As a child, Laura Sullivan was always involved in art in some form or fashion: drawing, painting, and pottery to name a few. She loved creating, not just for the joy of bringing something new to life, but the joy created when it was shared. Her father was in real estate; he would buy investment properties and fix them up, putting something better back into the market than what he took out. She loved being his sidekick, tagging along to job sites, cleaning, fiddling around, pitching in wherever she could. Her Mom was a nurse anesthetist, who looked forward to talking to her about experiences she had at her job and in the operating room; how she helped people get better. It was important to Laura as she grew up to think about doing something that helped people, made the world a little better for being in it. With that drive she became a Certified Nursing Assistant and in college, thought a career in healthcare would be her path forward, but after failing chemistry miserably, she thought “maybe this isn’t what I’m meant to do.”
After that realization she came to Interior Design as a craft that really tapped into two areas of fond childhood memories, home, and art. It allowed her to continue to help people by bringing their vision to life in the home of their dreams. After finishing college with a BS in Interior Design from Appalachian State University, along with working in Interior Design, Laura stayed engaged in crafting artwork, and began tandem careers in real estate and construction.
Out of these passions, ID.ology was born in February 2012. Partnering with Sean, her husband, and learning through his work in green building at Living Stone Design + Build, Laura has been able to fuse her love for design with helping people well beyond just providing them with a beautiful home, but a home that cultivates health and wellness. What Laura does for her clients isn’t just about sustainability and caring for the world we live in, although that is of upmost importance, but also caring for their health in their homes. Understanding what you put into your body - the air you breathe, the light around you - affects you, is intrinsic to the building, designing, and furnishing of all Laura’s projects. This led Laura and her husband Sean to step out into a journey of creating and sourcing healthy furniture for their clients. In doing so they determined that this is too important not to share with other industry peers and the public. Atelier Maison & Co., “Asheville’s Elevated Furnishing Destination”, was born out of this desire to share with the community furniture, art, accessories, and other décor that are healthy and improve good indoor air quality, therefore homeowner’s health in their homes. Many are unaware that furniture & furnishings can be very toxic, so Laura and Sean are on a mission to educate the community through providing classes about the importance of what you breathe.
When I think about someone who’s provided great inspiration to me in my life, I think about my father. As an entrepreneur I watched and appreciated what he did; his independence and drive to do things for himself and continually work to grow and improve, at times in the face of adversity. Even without a college degree, he proved that hard work and diligence can really be rewarding. Sean’s dad is someone I look up to as well, especially what he’s taught me about servant leadership.
In the end, Laura’s “Why” comes down to truly caring about every home created for the health and wellness of the homeowner. It is an honor and a responsibility to design homes to be the best they can be for her clients.
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