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Creating Family Spaces

A conversation with Brooklynn Carney, Founder of Wil & Faye

Brooklynn Carney, founder of Wil & Faye, is seen as a top interior designer in West Austin. Wil & Faye specializes in creating beautiful and functional spaces tailored to the dynamic needs of growing families and their pets. We caught up with Brooklynn to learn more about her approach and tips on design. 

When designing spaces for families with children, durability, cleanability, and safety are key. Brooklynn advises, "When furnishing a living room, for example, invest in the main furniture items like the sofa, area rug, coffee table, and media stand. Look for pieces that can be climbed on with sticky fingers and live to tell the tale—solid wood frames and performance fabrics are the way to go." She recommends Joybird and Anabei for their durable and stylish sofas.

Storage is another crucial aspect. Providing storage for toys and crafts while ensuring safety is essential. "Try storage ottomans, arched/curved consoles, and round side tables," she suggests. Keeping accessories minimal and choosing materials like wood or metal over ceramic and glass can prevent breakage. "Less is more when you’re accessorizing a room for tiny humans. Keep things soft and cozy, avoid ceramic and glass materials, and opt for wood or metal vases instead."

Pet-friendly interiors also require balancing practicality with aesthetics. Pets can bring challenges like scratches and stains, but there are ways to address these without compromising style. "For pet-friendly area rugs, check out Ruggable, Revival rugs, and Flor. Ruggable and Revival both have machine washable options, and Flor features a wide range of residential carpet tiles. I always get a couple extra tiles in case of an accident or tough stain," she shares. To avoid chewable furniture legs, she suggests opting for pieces with no legs or metal legs. "A thin wood leg can resemble an enticing stick, so no leg or a metal leg for a chair or casegood can sometimes be the best option," she explains.

Brooklynn’s design services cover every stage of a family's needs. "Since we do everything from consulting to furnishing and styling, to renovations and new builds, we pretty much have all the bases covered for any kind of revamp our clients are looking for!" 

Understanding the busy lives of parents, Brooklynn offers a comprehensive approach to home design. "We design, procure, warehouse, and install everything from large furniture to bedding and tableware, without requiring our clients to lift a finger!" 

For families seeking a quick yet impactful home transformation, the VIP week service is ideal. After a few days of prep work, measurements, and a video consultation, Brooklynn and her team design up to four rooms in just five days. This expedited, fully remote process alleviates the stress of a prolonged design schedule. Brooklynn says, "A drawn-out design schedule can get tiresome and add unnecessary stress, but after a couple of days of prep work, measurements, and a video, we’re able to fully dive into a project and design up to four rooms in a 5-day period. The cherry on top is that we’re able to accomplish the full design completely remotely!"

Explore Brooklynn Carney's portfolio at WilandFaye.com and connect with her at hello@wilandfaye.com or text (325) 450-9781 to bring your design dreams to life.

"When designing spaces for a growing family, we recommend focusing on a few key things: durability, cleanability, and safety."

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