Interior design often comes with a reputation

Last week, I read a post here on LinkedIn by an industrial designer who described the first time he saw one of his own designs on the curb — a stereo, left out as trash, ready to be picked up by the garbage truck. Something he had worked on with care and intention, thrown out like it had no value.
It was broken, but not beyond saving… Still, replacing it was a faster reflex than repairing it.

That moment isn’t unique. Most designers will recognise it: seeing time, materials, and craftsmanship reduced to waste. Not because the work wasn’t good enough, but because replacement has become the default.

I’ve always had a conflicted relationship with my profession. Interior design often comes with a reputation: it’s either for people with deep pockets, or it’s tied to consumerism and constant upgrading. For a long time, that made it hard for me to feel aligned with what I do. It gave me the sense that I was contributing to something I didn’t fully believe in.

Designers don’t just create objects and spaces.
We influence behaviour.
We shape what people see as worth keeping, repairing, or discarding.

Interior design is not separate from this. If anything, it’s part of the problem. Interiors often have some of the shortest lifecycles in the built environment. Kitchens, bathrooms, finishes, furniture and decor are replaced long before they wear out.
Trends don’t help either. They create urgency. They push people to replace things that still function, simply because they no longer feel current.
The materials we specify don’t disappear. They end up stored, sold, or dumped.
Judith wrote recently that beauty can be a survival strategy. I agree. People take care of what they find beautiful. They repair it, adapt it, and keep it longer. That’s not romanticism. It’s practical sustainability.

For me, conscious design starts there: spaces that last, materials that age well, layouts that can adapt. And we also have a responsibility to educate our clients — not to lecture them, but to guide them towards better long-term choices.
Good design shouldn’t be built for the reveal. It should be built to last.
That’s the job.

— Sandra Petersson
Interior Architect with a vision to create spaces worth keeping