Blog 12- Reflections

Blog #12 – What I have Learned

            Reflecting on the materials and field trips from this class I realize how much I have truly learned. This class was so a valuable learning experience. Prior to the course I always knew how to pick out things such as furniture and finishes but, I now know what materials are appropriate to use and what are not.

            The class started with fabrics and fibers. I learned the breakdown of fibers and got to see hands on what all goes in to making fabrics at the Texas Tech University Fiber Institute. The machines were gigantic and slightly intimidating. It was amazing to see how fibers that are so small have to go through such an intense course of machines to be ready for what it is going to made into such as a cotton t-shirt. The tests were also enlightening as a student to see how important it is to test the fiber quality, flammability, and other things.  I learned the most about fabrics and fibers from our swatch kit and quizzes. There is something about having the material right in front of you in a binder that makes a student truly learn what each different swatch is. The quizzes were an added bonus to my learning experience.

            I also learned so much from our field trips to the flooring and countertop field trips. In class we had lectures about floors, walls, and countertops but like I said in the above paragraph seeing things hands on through a company selling and promoting these products really helped me understand what is great for commercial and residential use and what is not. The projects following these field trips gave me an opportunity to really think and reflect on what materials need to be used for the bathroom project and kitchen project. For example, wood flooring may not be the best choice for an area that is exposed to lots of water. I learned about the maintenance of different flooring and countertops and what materials work well in high and low traffic areas.

            The last few field trips that we went on were to architecture sites and firms. These were my absolute favorite. Jeff Seal Homes was a great experience to see the process of doing interiors to new construction. I saw how important an interior designer really is in the process of building a new home. Parkhill Smith, and Cooper was also a wonderful experience especially in the area of LEED certification. It was interesting to see what an actual firm is like. The architects, engineers, and interior designers were all mixed together in the studios. I thought that was really interesting to see how the workplace is not subjective to the career of the employee, all of the employees worked together for the sole purpose of creating the best work. The building was LEED certified and I had never been in a building that was certified. It was interesting to see how the layout and the materials used in the architecture firm affect the actual employees.

            Overall, this class was a great experience. I loved all of the things we did, the projects and field trips were all strongly related to the purpose of the course. I am sad to see that the semester is over Dr. Gaines was an amazing professor and she did a great job at teaching all of us the materials. My team even won the Jeopardy game after being up all night from the Kitchen Project!