Sometimes I’ll see a piece and save it without knowing where it belongs.
A chair. A material. An artist. A particular combination of colors. A detail in a hotel. Something I noticed while traveling.
There is no project attached to it yet.
I simply know I want to remember it.
Then, sometimes years later, I’m working on a home and suddenly I know exactly where that idea was waiting to go.
This happens to me all the time.
I’m constantly collecting, although not always in the traditional sense. I collect images, materials, books, places, conversations, artists, objects and ideas. Some make their way into the studio. Others live in folders on my phone, in photographs from trips, or simply somewhere in my memory.
I don’t collect them because I know I’ll use them.
Most of the time, I don’t.
But every once in a while, the right project arrives and something I have been carrying with me suddenly makes sense.
A material I’ve wanted to work with finds the right room.
A piece I’ve admired for years finds the architecture that can hold it.
An artist I’ve followed finally feels right for a particular client.
A color I noticed somewhere without knowing why I loved it becomes the starting point for an entire space.
Those moments are some of my favorite parts of designing.
From the outside, an interior can appear to have been conceived all at once. And in many ways, it is. When we design a home, we develop a complete vision. The architecture, furniture, art, materials, lighting and objects are considered together so that by the time the project is installed, everything feels connected.
But the ideas behind that vision rarely begin at the same time.
Some may have been waiting for years.
I think that’s one of the things people don’t always see about the creative process.
A project doesn’t begin with an empty mind.
We bring everything we’ve noticed before it.
The places we’ve visited.
The rooms we haven’t forgotten.
The things we’ve touched.
The books we’ve read.
The work of artists and designers we’ve followed.
The materials we’ve experimented with and sometimes failed with.
Even things we didn’t realize we were paying attention to.
All of it becomes part of a visual memory that we carry from one project to the next.
Not to repeat ideas, but to recognize when one finally belongs.
That distinction matters to me.
I never want two homes to feel the same. I don’t have a collection of formulas waiting to be applied. What I have is a collection of possibilities.
The project decides which ones come forward.
A client, a piece of architecture, a city, a view, even the way the light enters a room can suddenly give an old idea an entirely new meaning.
And then new ideas enter too.
That’s where the process becomes exciting.
Something I’ve carried for years meets something I’ve discovered that morning. A material I’ve been thinking about is placed beside one I’ve never used before. A familiar reference is pushed somewhere completely unexpected.
The result belongs to that particular home.
Maybe this is why I find it difficult to say exactly when a project begins.
There is, of course, the first meeting.
The first drawing.
The first mood board.
But creatively, I think some rooms begin much earlier than that.
In a museum.
On a trip.
Inside a book.
At a dinner table.
In a material sample sitting forgotten on a studio shelf.
Years before there is a room waiting for them.
Perhaps that’s what I’ve been collecting all along.
Not things for future projects.
Possibilities.
And then, every once in a while, the right room appears.
Currently Living With
A book: Start With Yourself by Emma Grede
An object: Aesop Bronze Incense Holder
A material: Resin
A question: How long can an idea wait for the right room?
About Marcela Cure
Marcela Cure is an AD100 interior designer, contemporary artist, and collectible designer based in Colombia. As the founder of Marcela Cure Design Studio, she creates luxury residential interiors, collectible furniture, sculptural mirrors, lighting, and decorative objects that explore materiality, craftsmanship, and the relationship between art and function.
Working across interior design, collectible design, and contemporary art, Marcela is recognized for her sculptural approach to space and her use of natural materials including stone, marble, brass, wood, concrete, and resin. Her work has been exhibited internationally and featured in leading design publications, with collectors and clients across North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East.
Marcela is a member of the Architectural Digest PRO Directory (AD PRO) and has been recognized as an AD100 designer, establishing her as one of the leading voices in contemporary design from Latin America.
In addition to her full-service interior design practice, Marcela launched the Virtual Design Studio, a dedicated online service that makes her design expertise accessible to clients worldwide through remote consultations and curated virtual design packages. While her studio continues to offer comprehensive, full-scope interior design projects, the Virtual Design Studio is designed for clients seeking expert guidance and tailored design solutions in a flexible, remote format.
Her journal explores interior design, collectible design, architecture, craftsmanship, materials, contemporary art, travel, and the creative process, offering a behind-the-scenes perspective on designing meaningful spaces and collectible objects.