ARRANGEMENTS;
Deborah Akerstrom and Stephanie Andrews are the kind of people Oprah would want to meet. Akerstrom, a headhunter for 15 years, and Andrews, a circuit board sales rep for the same amount of time, have known each other for three decades. These two upbeat, visionary women have a close friendship and share a common interest decorating and redecorating.
Over the years they have bought countless holiday gifts for each other that they themselves wanted, some from trips abroad together. Friends and family have begged them for help. They give it, and love the compliments that follow.
Now, the follow your bliss light bulb is burning bright and the two have recently started a business together: Arrangements, 425-417-4393. Their clients hail from all economic levels.
This is our passion. We love making people happy by doing what we do best, says Akerstrom.
I get just as jazzed doing somebody else’s rooms as my own, says Andrews. It’s the ultimate rush to have somebody like what you do.
These are not interior designers. These are people who walk into a room and see its full potential, from a gut feel.
I thought I had great taste here at Payne Acres, so I held my breath when I hired these women to come in and change things around. The deal was that I would not have to buy anything new, but that I would give up control and leave while they worked their magic.
When I returned home some hours later, what a surprise. The rooms they worked on are more livable, more beautiful, more open, more vivid. And my same old stuff now looks better than ever, where they placed it. Why didn’t I think of that?
Most people don’t see this about their own house, says Akerstrom. We see the treasures, the things they’ve had in the same places for so many years, and we move things around, things they already have, so that people get a fresh, new perspective.
Most people have their own taste. They just don’t know how to pull it together. Ours are a different set of eyes. Nothing gets by us.
I almost feel sorry for a piece of furniture, because it’s often stuck in a place where it can’t be loved and treasured as it should be, says Andrews. Ambience is so important in our lives.
These two are characters I had to share with you. They’d play well on TV. One is all sun rays, the other reins her in and keeps focus, in a symbiotic relationship that moves forward and works well for the customer.
You watch, these two will wind up on Oprah before long. They have followed their passion and the result satisfies and pleases others. No better combination.