Meet Cecilia Staniec from Wexford, PA, winner of the Maitland-Smith 30th Anniversary Design Competition, Professional Designer Category.
Cecilia's winning design is the entertainment cabinet on the right, originally black with silver; Cecilia reversed the colors from 
the original piece shown on the left. This was truly a winning combination. 
Originally from Tennessee, Cecilia went to Meredith College in Raleigh, NC. She thought of tackling law school, but changed her tune after falling in love with fine arts classes at Meredith. Her art and color theory classes sparked a passion for interiors. After graduating, she spent a number of years in the consumer products corporate world. Cecilia married her post-college love in 2001, and had three children between 2002 and 2005.
She left the corporate world in 2001 and returned her focus to those old college class loves....art, design and interiors. Because she wanted a challenge and was tired of working for someone else she began her own interior design company, A Darling Room. In addition, owning her own company gives her the flexibility to be both a stay-at-home mom and a designer. Primarily working in residential design throughout the Pittsburgh metro area, she has traveled all over the country to work for clients. Here is just one example of her designs.
Cecilia is a nationally featured designer for Kirkland's, Inc., a home decor company based in Nashville, TN. She has appeared weekly on the mykirklands.com website, national Kirkland's communications and retail store appearances. Sure enough, I went to the website, and there she is -- impressive.
In recent months, her bedroom entry in Design Trade Magazine’s “Give Us Your Best Shot” competition finished first overall for best bedroom design. See her winning bedroom featured now in a layout in Design Trade’s on-line magazine.
Cecilia gives back by doing volunteer work with the Junior League of Pittsburgh and the National Association of Professional Women, and is a contributing designer on My Perfect Color, Benjamin Moore Paints. She has been featured in numerous media outlets, including Nashville House & Home & Garden Magazine, ShelterPop, Houzz and Ava Living. In her free time, she loves to read, travel, cook and most especially spend time with her family and friends. Cecilia is a self-admitted addict to HGTV and loves a challenging sudoku puzzle..... Wow - what a busy lady! This makes me want to sit down just reading about all that she does!
One of the great things about our competition was making so many new friends who are tremendously talented and creative. It was a delight having Cecilia and her husband visit our showroom during the April market, and we hope she will enjoy her beautiful entertainment cabinet for a long time to come. As Cecilia says, "I have big, big dreams and plans" and we have no doubts that Cecilia will accomplish all she sets her mind to do.
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