The MDH Story

In the beginning….

People often ask me how I got into design.  They see what I create and say, “your home must have been spectacular growing up”.  That couldn’t be farther from the truth.  My home was very…. typical.  It was a new community in Regina, Saskatchewan built in 1977, the same year that I was born.  I remember the brown shag carpet throughout and the stark white walls, the golden oak kitchen with vibrant coloured carpet…. yeah, I said it, carpet… in the kitchen. My parents must have sprung for the deluxe package because the house had harvest gold appliances (which remained until my dad sold it in the early 2000s) and a lovely avocado coloured bathroom.  To be fair, my parents did renovate the main floor in the early 80s and replaced the carpet in the kitchen with a non-descript beige vinyl, replaced the shag with an equally boring sculpted beige broadloom and painted the walls to match.  My sister was able to retain her flash-orange shag carpet.  I retained the blood red Berber.  It went very well with the soft powder blue walls and Star Wars mural on the accent wall.  Maybe this is where my complete distain of murals began.  

Thankfully, I developed some pretty bad environmental allergies and my parents were informed that they should remove the carpet in my bedroom and the dog and cat from the house.  Of course, the dog and cat remained.  I was prepared to suffer the consequences of having animals and keep telling myself it was because I wouldn’t allow my parents to get rid of the animals.  Truth be told, they probably were fonder of the animals than they were of me. We’ll come back to my bedroom later….

I had always wanted to be an Architect, just like my Uncle Andy.  I remember spending hours at his drafting table in Winnipeg as a kid pouring over blueprints, drawing a bunch of nonsense lines, and accidentally breaking his pencil sharpener.  Don’t worry, he fixed it.  Our family used to draw names for family gift exchanges.  I’d usually end up with some over-sized sweater, a flashlight, or some kind of screwdriver set. One year, my cousin Eldeen ended up with my name. What she gave me was one of the most thoughtful gifts I had ever gotten.  I received a package of miscellaneous architectural drawing tools, scales, templates, mechanical pencils, and the very same style of pencil sharpener that my uncle had (which I already knew how to fix, just in case). I still have all these tools today and used them throughout my schooling.  Thanks, Eldeen!  

My typical Saturday morning ritual was a mix of cartoons and This Old House (mostly This Old House).  Bob Villa was my hero.  I’d watch PBS for hours.  The immense joy I would feel when they’d have episodes back-to-back all morning!  After school shows usually consisted of Do It For Yourself (you can still find these episodes on YouTube).  Mary Bellows was pretty awesome.  OMG, I’ve just realized that I’ve always been a nerd!

Back to my start…

When the Allergist suggested that my parents remove the carpet from my bedroom it was my time to shine.  This Old House gave me a pretty in-depth knowledge of renovations (for a 10-year-old anyway).  Out went the blood-red Berber.  In went a lovely golden-oak parquet floor.  Give me a break, it was the early 90s.  My parents decided to let me pick the paint.  I picked a VERY dark green and Maroon.  Again, give me a break, it was the early 90s!!  I won’t even begin to describe the wallpaper border.  I remember going to Revelstoke (the store, not the town) and picking the paints and my mom questioning my choices.  The associate told my mom to let me do my thing and that she thought it would be great!  That was enough to put my mom’s mind at ease.  She showed me how to paint.  She cut in along the stipple ceilings, I did the rest.  Yes, I said stipple! Remember, I said the house was built in the 70s!  Once the black blinds with pouf-valance were installed, my masterpiece was complete.  Mom approved; dad didn’t say much.  He has always been a man of few words.  I think he was mad because mom took me shopping and bought me a new dresser, headboard and night table.  He probably didn’t want to admit that it looked pretty damn good (for 1990).  Once my extended family saw what I had done they insisted that my parents let me continue through the rest of the house.  Eventually, I did just that. 

By the time I was in university I had completed the house, helped my cousins renovate theirs, helped my Grandma fix up the farmhouse, and helped my mom with a homesteading project on another ¼ section of land.  Sadly, my dreams of going to Architecture school were dashed by my not-so-great math marks in high school and geography.  My parents felt that there was a perfectly good university in Regina and that I should pick something that was available locally.  I started in pre-journalism, moved into political science, and eventually ended up in humanities.  My grandma always said “any education is good education” 

