ABOUT

Diane McMahon
and DM Designs

Welcome to my DM Designs website. I am an Interior Designer/Home Organizer and for more than two decades I have worked with clients around the world and from all walks of life. Very early I learned something important. Houses are like people: each one is different and not one is perfect.

I have the privilege of meeting people in their home environments. I get to walk into their private spaces and observe how they live. I go where even best friends aren’t invited: the messy basement; the storage closet so jammed with stuff there’s an avalanche when the door is opened; the proliferating junk drawers so full they’re stuck.

People can feel exposed and embarrassed. Organizing and designing a person’s home is an intimate process. My clients need to trust me and I have to respect them. My first goal is to appreciate where my clients are and help them envision and articulate where they want to be. This is true for a major renovation, downsizing or tackling a home office re-organization.

It took me a while to understand that home organization is integral to interior design. It’s impossible to enjoy and appreciate a beautiful interior if it’s messy and disorganized. My starting point with every client is to tackle any existing issues with disorganization and disorder in the spaces they want to renovate or re-design.

I don’t think messiness in itself is good or bad. It’s a starting point to address what may be overwhelming or even mildly disruptive. The definition of mess depends on who is talking. I have clients who find things sterile if they’re too neat. I have clients who feel anxious if anything is out of place. THERE ARE NO SET RULES. I do have principles and guidelines that help create optimal environments for the people who live in them. Order and organization remind me of the saying about classiness. “You know it when you don’t see it.”

I know about messiness. I know how it’s possible to not even see it. The problem is a mess literally absorbs light and energy. It makes the atmosphere dense and dark and the air heavy and stagnant. The space can feel oppressive. Light and spaciousness are uplifting. Gloom and chaos are threatening. It’s a human response.

After I married and had my first child, it became very important for me to create the best possible home and environment I could. I went back to school and got a BFA degree in Interior Design and began my second career. I started DM Designs in Bethesda, Maryland and serviced the greater Washington DC metropolitan area and numerous clients abroad.

Throughout my career, I have been reminded over and over that our homes are our sanctuaries. They are where we live out our hopes and dreams. Where we create rituals and memories to nurture the people we love. Where we find comfort and safety in difficult times. My mission is to help my clients create the most supportive sanctuary possible.

Diane McMahon

ABOUT

Diane McMahon and DM Designs

Diane McMahon
and DM Designs