Interior Design Assistant / Junior Interior Designer
DawnElise Interiors | Oakland Park / Fort Lauderdale, FL
Flexible Part-Time to Full-Time Role | Approximately 20 to 40 Hours Per Week
Compensation: $25 to $30 per hour, based on experience and fit
DawnElise Interiors is seeking a highly organized, design-driven, visually talented Interior Design Assistant / Junior Interior Designer to support our luxury residential interior design studio.
This is not a basic administrative role. We are looking for someone who truly wants to grow as an interior designer, has excellent taste, communicates beautifully through visuals, and can support both the creative and technical sides of a high-end design firm.
The ideal candidate is ambitious, flexible, polished, reliable, and eager to learn. You should be comfortable working in a small, fast-moving design studio where attention to detail, follow-through, discretion, visual communication, and initiative matter.
This role is best suited for someone who lives close to our Oakland Park design studio at 3455 NE 12 Terrace, Oakland Park, FL 33334, ideally within approximately 10 miles, or someone who can reliably and quickly commute to the office, local vendors, showrooms, job sites, installations, and last-minute meetings throughout South Florida, including the Florida Keys.
This is not a fully remote position. While some work may be completed remotely, regular in-person availability is required.
About DawnElise Interiors
DawnElise Interiors works with a carefully selected clientele on significant residences, estate-level renovations, and highly personalized full-service design commissions. Our studio takes on a limited number of comprehensive residential projects each year, allowing us to deliver a deeply considered, art-informed, white-glove design experience.
We are looking for someone who understands, or wants to learn, what it means to support a polished, luxury-level design firm.
What You’ll Do
Interior Design & Presentation Support
Prepare beautiful client presentations, mood boards, finish boards, and visual concepts using Canva and other design tools.
Assist with furniture, lighting, fabric, wallpaper, tile, plumbing, appliance, art, and accessory selections.
Research new vendors, artisans, products, materials, and resources that align with the DawnElise Interiors aesthetic.
Help develop design concepts and prepare ID Drawing sets and presentations for smaller projects under the direction of the principal designer.
Proofread drawings, presentations, spreadsheets, schedules, newsletters, social media posts, and client-facing documents for accuracy and polish.
Help communicate design ideas visually in a clear, elevated, client-ready way.
AutoCAD & Technical Drawing Support
Take accurate field measurements at client homes, job sites, showrooms, and project locations.
Document existing conditions clearly through measurements, notes, photos, videos, sketches, and marked-up plans.
Use field measurements to help prepare or update AutoCAD drawings, space plans, elevations, cabinetry layouts, furniture plans, finish plans, and related interior design documents.
Prepare interior design drawing sets in AutoCAD, including plans, elevations, reflected ceiling plans, finish plans, electrical/lighting intent plans, millwork concepts, cabinetry layouts, and related ID drawings.
Translate design direction into accurate technical drawings.
Review field dimensions, as-built drawings, contractor information, appliance/plumbing specs, and vendor details for accuracy.
Coordinate drawing updates with contractors, installers, renderers, vendors, and the internal design team.
Advanced AutoCAD skills are required. Please do not apply if you are not confident preparing interior design drawing sets independently.
3D Renderings & Renderer Coordination
Prepare clear direction for renderers, including floor plans, elevations, finish selections, furniture selections, inspiration images, dimensions, notes, and revision requests.
Review renderings for accuracy, design intent, scale, finishes, furniture placement, lighting, and overall presentation quality before they are shared with clients.
Track rendering revisions and communicate changes clearly and professionally.
Candidates should be comfortable creating simple renderings, visual mockups, concept images, or AI-assisted design visuals on their own when a full outsourced rendering is not necessary.
While advanced photorealistic rendering may be outsourced, the candidate should understand how to communicate design intent visually and should be comfortable using available tools, including AI, Canva, SketchUp, Photoshop, or similar programs, to help present ideas quickly and beautifully.
Project Coordination & Client/Vendor Support
Request quotes, pricing, invoices, estimates, samples, and product information.
Follow up on orders, deliveries, backorders, damages, vendor questions, and installation details.
Pick up and return samples from local showrooms as needed. Some samples may be heavy.
