once you truly understand measurement withoutknowledgeI also love doing workspaces as the response from the teamsa tape measure in your hand, it affects your ability to do space is always a joy, she adds. planning. Youll also be able to explain to a client how things will Some projects take years of planning and execution; otherslook and feel even when youre standing in an empty space trying to illustrate what is about to happen.get flipped in a few weeks. In all cases, without exception, the sameLastly, colourdont be afraid of it, but also respect how itEverything you need to know aboutdegree of tenacity and passion is put into each. Every project is a challenge and a great source of energy and excitement for bothaffects just about everything. Always view larger samples like aResenes growing plant-based paint offerings.me personally and my whole team. Resene drawdown swatch or do a brush-out before specifying a colour, as looking at a small sample of colour is no way to make Di says that she cant even remember when she began usinga final selection. Distudios that have continued working overT herecanbeawholehostofreasonsforchoosingaMost paint systems have been based on organic polymers using Resene in her projects, as it was such a long time ago, but shesLike many designparticularpaint,fromitsintendedusetothesubstratecombinations of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen sourced from fossil glad she did. I was first drawn to Resenes edited colour range,the course of the pandemic, the way her team operates hasit will be applied on to its durability and the finish thatshydrocarbonsor what most people who arent chemists refer to howitwaspresented,howitwasclearlythought-through.shifted as of late.used to make three or more trips abroaddesired.WhileyouprobablyknowwheretobrowseResenesas oil. Minimising the use of fossil hydrocarbons is a priority for The difference between Resenes colours and the others waseach year to source special furniture and textiles for her clients,products online (www.resene.com/products) and find technicalthe paint industry and research is now focused on using carbon significant. It was only after a few years that I started to learn thebut its been far more difficult to do so more recently. And eveninformationanddatasheets(www.resene.com/datasheets)tofrom biological sources which can be recycled into the atmosphere real differences between the quality, application, philosophy andwith the ability to produce bespoke furniture in her own studio,determine whether a paint is fit for purpose and how eco-friendlythen back into plant growth without increasing atmospheric carbon all the other elements that set Resene apart from the pack. Mostgetting enough materials and hands to build items has becomeit is, you may not know off the top of your head what to choose ifdioxidehence the term renewable, he says.of our clients now know the name Resene because we share thistrickier. The biggest continual issue is the supply chain and lackyour client requests a plant-based or vegan paint. The good news knowledge with them also. of human resources, she says. It is incredibly difficult to recruit While its difficult to pick her favourite hues, there are a fewnew staff for the furniture factory and to get products to arriveis, its far easier to specify than you might think. Technological trendsDi finds herself coming back to over and over again. My all- on time (or at all) is an ongoing issue for both sides of the businessOverthelastfewyears,Resenechemistshavebeenbusy time go-to white is Resene Alabaster and I get ribbed about itthat I think will be here for at least another year. Renewable reasoning developing new hybrid waterborne alkydswhich is a relatively all the time, as I can never get away from using it. Its been inBut despite these challenges, her team is as busy as ever andAspeoplehavebecomeincreasingconscientiousabouttheyoung area of technology. These products are actively replacing nearly every project for at least some application. Each of theis continuing to power through many impressive projects. Andimpacts their personal choices make on the environment, plant- solventborne formulas; but unlike solventborne products, hybrid different strengths of Resene Tea are also brilliant and I havewith her attention to detail and experienced eye for colour, werebased paints have become a hot topic. But Greg Percival, a seniorResenewaterborne alkyds meet Environmental Choice standards.been drawn to Resene Masala tones on more than one occasion.always voracious to see what Di does next.chemist on the Resene Technical Team, says that there are stillStaycation Alkyd polymers based on plant oils such as linseed and castor can And Resene Coast is another colour I have used a few times tomany misconceptions about how we think of renewables withResenebe formulated with 60% to 95% renewable content depending on great effect, she says. To see more of Dis work, visit www.dihenshall.com.au. respect to the world of paint. 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