Cyndy Jaynes was bitten by the interior design bug as a young girl. Her symptoms included a knack for rearranging furniture and having lavender and purple bedroom walls.
“My mother let me pick everything myself,” Cyndy fondly recalls. “Even as a child, I knew I wanted to be a designer.”
Nearly 30 years after graduating from the design program at Bellevue College, Cyndy still loves to be able to work with an empty space, a blank slate where she can experiment with color combinations and apply her considerable talent for furniture placement, shopping for antiques and accents, and creating functional floor plans that flow.
“I believe the space being designed must reflect the homeowners’ own taste. That’s why I ask a lot of questions about color and preferences and if they have photos of rooms they like, I want to be shown as many as possible,” Cyndy says. “After all, if the customer is going to be happy with the end result, their home should not be an expression of anyone’s style but their own.”
What celebrity designer would you love to spend a day with? Rita Konig, a London-based interior designer who shares her interesting perspective with readers of British Vogue and House & Garden, among others.
Paint or wallpaper? Paint – it’s a much easier to change out.
Favorite color to work with at this moment: Right now, I’m loving Benjamin Moore’s sophisticated Metropolitan AF-690.
Design quirk or superstition? I like to place one or two collected antiques per room, as it offers a decorative counterpoint to contemporary furniture pieces.
My first DIY paint project was…: an old freezer that I painted with green and white stripes!
The most rewarding thing about what I do: Room layout and furniture arranging is my specialty. Being able to make people feel comfortable and happy when choosing things for their home makes me feel happy too.
Every year, paint enthusiasts and interior designers eagerly await the announcement of Benjamin Moore’s Color of the Year, a paint trend forecast that sparks excitement and debate. Whether people are quick to embrace the color or need time to warm up to it, the influence on paint and design trends is undeniable. For 2025, Benjamin Moore introduces Cinnamon Slate (2113-40), a color that’s set to redefine how we approach interior paint choices.