Attend meetings, job-site visits, showroom appointments, installations, and industry events as needed.
Take clear notes, photos, videos, measurements, and follow-up items during meetings and site visits.
Use slower periods productively without needing constant direction.
Create, maintain, and update accurate spreadsheets using Excel, Google Sheets, and/or Numbers to track project details, client selections, product specifications, vendor quotes, pricing, invoices, purchasing information, order status, delivery dates, backorders, damages, approvals, and installation details.
Social Media, Marketing & Newsletter Support
This role includes a meaningful social media and marketing component.
The right candidate should be comfortable creating polished social media graphics, reels, posts, stories, newsletters, and visual content that reflect a luxury interior design brand.
Responsibilities may include:
Creating Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, TikTok, YouTube, and related platform content.
Capturing photo and video content at job sites, installations, showrooms, vendor visits, client-ready spaces, networking events, and behind-the-scenes studio moments.
Helping develop captions, hashtags, vendor tags, project stories, content ideas, and post concepts.
Assisting with newsletters, email marketing content, blog-style updates, and promotional materials.
Keeping up with marketing requests from our marketing firm, vendors, partners, affiliate programs, and brand collaborators.
Helping ensure DawnElise Interiors remains visible, consistent, elevated, and current across digital platforms.
Candidates must be willing to share their public personal, professional, or creative social media accounts as part of the interview process. This is required because social media, photography, visual communication, personal aesthetic, and natural content instincts are an important part of this role. We want to understand how candidates naturally present themselves visually and how comfortable they are with social platforms.
Events, Networking & South Florida Design Community
This role may include regular attendance at design, vendor, showroom, art, marketing, and networking events throughout Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties.
Some events may take place in the evenings or on weekends. Candidates should be genuinely comfortable attending industry events, representing a luxury design firm professionally, meeting vendors and potential referral partners, taking photos/videos, gathering content, and helping the firm stay active in the South Florida design community.
This position may require a significant amount of local driving, including trips to showrooms, vendors, workrooms, job sites, client homes, events, installations, and meetings across South Florida.
Reliable transportation and comfort driving throughout Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties are required.
Schedule & Flexibility
This role requires flexibility. Some days may be focused on detailed computer work, sourcing, drawings, presentations, newsletters, social media, and organization. Other days may involve errands, showroom visits, installations, vendor follow-up, networking events, or urgent job-site needs.
The schedule may vary depending on project demands.
Expected hours are approximately 20 guaranteed hours per week to start, with the potential for up to 40 hours per week during busy periods.
Evening and weekend availability will be required at times for installations, project needs, networking events, design events, client-related needs, and marketing opportunities.
Occasional overnight travel may be required. Although we are based in Florida and most of our work is here, we do take on projects worldwide.
The right person will be comfortable with a role that changes day to day and will understand that luxury design work often requires flexibility, responsiveness, and initiative.
Required Skills
Advanced AutoCAD skills.
Strong Canva skills with the ability to create elevated, polished presentations and social media graphics.
Strong spreadsheet skills, including the ability to create, maintain, update, and organize accurate spreadsheets using Excel, Google Sheets, and/or Numbers.
Excellent verbal and visual communication skills.
Strong sense of design, proportion, scale, color, materials, and luxury interiors.
Strong photography and social media instincts.
Ability to write polished captions, newsletters, short marketing copy, and client/vendor communications.
Highly organized and detail-oriented.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Comfortable using spreadsheets, Google Workspace, Excel/Numbers, email, project lists, and time-tracking tools.
Reliable, punctual, flexible, and proactive.
Able to work independently after receiving direction.
Able to take feedback well and improve quickly.
Comfortable with local driving, showroom visits, errands, job sites, installations, and occasional evening/weekend events.
Must have reliable transportation.
Must be located close enough to the studio and South Florida project areas to respond efficiently to in-person needs.
Preferred Skills
Interior design degree or related education.
1 to 5 years of interior design studio experience.
Experience with SketchUp, Photoshop, Studio Designer, Houzz Pro, DesignFiles, Adobe Creative Suite, CapCut, Instagram Reels, TikTok, Pinterest, Mailchimp, MailerLite, or similar tools.
