Malinda Vance is passionate about design.
“I eat, sleep, breathe design,” she said. “It’s almost a ministry to me.”
At Pure Design, she helps people make decisions that turn their houses into homes.
Vance became the manager of Pure Design when the business opened March 1.
Initially, she worked out of space in Sunshine Heating & Air Conditioning. About a month ago, Pure Design moved to 114 N. Main St. in Waupaca’s downtown into space that was formerly Uptown Pizza.
Pure Design is owned by Nancy Nygaard, who lives in rural Scandinavia and has worked in design for about 20 years. Seven years ago, she opened Studio Kitchens in Appleton.
Vance was working at the Pregnancy Information Center when she received a call and job offer from Nygaard.
In spite of Vance’s love of working in design, she felt called to be at the Pregnancy Information Center and turned down the job offer.
An invitation to a New Year’s Eve dinner resulted in Vance again coming into contact with Nygaard and being asked if she was interested in working for her.
“As we got talking, I learned her prayers lined up with my prayers. I ended up working for her,” Vance said.
In bringing Pure Design into Waupaca, the idea, Vance said, was to offer things not already in the community.
“We made sure not to have the same lines (carried by other businesses),” she said.
Vance said Pure Design offers kitchen and bath remodels or complete construction. “We have three contractors that we work with that have also been in the business for a number of years. We work as a team on the jobs as much as we can,” she said.
Pure Design deals with custom and semi-custom cabinetry.
Their services also include space planning, furniture layouts, accessorizing, choosing colors and holiday decorating.
“We can do any room in the house. We do redesign where we use the same pieces you have and do a new plan and then maybe purchase a few accessories. That’s the ones I love. I love being able to show people that you don’t need a lot of money all the time to make beautiful spaces,” Vance said.
She also enjoys helping people choose colors, whether it is for an accent wall in a room or accessories for one.
Vance often tells people to look at magazines to help them realize what style or theme they like. She also likes to ask her customers what their favorite color is or if there is something in particular in their house that they like.
It could be a piece of artwork or curtains, with a design being built off of just that.
“Home is a reflection of you. You should love your home,” Vance said. “I walk in my living room, and it’s just that sense – I’m home.”
She always “dibbled and dabbled” in it and graduated from Fox Valley Technical College in 2007 with a degree in interior design.
Vance has 12 weeks left before she receives her bachelor’s degree in business management and is considering seeking a second bachelor’s degree in architectural design.
She worked at Stange’s of Waupaca and did design work on the side before working at the Pregnancy Information Center – something that she said was “totally out of her field.”
Since joining Nygaard, Vance has received additional training.
Pure Design’s new space in downtown Waupaca has a showroom that includes high-end pieces and traditional farmhouse cabinetry.
Vance said the cabinet lines they carry meet all price points and that she loves to see people mix and match pieces.
After Nygaard purchased the building, color was added on the inside and outside of the building, one wall was bumped out in the building and an arch wall and center wall divider were added.
Several weeks ago, Pure Design opened at its new location. It is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Vance can be reached there at 715-942-0887 or 715-281-3792. Their website is www.puredesign.us.com.
“I absolutely love design,” Vance said. “I love picking out fabrics. I love picking out colors, and I love space design.”