Doorman Designs

My Name is Alex I'm 29 and was born and raised in south Louisiana. I founded Doorman Designs two years ago after graduating from college in Mississippi and returning to Louisiana and a job in New Orleans. Limited by a dismal post-graduate budget, I desired to furnish my 1880s apartment with furniture that embodied the charm and grit of the Crescent City. So, I decided to start making my own pieces. My first creation: a headboard crafted from an old growth cypress, five panel door salvaged from a house flooded in Hurricane Katrina. I inlaid the panels with ornate, 19th century ceiling tins to give the piece more character and history. From there I started to make and sell more headboards and eventually began designing lighting, coffee, and dining room tables. The materials I use are architectural salvage with an emphasis on reclaimed wood from New Orleans homes destroyed or damaged by Katrina. Growing up on the Gulf Coast, I know how much history is to be found in New Orleans’ architectural details. After Katrina, my heart broke seeing the city’s soul, flooded and ruined, and being torn down. I believe that each door, each window frame, and each piece of wood is a piece of the South that should never be lost, but saved. I like to think that I’m keeping their stories alive through my designs and furniture.