Experience with luxury residential interiors, renovations, construction, FF&E, purchasing, installations, styling, or content creation.
Interest in art, architecture, luxury interiors, high-end residential design, travel, fashion, or visual culture.
Candidate Test Requirement
Candidates who move beyond the initial interview round will be required to complete a design and visual communication test before final consideration.
The test may include a floor plan, design instructions, and a request to prepare a visual presentation showing how you would communicate your ideas. This may include a furniture layout, mood board, finish direction, AutoCAD plan, Canva presentation, social media concept, written design explanation, or other visual materials.
The purpose of the test is to evaluate design judgment, visual communication, AutoCAD ability, Canva skills, creativity, attention to detail, social media instincts, and ability to follow direction.
Contractor Status, Weekly Invoicing & Time Tracking
This is a 1099 independent contractor position.
The person in this role will be required to bill DawnElise Interiors weekly for services performed.
Detailed time tracking is required. The candidate must use the Toggl time-tracking app to track their time by task and by client/project. Weekly invoices must be submitted with detailed Toggl reports showing:
Time worked each day.
Specific tasks completed and how long was spent on each task, tracked in half-hour intervals.
Client or project associated with each task.
Time spent on design work, drawings, sourcing, errands, vendor follow-up, social media, marketing, events, rendering coordination, administrative work, and other project-related responsibilities.
Accurate time tracking is an essential requirement of this role. Candidates must be comfortable tracking time carefully and consistently, as DawnElise Interiors uses this information to manage project profitability, client budgets, internal workflow, and team responsibilities.
How to Apply
Please submit:
Resume.
Portfolio or examples of design work.
Examples of AutoCAD drawings or interior design drawing sets.
Examples of Canva presentations, mood boards, social media graphics, reels, newsletters, or other visual/marketing content.
Public personal, professional, or creative social media handles.
A brief note explaining why you want this role and why you believe you would be a strong fit for a luxury residential interior design studio.
Applicants who do not provide examples of visual work, AutoCAD work, and social media accounts may not be considered.
This role is intended for someone who wants to grow with a luxury design studio and become a valuable long-term part of the DawnElise Interiors team.
Pay: $25.00 - $30.00 per hour
Application Question(s):
- Approximately how many miles are you from our studio at 3455 NE 12 Terrace, Oakland Park, FL 33334?
- Are you confident preparing interior design drawing sets independently in AutoCAD?
- Are you confident creating polished client presentations and social media graphics in Canva?
- Are you comfortable writing newsletters, captions, short marketing copy, and client/vendor emails?
- Are you comfortable completing a design and visual communication test if you advance past the interview round?
- What hourly rate are you seeking?
- Are you comfortable working as a 1099 independent contractor and submitting weekly invoices for your services? Are you willing and able to use the Toggl time-tracking app daily to track your time hourly by task and by client/project? Have you previously tracked billable time for multiple clients or projects? If yes, please describe your experience.
- Are you proficient in Excel, Google Sheets, and/or Numbers?
- This role occasionally requires hands-on studio and project support, including lifting and carrying boxes, handling samples, organizing materials, preparing for client meetings, assisting with installations, light studio upkeep, and helping with whatever is reasonably needed to keep the studio running smoothly and clients well cared for.
Are you comfortable performing these types of physical and hands-on tasks as part of the role?
Are there any job-related physical or manual tasks listed above that you would be unable or unwilling to perform, with or without reasonable accommodation?
- Are there any days/times you are not available? Are you available for evening and weekend design events, networking events, installations, and urgent project needs?
- Are you comfortable using your own vehicle to drive regularly throughout Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties?
- Are you comfortable with occasional overnight travel?
- Are you willing to share your public personal, professional, or creative social media accounts as part of the interview process? How often do you post to your social media accounts and what platforms do you use most?
- Are you able to create simple renderings (with custom-molded elements), mockups, or AI-assisted design visuals on your own when a fully outsourced rendering is not required? What rendering, visualization, or AI design tools have you used?
- Have you ever worked on an Affiliate Marketing campaign? If so, please describe your role.
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Oakland Park, FL 33334