After 4 years of basically taking any classes I found interesting I decided enough was enough and took a break from university. I had been working part-time at a mall while going to school and ended up getting a job at Eaton’s a few years before they closed.  I gradually moved my way through the store and helped reset the departments when they downsized by one entire floor (beginnings of space planning right here folks).  I remember setting up the china department late one evening and having the Store Manager walk by questioning “who did this?” while pointing at the department.  I sheepishly said that I did.  He patted me on the back and told me I was in the wrong department.  Penny was the one in charge of Visual Display.  She was affectionately known as the dragon lady.  If you touched any display items or mannequins, you were done for.  She came up to me the next day, smiled (I was frightened because I had never seen her do that).  She commented on how nicely the departments I set up looked, told me that I would be helping her out during setup of new promos and gave me permission to merchandise my department.  This was my first stint into retail display and merchandising, although it was quite unofficial.  I was still primarily responsible for schmoozing customers which I did, and I did well. Sadly, we all know the fate of Eaton’s, so my hopes and dreams of moving up within the company were dashed. 

Enter David.  

After Eaton’s closed I jumped around to a few different retail stores and ended up at a now-defunct store officially working in the Visual Presentation Team.  It was while I was working here that I began to develop the desire to become an Interior Designer.  I started applying for school in Calgary at Mount Royal University (College at the time).  Every year I would apply and get waitlisted.  It was during this time I met David.  David was a strapping older gent that my friends affectionately referred to as Calvin Klein.  We were all out for a night of dancing and drinking, as most 20-year-olds do.  David was by himself and of course my friends felt this was completely unacceptable.  He was invited into the group with open arms and was quite a pleasant fellow.  He was a writer, visiting from Vancouver and around for the summer.  He learned of my desire to become an Interior Designer and told me about his fabulous friend that was a big-time Interior Designer in Calgary.  He told me about his luxurious home on the river and how he should introduce us.  It was around this time that an opportunity presented itself for me to take a position in Calgary with the company I had been working for.  I jumped at the chance.  I packed everything I owned into my car and drove out.  David never did have a chance to introduce me to his dear friend.  

Enter Caban.

Moving to Calgary was a huge catalyst for me.  I didn’t have an overly wonderful experience at the store that I transferred to in and decided to look elsewhere for employment, eventually ending up at Caban which was touted as one of the trendiest Canadian home stores of it’s time.  I knew of it, because before I had moved to Calgary I had made a spontaneous trip to Toronto to meet someone I met online.  Yes, I flew halfway across the country when I was 20 to meet someone from the internet. I was willing to do (almost) anything to get out of Regina!  It was amazing, and I’ve maintained contact with him to this day! Toronto was just too big for me.  

For several months we set up the store getting it ready to open.  We were all given Friends and Family passes for the opening weekend which extended a 40% discount.  I didn’t have any family in Calgary, and I hadn’t been in the city long enough to make many friends, so these were useless to me.  It was go-time.  The doors opened to much fanfare.  People were excited to check out all the wonderful products.  I spent most of the day wandering around straightening things up and making sure everything was in top form.  I noticed a group of people standing around looking somewhat lost and forgotten. My customer service experience kicked in and I promptly approached the group and asked if there was anything I could help them with.   They all turned to me and said they were just waiting for their friend that had the discount card.  I pulled the stack out of my back pocket, explained to them that I hated my family and don’t have any friends and handed each one of them the 40% discount.  They all laughed, thanked me, and then proceeded to pick up armfuls of items. After a few hours I was approached by one of the managers, reprimanded for giving my discount to people I clearly didn’t know, was informed that they had purchased 1000s of dollars worth of merchandise and caused chaos at the cash registers as a result, and that under no circumstances was I to do that again.  

I noticed that several of the people kept coming back through the store.  I would make a point of saying hello and chatting briefly.  I’d help them pick stuff out, run it to the counter and then continue on doing my job making sure the store was in tip-top shape. I had no idea who any of these people were.  It didn’t matter.  Customers first, right??

I came back to the store after my break one day and one of the cashiers brought me an envelope saying someone had dropped it off for me.  It was simply addressed to “Kevin”.  I was a bit apprehensive, as the last time someone had done that to me I was 17, still in high school, and it turned out to be a fairly graphic sex fantasy that the gentlemen wrote while watching me work over the period of several months without me even knowing.  And yes, I did travel halfway across the country to meet someone from the internet even after that happened. Haha.  I opened the envelope and inside was an invitation for a birthday party with a number to call to RSVP and address.  I didn’t know who dropped it off, so I naturally set it aside and paid it no mind.  A week later I was told there was a call for me. I thought this was fairly strange since I still didn’t have any friends (that would call me at work anyway).  The man on the other end questioned why I didn’t RSVP for his party.  I told him I didn’t know who he was.  He told me his name.  I told him that didn’t help.  I told him I would (mostly to get him off the phone).  I never did.  Another week passes.  I’m in the back opening new merchandise boxes and am summoned out front as I had a visitor.  Again, I have no friends (that would come visit me at work anyway) and I confusingly walk out to the front of the store.  Standing there is one of the gentlemen from the group I had given the coupons to when the store first opened.  He asked why I still hadn’t RSVPed to his party.  I laughed and said I had no idea who he was.  He told me that now I did, and had no excuse because “as you said, you have no friends”.  

