STEPHYN MEINER

Company: ARCIFORM

Duration: 5 years

Role: Designer

Stephyn had an extra reason to celebrate this last holiday season. With her promotion from Design Associate to Designer at the end of December, she achieved a childhood goal. “It’s like a dream come true,” says Stephyn. “I wanted to be an interior designer when I was a little girl. If I could talk to my kindergarten self, I’d say, “hey, you did it!” It was a lot of hard work getting here, and I’m so appreciative that I’m with ARCIFORM. Being in the design-build atmosphere, I’ve learned so much on the construction side of things, and then having fantastic mentors like Anne and Marty, who have helped elevate me and push me in a really positive way. It’s been a wonderful experience.”

For Stephyn, who clearly enjoys people as much as she loves design, her new duties are a delight. She meets with prospective clients and hears what they want firsthand – getting the project scope and offering some initial ideas, creating the beginnings of a trusting relationship.

“Whether it’s a WC remodel or a whole house remodel, it’s someone’s home – their personal space – and it’s their financial investment. There’s a lot on the line. So, I let them know, this is the ARCIFORM way of doing things: We have your back and we’re going to do what’s right for you and for your home. It’s a partnership all the way until the end of construction. It’s fun because at the same time we’re creating that relationship.”

Stephyn lives and breathes design, sometimes waking up at 2:00am with a solution for a design puzzle, which she sketches into an app. Are designers born or made? In Stephyn’s case, she was born a designer, studied, and worked hard. Congratulations achieving and living your dream, Stephyn!

Stephyn studied interior design at PCC. She was as passionate a student as she is a designer, spending 1012-hour days on campus, taking every course she could squeeze in. With the help of a teacher/mentor, she started a student NKBA (National Kitchen & Bath Association) Chapter, organizing walkthroughs of local firms. One was ARCIFORM. When an opening came up, she applied.

She particularly loves one kitchen, created for a family she enjoyed working with. “Not only is it a beautiful, functional kitchen but it’s the perfect kitchen for these people. That’s what I really like about ARCIFORM. There’s no one ARCIFORM ‘style’”. If you look at our work, no two kitchens ever look the same. It’s a very personalized process.”

Aside from her promotion, Stephyn’s proudest achievement is the last challenge she solved. “Anytime we get a new challenge it’s a puzzle at first. It’s challenging, and then all of a sudden – and it always happens at two in the morning – you wake up and have that Aha! moment. If we just shift this, it all works...”

Stephyn is looking forward to Portland design workshops and open houses coming back after Covid. “There are whole weeks of design workshops. Typically, showrooms will open up and have a cocktail hour where you get to go and learn about their products. It’s always fun to get out there and see what’s new.”

Stephyn sees a trend, starting in the pandemic, for people to create multi-layered flexible spaces in their homes, incorporating open, airy rooms and private areas needed for remote work or study, multi-purpose spaces that can be one thing in the morning, another in the evening. She’s also interested in seeing how the continuation of sustainable materials and options - such as replacing gas appliances with electric - will impact design.