Denver student, Emily Miller, grew up in a town made famous by MTV’s Laguna Beach. However, her Laguna experience far differed from the one we saw portrayed on TV. The Laguna that Emily grew up in is known for its artistic-centric culture, small beach coves, and explorable canyons. She attributes her magical upbringing to what has inspired and informed her current design style. Her youthful years exploring the beautiful natural landscape and artistic culture with her three siblings, two of which are her triplet sisters, Demi (identical) and Stephie (Fraternal), and older brother, Fletcher, encouraged her to embrace her flourishing creativity.
As a child, Emily explored the creative arts by pursuing acting and dance. In high school, when she began watching HGTV, flipping through her mom’s interior design magazines, and spending her free time searching Zillow, she recognized her draw to design. This passion was amplified when she moved into her first college dorm room with her twin sister. She and her sister went all out, transforming their bleak dorm room into a warm and cozy home. There is no denying that Interior Design was indeed something Emily was passionate about. Still, back then, her concern for what people would think of this potentially impractical career path held her back from pursuing her growing passion.
After college, Emily pursued a career in marketing. She was fortunate to work with companies that gave her the opportunity to work with businesses whose ultimate goals were to help and support individuals and communities. Emily’s marketing experience has always been with startup companies that have allowed her to wear many hats and have experience working on several marketing elements, from social media management to event planning.
Although she enjoyed her job and aspects of it were creative, she felt as though something was missing. When life slowed down during the Covid pandemic, Emily found herself reevaluating her daily life. During this stay-at-home phase, she frequently gravitated toward interior design as an outlet. Whether it was making sure her apartment was an inviting space or filling the endless indoor hours scrolling through the social feeds of established designers, she found herself yearning for more. Emily had spent approximately six years working in marketing and at the same time wondering what it would be like to be an interior designer. A global emergency gave her the clarity to see that life is too short to sit on the sidelines of a potential career in design. After doing some research, she found Heritage and enrolled as her first step toward pursuing her passion.
When enrolling at Heritage, Emily was wary that a 6-month certificate would not fully prepare her to pursue this new career path. However, she has quickly realized that her time at Heritage will allow her to gain the foundations of interior design and master the software tools widely used within the industry. Emily appreciates the hard work required to succeed in the program, as it feels right to be working so hard for something she truly enjoys. The supportive staff and encouraging classmates have already helped to make her experience at Heritage incredibly positive.
After graduating from Heritage, Emily would love to work as a junior designer with a boutique firm here in Denver. She is looking to gain hands-on experience and glean from the wisdom of another designer. After that, she could see herself starting a firm with her identical sister, a graphic designer. She would love to use their combined work histories and skills to offer commercial spaces’ branding and interior design packages and specific residential design services.