How Detail Movement came to life - the story

                     Photo by Silvya Palladino Photography

I can still remember the moment when I realised my life had to change. I was on a bus, coming home from work, miserably unhappy with my job (hello economic crisis of 2007 that hit my country, Romania in 2013), but somehow, happily chasing the sun setting & peeking through the buildings passing me by.

You see I trained to be an Architect, and I was good at it. I was ready to make the world a better place, for my family, for my city, and for anybody who needed a better home. But the reality was completely different.

In the studio I was working in, you were only a drafter, drawing up what your seniors told you to do, you weren’t really allowed any creative input. Which was ok at first, to be honest, when you were learning the ropes, but it quickly became a soul-crushing experience for me because you see, I thrive on creativity. I need creative freedom in my life. And pair that with the economic crisis that was happening at the time, things were not looking great (I was looking at working without a paycheck for at least 3 months).

So that day on the bus, while chasing the sun peeking at me through the buildings, feeling sorry for myself and the job I felt “stuck” in, I had a moment of clarity. “I don’t want to do this anymore. I want to do something creative that brings me joy, no matter what is happening around me.” I felt a sense of determination, of power because the decision was made. Although I did not know what that “something” was going to be just yet.

When I got home, I did what I always do to relax. I went on Pinterest and started looking at gorgeous photos of interiors. This was my go-to move every night. I would scroll aimlessly, getting lost down the rabbit hole, dreaming up interiors and loving it. But this time was different. This time, just a few minutes in, something clicked. 

And then it dawned on me. THIS IS IT. This is what I want to do, what I always wanted to do, before listening to my parents and studying Architecture (because hello good girl). THIS IS MY PATH. I REMEMBER NOW! Don’t get me wrong, I loved studying Architecture and learning all that I could about it. It has proved to be incredibly useful in my work now. But at that moment everything changed for me.

Fast forward a couple of years and courses in Interior Design later, and I am in London, working for some amazing, high-end interior design studios. I lived and breathed every moment, every fabric sample, every drawing, every site visit, and every project.

However, there was something that never sat right with me. The clients were never fully put first. Pushing expensive products and chasing great photos seemed to be the common thread in this industry, instead of prioritizing the actual people who were going to use those spaces.

And just like that, the Universe sensed my change of heart and decided to open up the path for me. It made it so that I would leave the safety of full employment and start my own studio.

A studio where I have all the creative freedom that I want, where I can happily put my clients' needs & wishes first without a second of a doubt, and where we can create beautiful homes together. These are the things that matter to me. 

I chase those beautiful moments created in a home, much like that moment on the bus where I was chasing the sun. That feeling and seeing the joy on my clients’ faces as they light up experiencing their homes. 

These are the little things that make my heart sing. 

This is why I do what I do.

Nothing more and nothing less.

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All images that are credited as '©Detail Movement', are done by Raluca Vaduva for Detail Movement. All rights reserved. All pictures that are not my own, I credit them to the best of my knowledge & research, to their offline/online sources. I do not claim ownership over them in any way. If you see your picture on this site and do not wish for it to be displayed, please get in touch and I will remove it or add additional notes at your request.