The arts have played a vital and integral component of Deborah's life, starting at age four and continuing to grow through her adult years. From drawing, painting, photography, screen printing, and batik, Deborah knew as a young child she wanted be an artist. "With my love for painting and passion for designing, I wanted to create art that also had an end use. I didn t want to just become a struggling artist." At Syracuse University in 1999, Deborah was honored with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. With an emphasis in Surface Pattern Design, she studied in great detail how to design patterns for home furnishings: wall covering, bedding, upholstery, and rugs. Always determined to succeed, Deborah moved to Los Angeles, California right after graduation and accepted a freelance design position for Kid's Line, a baby bedding company. The home furnishing design sector in Los Angeles wasn't the right market place for the industry, forcing Deborah to make a very influential decision; accepting a job in Manhattan, New York. As Assistant Designer at Tommy Hilfiger Home Furnishings, Deborah was responsible for participating in the designing and production of their high end bedding line, The Crest Collection, along with various bath products. Her love and passion for designing led Deborah to pursue a more creative and innovative career, and after one year left Tommy Hilfiger for a position as an Artist for Stark Carpet Corporation. "I wanted to be the one holding the paintbrush and painting the patterns". Finding her niche in the design Industry, she quickly adjusted to the Internationally known, corporate firm. At Stark, Deborah designed and painted each rendering according to the specifications of the individual clients. While she enjoyed the designing and painting, she felt that working for such a large corporation in the Big Apple, she became lost in the shuffle. In April 2002, Deborah moved back to Chicago to pursue her dream, entrepreneurship. She wanted to design custom area rugs on her own and she quickly began to freelance for Stark's Chicago and Minneapolis showrooms. Some of the clients Deborah designed rugs for include, the Johnson home, of Johnson's Floor Wax in Racine, Wisconsin, and The Ramsy House, of The Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul. She has also designed for, Hokanson Incorporated, Village Carpets, Van Dijk Carpets, and Davis and Davis Rugs. Determined to acheive her dream, Deborah began creating her own designs and developed key relationships with various carpet mills. In 2003, Deborah Benson Designs Incorporated was created with a mission to design, paint, and furnish her own custom designed rugs. Participating in several juried art fairs, including the annual Beth El Art Fair, and Arts in Northbrook, the public exposure and her hard work began to pay off. She recently opened her own 1,300 square foot showroom in Old Town. There, you can see rugs she has designed, as well as a wall dedicated to displaying designs that she has executed for past projects. She has books of samples and ideas and endless colors to choose from. Her on-site design studio allows her to work closely with clients to custom design rugs to meet their individual needs. On her own, this 28 year old woman has created a business, a store front, and is living her dream. Deborah Benson Designs, Inc is dedicated to designing and producing unique, high quality, affordable custom designed rugs. Remember, the possibilities are endless!