Going Beyond Wellness: Laura Sullivan Talks Healthy Home Design

Home design should focus on more than just the aesthetics, so says Laura Sullivan, founder of Asheville, N.C.-based design firm ID.ology. In this episode of Women at WIRC, Sullivan tells us how her firm is going beyond looks and creating homes designed to improve clients' physical and mental health. From sourcing the right products to creating better circulation, she shares how homes can live healthier—and in some cases, even lower a homeowner's blood pressure. 

Welcome back to Women at WIRC, where our editors from sister media brands Pro Builder, Pro Remodeler, and Custom Builder sit down with standout women across home building, remodeling, and design. We'll share their stories, their business insights, and explore how women are reshaping the residential building industry.

Jay Schneider: If you want to hear more about wellness design and creating healthier homes, learn what biophilic design means and how all these practices work together to help reduce blood pressure, increase cognitive functions, and improve emotional well-being, well, this is the podcast for you. 

Hello, I'm Jay Schneider, senior editor for Pro Remodeler, and this is the Women in Residential Construction podcast. Today, you'll hear from Laura Sullivan, whose healthcare background informs her design work. Laura is the founder of ID.ology Interiors and Design in Asheville, North Carolina, which is one of the Sullivan family companies whose portfolio also includes Livingstone Design Build, run by her husband, Sean. 

Laura was profiled in [Pro Remodeler]'s May/June issue, and this podcast, which also touches on how AI has affected her profession and her philosophy of Kaizen, comes from my interview with her for that article. Enjoy!  

Hi, Laura. Thank you for joining us today. Why don't you tell me about the start of your career?  

Laura Sullivan: So I'm a native of the Asheville area, North Carolina. Growing up, I was involved with my dad, who did a lot of real estate. He's a realtor, has a real estate firm, and he would do a lot of flips. He would flip, he would purchase properties to renovate and then keep as rentals. Me and my two sisters, all three of us, spent a lot of time on job sites with him. And so as a kid, sometimes I would help him throw drywall scraps into the dumpster or do some construction cleaning or whatever he needed help with at the time. 

I had grown up also loving art, so anytime anybody asked me what my favorite subject in school was, it was always art. And so I had a natural aptitude for the creative side of things but also saw as a kid how functionally everything works together. How you live in the space, how windows get framed into a wall. 

You know, I think a lot of the benefit to seeing how it actually works in construction as a designer is knowing what's feasible or what's realistic in regards to cost and things like that, because sometimes we can dream up the world and either it's not feasible construction-wise, or not feasible budget-wise. 

So that's an important part of it.  

Jay: Had you always wanted to be an interior designer or work in residential construction?  

Laura: I actually—during high school—had gotten my CNA license. I knew I wanted to help people. My mother's in the healthcare field. And I got my CNA license, certified nurse's aide, and I was thinking, "Oh maybe I want to go into the medical field actually first."

I got my license, started working in the hospital. I really loved helping the patients. But after a couple years ...I'm like, you know what, I don't know that I really wanna be in a hospital all day every day doing this, and I wanna help people. 

I love art, but I'm not sure that I could really make a living with art. When I went to Appalachian State University, they had an interior design program, and once I realized, oh, that's an option, that sounds like I could, you know, use both sides of my brain and be able to still help people, just in a different way. 

Jay: So that's where the idea behind the wellness and design came together very early on for you. 

Laura: It did. And functionality, thinking about aging in place and how you live in your space that actually works for you. I believe that a beautiful space is pointless if it's not a usable space. It was years later after I'd met my husband that I was involved in the Home Builders Association and learned about the Aging In Place program and becoming a certified green professional. 

And going on that route, it just was a natural fit because I've always thought about health and wellness and, of course, the built environment.  

Jay: For people who don't quite understand what wellness is in terms of design or how it comes together, what the tenets are, how would you describe or explain it or define it? 

Laura: Health and wellness in design is thoughtfully choosing materials and finishes that are low or no VOC, that don't off-gas and poison your space.

We also look at, when we're designing electrical plans, how do we incorporate exhaust fans or ERVs to ventilate the house? So, if there is anything that comes in that is off-gassing and not healthy for us to breathe, how do we get it out of the house? 

With energy efficiency, we're building tight boxes, but we want to make sure that we're not trapping our clients in those tight boxes. So choosing low or no VOC, CARB2 compliant cabinetry finishes for your paint—there are so many zero-VOC options out there now. When you have engineered wood flooring, the substrate, the plywood, has glues and adhesives, so we want to look at whether those are on the healthier side or not. 

So there are a lot of parts of the design process, selections that are made, that we have to focus on the health impact.  

