top of page
IMG_0165_WHTBKGND%20-%203000%20x%201928%

Francine Smith

ASID, LEED AP, NCIDQ

Interior Designer and Owner

FAID.FranSmith@gmail.com

914-523-2480

​

3.jpg

I serve the greater Charlotte, North Carolina metropolitan area, as well as South Carolina.

​

Over twenty years ago I returned to school as an adult learner to earn my interior design degree and started my career as an Interior Designer. I knew that I wanted to work more directly with my clients and would take the efficient work processes I learned in corporate design and the novel product information with me into a residential design practice, which I did over 15 years ago.  Like you, I have traveled and relocated for work, and lived in different types of homes…I’ve updated pre-war colonial homes and tudor style apartments with the character of lovely old wood floors and moldings (originally lacking closets or insulation!), 1980’s era colonials and condos, and brand new town homes and custom coastal capes and semi-custom single floor homes. Each style presented its own challenges that I learned to embrace and respect…and with each home my understanding of how to create and edit a home, to make it “classically contemporary”, to nurture us and to live our best life, grew.

​

I am a LEED AP professional which means I strive to design environments where your health, safety and well-being are positively impacted by what we put into it. How you want to use a room, and the impact of scale, color and texture on your lifestyle are important. My job is to listen to you, the client, and create rooms that represent you. I welcome the opportunity to work with you to create that sigh of calm, relief and wonder when you enter your door…to make your home a respite from the busyness of life.

​

Interior design is multi-disciplinary. I consult and work with talented professionals, tradesmen, product representatives, manufacturers, artists and makers from across the country or right next door to source the singular items and finishes to create the home you crave. 

​

Call me crazy, but I still believe you deserve to enjoy a timely, polite and professional experience. You have the right to participate in all the decisions, touch and feel new products and I encourage you to expand your view of how they can be used. I want you to be as excited as I am about the possibilities! I believe you hire me to make your dreams a reality, and it is my role to show you the multiple paths to get there. I view interior design as a collaborative service…we work ‘with’ our clients as well as ‘for’ our clients. You should “love where you live” and if not, lets change it!

​

Educational Background

-B.F.A. Interior Design, Fashion Institute of Technology

-M.B.A. Healthcare, Loyola College

-B.S. Medical Technology, University of Maryland at Baltimore

​

Professional Organizations

-LEED AP for Sustainable Design

-ASID

-NCIDQ Certificate #28846 

-NYS Certified Interior Designer (CID) Certificate #000420-1

​

Prior Experiences

-HUNTWOODS MANOR DESIGN, co-owner, a residential design firm

-DESIGN EDUCATOR, adjunct professor at Fashion Institute of Technology

-NELSON, A commercial and corporate interiors firm

​

Awards & Publications

-Charlotte Home and Garden Newsletter. April - May 2020. "Paint the Town."

-Kitchen & Bath: Design News.  January 2017. "Colonial Kitchen Goes Contemporary."

-BEST OF HOUZZ 2020 - Client Satisfaction

-HOUZZ BADGE - 100 Idea Book Saves

​

​

Compliments from our Clients

“I’ve worked with Fran Alexander Interior Design on several projects, from simply selecting paint colors, to designing a tile backsplash, to designing a reconfiguration of an entire third floor into a master suite. She is always easy to work with, detail-oriented, and wants her clients to get results that they will love for a long time” 

—  Joi K.

bottom of page