Interior design technology students returned from Toronto with new design ideas and trends added to their repertoire.

From Jan. 16 to 23, seven second-year interior design technology students plus faculty visited art galleries, museums, retail operations, historic buildings, design studios, restaurants, the Interior Design Show (IDS) Toronto and other inspiring destinations.

“It's really a wide variety of places that we visit and all of these things can add to their design vocabulary,” says IDT instructor Fiona McLeod, noting Lakeland students have travelled to Toronto for this experience for close to 16 years.

For Jaelene Sjoquist, a second-year student from Paradise Valley, Alta., design inspiration could be found everywhere from a stretch, mirror-like ceiling by Barrisol to the hundreds of local and international architects, designers and makers at IDS Toronto.

"It was a race on the second day to get through all of the booths,” says Sjoquist, who lists Average, a Danish furniture exhibit as one of the many inspiring trip highlights. "It's something I don't really see around here in terms of design. I really enjoy the simplicity of Scandinavian design and I think I am partial to furniture as well. They had so much knowledge too.”

Beyond learning the latest trends in design, visiting the trade show provides students with a valuable opportunity to network with suppliers. “The people who are representing these products are a source of knowledge, which is very important when you are a designer working in the industry,” says McLeod.

A visit to Brothers Dressler, a Canadian furniture design and manufacturing company with expertise in custom project design, also proved to be memorable. “It was quite interesting, they create a lot of different woodwork products,” says Sjoquist.

Back on campus now, Sjoquist and her peers completed several projects related to their Toronto experience, including a product review report and PowerPoint presentation featuring a minimum of 45 design-worthy images.

“The students are looking around all the time, so this project is one way for them to remember what they see. Interior design is all about the details,” says McLeod.

Eager to take a similar design-filled trip again, Sjoquist says the opportunity to visit Toronto is one of many reasons she's enjoyed her Lakeland experience to date.

“I really like how at Lakeland if you put the work into it, the instructors will totally help you out. They care about you and your health and well-being. You're not just another number on a sheet."

Photos: Second-year interior design technology students toured a number of design-worthy destinations in Toronto, including the Brothers Dressler studio (top). Jaelene Sjoquist (third from the top photo) returned from the trip inspired, especially after visiting places like the Interior Design Show (above) and Art Gallery of Ontario (bottom right).