Meet Tracey Raz | Interior Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tracey Raz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tracey, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I am creative and love meeting new people and creating new experiences. I love the flexibility that comes with owning my own business; Deciding who I’d like as my clients, what creative projects I take on, and being able to set my own schedule so I am not committed to being in an office from 9-5.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I absolutely love what I do. I started out in fine art when I was in school, dabbling in painting and fashion. I have always been artistic and knew I wanted to be creative throughout my life. I love life and am inspired by everything around me; nature, architecture, art, culture, travel, history, people…the list goes on. I feel like a wet sponge soaking everything in daily. I decided that I wanted to apply my love of color, pattern, fabrics, and textures on a larger scale than what I could achieve on canvas and interior design seemed like the perfect fit. I knew how much the environment I was in affected my well being and wanted to create that for others. I treat the space, whether it is a home, office, business, or hotel as my canvas, I now have a much larger area to work on and I know that the end results will bring happiness to those that use it. It gives me so much joy to know that what I do affects people’s lives for the better! It is definitely a process, in order to make people happy and comfortable in a space, it needs to be unique for them. A good space is one where I have listened to a client and the result is a reflection of their personal style. Personal style is timeless, this is what I strive for. Having your own business is not easy as you need to wear many hats; I’d say creativity is only 30% of what I do, business management and marketing take up a majority of my time. It definitely takes time to build up a business and is a labor of love. However, I would not trade the flexibility and freedom I get from owning my own business. The satisfaction of completing a project that exceeds your and your clients’ expectations make it so worth while! Everything I have, I have created. I try to stay enthusiastic, not take myself too seriously, I push myself to do things that are new, and sometimes uncomfortable. This is when I know I am following my creative intuition and the results are fabulous.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I grew up in London with amazing historical architecture and museums at my doorstep. One of my favorite places in San Diego is Balboa Park as it is a cultural hub in San Diego. The buildings were built in 1915 and were based on a very ornate Spanish architecture from the 1800s. These buildings now house public art museums and beautiful gardens. This would definitely be one of the first places I would take someone visiting the city.

Secondly, we are so close to the Mexican border, making this area rich with Mexican culture and food.   I would take visitors to local ethnic neighborhoods like Bario Logan with local art galleries and Taco shops. I also love an artsy community called South Park with more of an eclectic vibe consisting of  historic homes built in the early 1900s and locally owned small businesses.   

Lastly, a drive along the coast on the Pacific Coast Highway to see our beautiful ocean and beach towns that San Diego is known for, this would be a must for any visitor to appreciate Southern California.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would not be here without the initial mentorship of my instructors and colleagues throughout my college and educational years. Family and friends are always an essential support network and part of the journey. My clients are my biggest fans and supporters also and their referrals and happiness with what I create for them is so gratifying and validating for my chosen career.

Website: traceyraz.com
Instagram: @traceyraz
Facebook: Tracey Raz Designs