Life & Work with Lylah Healy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lylah Healy.  

Hi Lylah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always been a lover of homes. When I was young, I loved when my family would come across new builds. I’d make my parents take me in so I could see the model homes and how they were designed. As a child, my sister and I would do the kid workshops at the local home improvement store building birdhouses or the little wooden truck that came in a packet. In high school, my mom studied to become a real estate agent, and my dad became a finish carpenter with a local contractor. Home improvement was something that was just always around. 

I’ve always been a creative person, and throughout high school, I participated in theater. I graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in theater, but when the recession hit in 2008, I needed to make ends meet. I got a stable marketing job and spent over a decade in the corporate world as a marketing manager. However, the creative side of me was often left unfulfilled. After the birth of my first daughter, and the purchase of our first home in Lake San Marcos, I began designing our own home space, and it quickly fulfilled the creative void I had been experiencing. I shared what I was doing with my own home on social and began doing small design projects on the side. It was then that Rose Lake Design was born. Over time the projects grew, and I was having a hard time balancing a full-time job and my design projects. I knew that if I didn’t pursue growing my interior design business, as scary as it was, I would forever regret it. So, I did what all logical people would do. I left my comfortable marketing career to continue to grow my company full-time as the Principal Designer of Rose Lake Design. I am happy to say that Rose Lake Design has continued to grow, and I haven’t looked back. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I think any time you start something new; there are struggles. Whether that be overcoming your own fear to start or learning the best way to set up operations, you have to put yourself out there and make yourself open to learning from the process. This can be a scary thing. 

As both a business owner and a designer, I rely on my support system during times of growth and learning. From a design perspective, you’re really putting your heart and soul out there in terms of what you are creating while also keeping in mind that your goal is to build a profitable business. There are often two skillsets that need to balance each other. In the beginning, it is hard to overcome the fear of potential failure, but as you continue to build on your skills and expertise, you become more resilient and educated in terms of challenges and how to overcome them. 

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I love painting! I used to paint pictures as a child, and during Covid quarantines (while we all had lots of time), I picked up a paintbrush again. 

I had no intention of selling them, but I shared the process of painting on social media, and I received really positive feedback. Some of my watercolor paintings are now available as prints, and I do commissioned paintings. It was a really fun thing to start back up, and everyone has been so supportive and sweet. It makes me so happy when I see people enjoying them in their homes. 

What matters most to you? Why?
As an interior designer, you are producing a creative product, but you are also providing a service. For anyone that has gone through the remodel or build process, you understand the myriad of decisions that are before you and the often-quick timeline that the decisions need to be made. It can be a very stressful process. 

It’s important to me that my clients enjoy the process of designing their space. I work hard to get to know my clients and partner with them to serve as their design advocate. At one point, the construction will end, and all the dust will settle, but I want my clients to remember that they had someone by their side through it all, and the process was enjoyable. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.roselakedesign.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roselakedesign/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roselakedesign.interiordesignstudio/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lylahhealy/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rose-lake-design-san-diego
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/roselakedesign/ 

Image Credits
Walking Eagle Photography