Jay: Is it hard to find a lot of those products? You said there's a lot of paint that's available now, but in terms of cabinetry, flooring, other finishes, are you having trouble finding everything that fits that need? Or has the industry caught up and you have a lot of options now? 

Laura: The industry has caught up a lot. We have a lot of options now, but you still have to be aware of what you're selecting. 

When I first got started in design, there were very few products that were healthy, and it was hard to find. But thankfully, the industry has caught up. 

Nowadays, sometimes I'll have an instance where I check out a new vendor and I ask about the healthy qualities or the green qualities, and they say, "Oh yeah, the manufacturing facility recycles their water." That's great, because we want to be good stewards of the environment. But what about the contents of the product? 

So you have to be specific. I've learned that every product should have an MSDS sheet which tells you all the chemical ingredients, kind of like a recipe.

Jay: It's interesting that a product would have sustainable or green construction, or the product itself doesn't necessarily come out being environmentally sound or safe or green. 

Laura: Right. I've learned that trust but verify is very important.  

Jay: So also, is it biophilic? Am I saying that right? Is that also a big part of it? And what exactly is that?  

Laura: It is. Biophilic design is design elements or a science of incorporating outdoor elements to the indoor environment, and that is done through incorporating as much natural light as you can. 

So lots of glass, skylights, being able to see the outdoors or have indoor/outdoor living spaces, as well as incorporating other natural elements like fire, stone, and wood materials.

There are studies that have been done that have shown that living in a space that has biophilic design, lighting that helps with your circadian rhythm, seeing the outdoors versus being kind of closed off from the visual of that helps reduce systolic blood pressure. 

It helps increase cognitive function. It helps increase emotional wellbeing, so there are a lot of studies that have been done on the health benefits of biophilic design.  

Jay: Is this something that you often have to introduce to your clients, or do they come asking you for it?  

Laura: I have to educate our clients. Part of our design work is, you know, we don't want to just pick out beautiful things and say, ‘Here, you should use this because it looks great,’ but to educate our clients on the benefits, the pros and cons, and that way, they're able to make educated decisions on the products we use.  

Jay: Do you find they're typically receptive to it? A little bit skeptical? What's a typical reaction? 

Laura: They're receptive to it. You know, there's always that balance, kind of a little dance, if you will, between what their desired investment is. And, you know, if you're adding skylights, it adds cost, you know. And they're not a necessity in the built environment, so we have to think about where do their priorities lie and how can we best guide them based on the resources they have. 

Jay: So skipping back to your career then, so you decided to pursue interior design, not the healthcare field. How did that lead to you founding your own firm? 

Laura: When I graduated college, I did actually get my contractor's license and my real estate license, and I was doing a little bit of all three, design, building, and real estate with my family business. 

And I came to a crossroads and I met my husband, Sean, who owns Livingstone Design Build, and we said, you know, "How can I focus my knowledge and my skillset to best help our clients?" And we founded Ideology in 2012.

So, I'd worked independently for several years before that, and then founded Ideology and focused solely on design, and my husband now does the building. 

Jay: Do you also do the interiors for the design build projects? 

Laura: So with our firm, we are diversified to where we have an architectural designer on staff, so she'll draw renovation design or do the plan design drawings. We draw our details for the fireplace framing or the tile layouts or plumbing and electrical drawings and things like that, as well as make the material and finish selections. 

And then we have a cabinetry department. We have five different manufacturers that we are dealers for, and we've vetted their products for quality and the healthy components. So we're able to really control what products we put into our homes in that regard. 

Jay: And how much of your work is focused on remodeling versus new build? 

Laura: So, new build versus renovation is about 50/50. We have, gosh, about 30 to 35 projects at any time.

Jay: That's a lot of projects. 

Laura: Yeah. And Sean and I have only lived in renovations, and our office building is a renovation, because I love the puzzle behind a renovation. A new build is wonderful and, you know, we can give our clients everything they want, you know, go down their list and check everything off. 

When it comes to renovations, Sean and I love the thought and the premise behind saving something that still has life left in it and reviving it. It's so much more fun. 

Jay: So when you say you have always been interested in art, is there a specific type of art? Do you paint? Photography?  

Laura: I've done some photography. Painting really is where my love lies when it comes to art, especially watercolor.  

Jay: Do you sell your art? Can we find you in one of Asheville's galleries?  

Laura: I haven't sold my art. It's one of those things where, of course, as the artist, I look at it, I'm like, ‘Well, it could be better.’ You know? I have sold some in the past, and I do still dabble. 

Sean, my husband, calls me an artist. I would say that I do art, but I love it. 

Jay: You also run a store that is, I guess, a separate company that sells only the products you've vetted in terms of health, wellness, all that other stuff? 