The Birthday Party.

I had no idea what to expect. I had no idea where this house was aside from address. Maps meant nothing to me. I called a cab, took the short ride from my apartment on 17th Avenue and arrived a few minutes later to this STUNNING home in what I’m told is Elbow Park by the cab driver. The driver commented about how beautiful this home was. I was sweating profusely because I was nervous about what was to come. I had no idea how I ended up at this mansion in Calgary, by myself considering I was a 21 year old and worked at the mall. I don’t know anyone but the host, and to say I knew him at that time was a bit of a stretch. I knew nothing about him. Not knowing what to expect, I walk up the sidewalk and the door opened. There was a doorman that invited me in and offered to take my coat. I took a few steps inside and was offered a drink by another person wearing the same clothes as the doorman. At this point I was even more nervous. There was probably over 50 trapsing around this absolutely stunning home. The host approached, thanked me for coming, and proceeded to introduce me to a few people. I had never felt more out of place. Remember, I’m 21 and work at the mall. What am I doing in a place like this?? I was eventually introduced to the birthday boy’s partner, Douglas. Douglas was an Interior Designer. I found out that Douglas designed the house. I was invited to explore and tour the home (or maybe I took that upon myself). I was in complete awe. This home was one of the most spectacular spaces I had ever been in! The details, the furniture, the style, the yard, the river. Wait a minute!! Interior Designer, beautiful home on the river. Sound familiar? I found Douglas, asked him if he knew a gentleman by the name of David. He laughed and exclaims that they had known each other for many many years. I told him about how I had met David and how he gushed about his fabulous friend in Calgary and that he wanted to introduce us because of my desire to become a designer. Well, thanks David, but I got introduced on my own!!! If you haven’t guessed, the Douglas I had just met happened to be the one and only, Douglas Cridland!

Now my desire to become a designer became even greater.  I applied at Mount Royal College yet again, but this time I decided to apply elsewhere too.  I did some searching and came across a program at NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) for Interior Design Technology.  Douglas was gracious enough to suggest I drop his name as a reference and he’d put in a good word for me if need-be.  I did just that.  Once again, I was waitlisted at Mount Royal, but eureka!  I was accepted into NAIT!  I once again packed up all my belongings and headed north!  I finished the program, with Honours and decided to give Mount Royal one more chance.  If they didn’t accept me after the 100th time applying (not literally), I wasn’t going to pursue it anymore.  FINALLY, they accepted me and I made the move back to Calgary.  With the IDT diploma combined with the 300 years of general studies I took at the University of Regina I was able to slip right into the second term of the second year with full credit for my electives.  Grandma was right.  Any education is good education!    

My New Beginning

While I was going to school, that birthday boy from the Caban days informed me that his partner, Douglas Cridland, was looking for a summer student and suggested I get in touch.  Of course, I jumped at the chance and was able to complete my first work term there.  I stayed on part time after the term ended since I didn’t have to take a full course load!  Again, thank you Grandma!  Douglas gave me the opportunity to do my second work term at his office.  Of course, I accepted immediately.  The rest is history.

Douglas was like this godly father-figure to me.  He took me under his wing, and I soaked everything up like a sponge.  His use of beautiful fabrics, monochromatic colour palettes, wonderful textures, symmetry, and balance, to me, were the epitome of wonderful design.  He created these beautiful interiors that are all seemingly ageless.  I’ve always had an affinity to this style of design. I love a space that looks just as current today as it did when you created it.  What better way to learn how to create spaces like this than by learning from the Master himself? 

After 9 years of working for “The Man”, it was time.  It took every ounce of courage and a huge leap of faith, but I started Mitchell Design House Inc.  Seemed logical!  Why not start your own luxury residential design business at the beginning of an economic downturn!  Some people thought I was crazy, but most were very encouraging.  I remember bumping into Richard Lindseth (very prominent Calgary Architect) at grocery store one evening shortly after I made the decision.  Unsure what to expect, I said hello and Richard’s words were genuinely encouraging.  He told me of the time he did the very same thing, during a recession and said “If you can make it through a recession, you can make it through anything”.   Well, it’s been 6 years, I’ve survived a recession and a global pandemic.  I’m still here!

Bring it on!!