Create Style With Our Interior Decorating Program
When you enroll in our Interior Decorating program, you’ll enjoy fascinating lessons that teach practical concepts and professional techniques. We expect you to use what you learn in the real world, in your own business or working as a professional decorator elsewhere.
View Curriculum
Lesson Group 1: Orientation: Ashworth College Career Program
Learning at AshworthThe goals and values of Ashworth College; time management; creating a realistic weekly and monthly study schedule; the nature and purpose of assessments; how to study effectively to prepare for and take an online examination; developing the skill sets necessary for success in the twenty-first century.
Evaluating your business idea; setting yourself apart from the competition; market testing; investment funding and donation funding; qualities of an entrepreneur; crowdfunding and angel investors.
Lesson Group 2: Interior Decorating Basics
A Day in the Life of an Interior DecoratorCharacteristics of an interior decorator; furniture showrooms and home studios; allied professionals; working with clients; client files and purchase orders.
Measuring tools; wall terminology; the measuring and scale-drawing process; widths, depths, and heights; considering electricity and heating; drawing the floor plan.
Using an architect’s scale; placing furniture; using furniture templates; creating a presentation plan; measuring a floor plan and explaining its contents to clients.
Businesses and markets available to the trade; vendor pricing methods; gaining access to resources; creating a resource library.
Lesson Group 3: Design Fundamentals
Understanding Interior Decorating and DesignRoles and responsibilities of decorators and designers; relationships of allied professionals; history of the decorating profession; understanding the design process and scope of services.
Decorating and design theories from both a physical and psychological perspective; universal design; special populations; evidence-based design; environmental responsibility.
Structural versus decorative design; understanding space, line, shape, mass, texture, light, color, and pattern; applying scale, proportion, balance, rhythm, emphasis, and harmony; attributes of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman styles.
Color properties, dimensions, theories, and schemes; psychological and physiological effects; influence of color on design principles and elements; color in finishes, fabrics, and furnishings; using the standard color wheel.
Lesson Group 4: Building Systems and Space Planning
Construction Components, Systems, and CodesConstruction processes and components; structural classifications and terms; major building codes and federal regulations; sustainable construction alternatives.
Lighting goals, regulations, and LEED opportunities; light quantity versus quality; natural and artificial light sources; lighting fixtures and luminaries; selecting lighting fixtures for function, aesthetics, and economics; identifying visual communication plans and symbols related to lighting, electrical, and communication systems.
Spatial relationships and furniture scale; furnishing sizes and clearance requirements; negative space requirements; determining square footage.
Requirements of residential and commercial public and private zones; guidelines pertaining to design principles, traffic flow, and site orientation; sustainable solutions for space planning; organization systems related to alignment and manipulation; functional and economic benefits of residential and commercial floor plans.
Lesson Group 5: Materials, Furnishings, and Fabrics
FloorsDesign characteristics of non-resilient, wood, and resilient flooring; carpet and rug design characteristics based on content and construction; sustainable flooring alternatives; handmade rug styles; characteristics of carpet padding; estimating carpet quantities; using floor coverings to solve a design problem.
Ceiling construction; design characteristics of ceiling materials, wall materials, paint, and finishes; wall, baseboard, and ceiling molding; estimating wallcovering quantities.
Furniture and accessories available in today’s market; identifying quality craftsmanship in furniture construction; types of wood appropriate for furniture construction; construction techniques of upholstered furniture.
Natural and manufactured fibers; principal uses and characteristics of fibers; fabric construction and testing methods; dyeing and finishing methods; common fabrics used in residential interiors; solving decorating problems using textiles.
Window treatment styles, hardware, and design requirements; various types of home accessories and art mediums; selecting and placing art and accessories.
Job opportunities in interior decorating; requirements for starting a decorating business; basic components of a letter of agreement; ethical standards for interior decorators; specialty areas and emerging opportunities in residential interior decorating.
Program Description
Students learn how to transform residential and commercial interiors into aesthetically pleasing, personalized spaces. Focus is on creating complementary color schemes, arranging furniture, selecting flooring, fabrics, and finishes, and placing accessories. Other program topics include construction components and codes, space planning, and lighting and electrical requirements. Program graduates are prepared to take the Certified Interior Decorators International (CID) review course and entrance exam, leading to the Certified Interior Decorator designation.
Program Objectives
After completing the Interior Decorating program, students will be able to:
- Describe the personal and professional characteristics of the interior decorator, outline the career opportunities available to those with appropriate training in the field, and identify typical job responsibilities.
- Explain and apply general design theory fundamentals, such as design elements and principles, color theories and principles, and theories of composition, as well as human factors and functional considerations that come into account when designing living and working spaces.
- Describe the difference between two- and three-dimensional design elements and principles and explain how to successfully apply both when planning and working with spaces.
- Explain how to plan, design, and manipulate an interior layout, select interior finishes and materials, choose furniture and fixtures, and select decorative elements such as hardware, trim, art, and other accessories.
- Describe the interior decorator’s responsibility to clients, including ethical responsibilities, and explain how to communicate successfully and professionally with both business and residential clients in order to ascertain client needs and help clients design spaces that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing.
The PCDI Canada interior design program gives you the skills you need to get certified. Turn your passion into a lucrative career. Call 1-800-535-1613 or enroll online now.