Laura: Yes. Sean and I opened Atelier Maison & Co. It's a furnishings retail store that is on our same campus, and we sourced lines specifically, like Cisco Brothers or Lee Industries, or products like that that are focusing on healthy foams instead of petroleum-based foams and focusing on their glues that they're using, the stains that they're using, not putting fire retardants on the fabrics. 

So we want to provide for our clients everything that we can that helps them to have a healthy space. 

Jay: I go to the [International] Builders' Show and other industry shows, and I don't even know the specifics of having the different foams. I mean, it's so interesting that there's so much of a nuance there. 

Laura: It is, and a lot of the public doesn't know it. So the industry as far as construction is concerned is catching up with healthy products. Furniture is lagging behind that wave.

It's starting to come about, but we've had to work pretty hard to find companies that are healthy. But they don't promote it so much with the furniture industry. 

Jay: In terms of your work, what would you say are some of your biggest challenges?  

Laura: Well, of course, we're in the age of AI now, and we have clients who have come to us with AI renderings that they have prompted and created.

But the problem is, is that their AI renderings don't take into consideration circulation patterns, making sure you have the proper scale and flow in the space, and where the other rooms are adjoining. It's just looking at one very small part of the big picture. 

We're having to refocus our clients to think about everything else that comes into play when you're designing a space versus, let's make these windows tall right here. There's exterior elements that impact that. 

But we are embracing AI to help us in supplementing what we provide to our clients, the visuals and a lot of the tools that help us become more efficient in what we do, which is really great. 

Jay: Do you find that maybe because of AI or other things, clients are going to you thinking they know better or thinking they know enough?  

Laura: Sometimes they do. Most of our clients that we get come to us because they're working professionals or they are not as savvy with technology, and so they're looking to a professional to really help and guide them. 

And then our clients are looking to us even if they are educated through AI or HGTV, Pinterest, or whatever it is. We can help guide and funnel their decisions because they've already been thinking about it for years and found products that they like, but then they come to us to help them make everything cohesive and plan it out properly. So, a lot of the project management and planning part of it is very important.  

Jay: AI is creeping up so many different ways now and so quickly.  

Laura: It's pretty mind-blowing. We had some consultants that consult and train on AI tools, and talking with them, they said that AI is changing so fast, it's warp speed, that what you learned and trained on a month ago could be changed the next month. 

They have new things coming out so fast that you- it's, it's a beast, but it's our future, for good and bad.  

Jay: So, what would you say most surprises you about either your work now or your career, or the longevity or when you look back on things. How do you see it?  

Laura: Oh, wow. I think it's so interesting. We had a 25th anniversary party with Sean's business, and of course all three companies were there, and we had some past clients come. And, and one of them that we, I think, designed and built their house 10 years ago, came and they said, ‘Can you believe everything that you've done in these 10 years?’. 

And I'm like, well, I just focus on doing good work and improving as much as I can. Process improvements, finding new products, whatever it is to ... what we call Kaizen, which is the Japanese philosophy of continual small improvements. And we operate with the mindset of Kaizen. How can we just do a little better each time? How can we evaluate what went well, what didn't.

Our designs have developed and grown over the years. The products and services that we offer. You know, we have some projects that got recognition.

Jay: Is there anything in particular that really motivates you? 

Laura: I love mentoring, and I think that's just kind of part of my natural strength is helping people. So, I love helping my team grow in their roles and developing them into great designers is fulfilling for me. So, really, it's not all about me, it's about the team.  

Jay: I noticed on your website a couple other companies where you do education sessions or business seminars. So, is that also part of the mentoring?  

Laura: It is. Sean and I have both been involved in NAHB to be involved in committees and also to teach classes. And Sean is an instructor for the North Carolina Building Institute to teach builders across the state. And so as we are doing that, and we're doing trainings for our team, we decided to develop what we call the Sullivan Family of Companies Learning Institute. Which is where we put on monthly classes to our team. 

So we're teaching other builders and designers across the state, but we're also making sure that we're developing classes that we teach our team monthly. So we're developing them as professionals. And then Sean and I also do consulting to other design build firms, because we love to sow into other people. 

Jay: Well, I really enjoyed talking with you today. Thank you, Laura.

Laura: Thank you, Jay. Take care. 

Thanks for listening to Women at WIRC. This podcast is actually a spinoff of our annual Women in Residential Construction Conference, which we've been hosting since 2016. You can learn more about the conference and see when we'll be in your area by visiting womensconstructionconference.com. Women at WIRC is a production of Endeavor Business Media, a division of Endeavor B2B. Until next time, keep up the good work.