#60 - Karen Barnes - I Was Like A Sponge

Karen Barnes is the owner of The Elegant Window, a to-the-trade custom drapery and soft goods workroom located in Gilbert Arizona.  She is thrilled to be celebrating 20 years in business this year! Karen entered the custom drapery and soft furnishings business in 1997 working with both retail and with the design trade. Five years into the business, Karen realized that what she truly loved was working with talented interior designers and bringing their ideas and vision to fruition. Her reputation for her attention to detail and high standards in workmanship quickly spread within the design community. In 2003, Karen switched to wholesale only and she, along with her great team of employees, have been creating exquisite, high-quality soft furnishings to the design trade ever since.     In 2009, Karen entered the IWCE Ingenuity Workroom Competition and was awarded Workroom of the Year, the most prestigious award for drapery workrooms. She also was awarded First Place in Specialty Treatments and 2nd place in Top Treatments.  In 2011, she again had a winning entry in the Ingenuity Workroom Competition and won 1st place in Specialty Treatments. In 2016, Karen won 1st place at Arizona North Chapter's ASID Design Excellence Awards in the category of Industry Partner, Commissioned.   In 2017, she again had winning entries at IWCE. She won 1st place in Specialty Treatments, 2nd place in Ingenious Installation and a 2nd place tie in Top Treatments.     Karen is looking forward to the challenging role of judge in 2018 for IWCE's Ingenuity Workroom Competition, as she has done on two previous IWCE competitions.     The treatments fabricated by the team at The Elegant Window have been published in several magazines including Window Fashion Vision, Phoenix Home and Garden and Desert Design. Karen is a Certified Workroom Expert through the Window Fashions Certified Professionals Program. Her affiliations include membership in the Window Coverings Association of America, as well as membership in the Phoenix Association of Workroom Professionals, Drapery and Design Professional Network, and is an Industry Partner with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA).   Links of things mentioned on the show; Custom Draperies in Interior Design This book is still available on Amazon and you can use the affiliate link above. Find Karen on Facebook. For information about submitting to IWCE click here. The Expo will be held in Tampa, FL March 27 - 28, 2018.