Are you the go-to friend for shopping and decorating advice? Do your friends seek your expertise on colour and design? Then don’t miss out on my free Colour Designer Masterclass! The world of colour is vast and ever-changing—beige is back, and it’s time to master the latest trends for stunning results.
Whether you decorate for fun or are considering turning your passion into a career, this FREE masterclass is your chance to elevate your colour skills and become the expert everyone turns to during this exciting new trend cycle.
How to get started
As a self-employed artist—whether in colour, decorating, or any other creative field—your expertise directly drives your earning potential. The more you know and can deliver, the more you’ll earn.
At 30, I quit my corporate job to launch my first business, One Day Design, offering colour consultations with only a single colour theory class under my belt. However, I quickly realized the limitations of my knowledge. Despite my entrepreneurial spirit, I immediately had to find myself a job selling furniture to supplement my income.
At the time, my fledgling business could only offer redesign services (which is what we did before staging was invented) and basic colour consultations. This experience taught me an important lesson: in the world of design entrepreneurship, comprehensive knowledge and diverse skills are essential for success.
Which leads me to the point of this post. Today I’m outlining all my streams of income to inspire you and also to bust any assumptions you might have about design and whether this is a field for you!
1st Stream of Income: Online Colour Consultations
Almost immediately, blog readers in the US started asking if I could fly to them to choose finishes for their renovations and new builds. But since I was in Canada, that was not an option. So I started a document that outlined what it cost to consult with me online and how the images should be sent and emailed it out whenever an inquiry came through.
That was 2009.
During this time I was also teaching Colour Theory at Vancouver Community College. After 9 semesters, in the winter of 2010, half my students had found my blog and enrolled in the course to learn my system.
My eDesign business morphed into a 6 figure income just in this department alone. Today we have 5 team members assembling paint, bathroom, kitchens, new builds, exteriors and renovation packages for clients all over the world.
2nd Stream of Income: In-person Colour Consulting and Decorating
During this period, I was also decorating and colour consulting, charging $125 an hour for consultations.
My client base was largely built on referrals, thanks to my previous four-year stint at a Benjamin Moore Paint store where I honed my skills conducting colour consultations. And yes, I was fired three times by two different owners during that period but that’s a story for another day.
Yet, I persevered, hanging on by a thread, driven by my unwavering determination to become the go-to colour expert—the one who could walk into any house and instantly know which paint colour was the right one.
Window Treatments = Goldmine
- Every designer should master the basics of window treatments
- Learn how to do a proper check measure
- Calculate yardage for drapery
- Build a relationship with a reliable installer
Here’s the thing: there’s a goldmine waiting for you in selling window coverings and custom drapery. Think about it – every new build needs to dress their windows, and custom drapery isn’t something your average homeowner can whip up themselves. It’s a skill that sets you apart and adds real value to your services.
So, if you want to level up your design business and boost your income, dive into the world of window treatments. It’s a game-changer, I promise!
3rd Stream of Income: Workshops
In June 2010, I launched my first True Colour Expert workshop. I had 12 students and each one had flown in from all around the US. I don’t think I had a single local in the class, apparently it’s true that an expert lives more than 1000 miles away.
When the pandemic hit, we seamlessly transitioned the live workshop into a virtual format and that is still how we conduct our Create Your Dream Home workshop. Sign up here to get on the waitlist for the next one.
And for designers looking to master colour specification or aspiring colour designers, here’s the best part: you don’t need to invest in traditional design school (I didn’t either!). All you need is my intensive two-day training to learn how to choose colours the right way. It’s a fast track to becoming a colour expert, without the lengthy education or hefty tuition fees.
4th Stream of Income: Digital Books
In December 2011, I released my first eBook, How to Choose Paint Colours; It’s all in the Undertones.
Funny story: I priced my first eBook at $49.99 (now $27) and did some “conservative” math – if just 10% of my 400,000 monthly readers bought it, I’d make $40,000 a month! Let’s just say my accountant had a good laugh at my optimism!
Reality check! My blog was my only platform back then, so actual sales were more like $3,000-4,000 per month. Still good money, but I was also paying a customer service rep, a design assistant, and a tech expert by then.
And let me tell you – there’s NOTHING “passive” about this income stream! Driving sales requires me to be constantly active across all my social media platforms.
Then in December 2014 I launched my second book White is Complicated; a Decorators Guide to Choose the Correct White.
And it’s a good thing I wrote that book. Since white became the hottest paint colour in the last few years.
5th Stream of Income: Digital Courses
From the early days of my online business, education took all my focus. Back then we were doing 4 in-person workshops per year. Each Spring and Fall we would hold two workshops one in Vancouver and another in Toronto.
Because we didn’t hold workshops in the summer, I launched ’Summer School” instead.
Summer School Evolution:
- One year I taught “How to Conduct Colour Consultations”
- The following year I created a course called “Renovate with Confidence”
- Later I created on-demand exterior colour training
In 2020, I completely rewrote the exterior colour training course to address the black and white trend that had taken over the design world. I update it almost every year to keep it current, and it’s now grown to 18 comprehensive modules. You can get access right here!
6th Stream of Income – Large Painted Colour Boards
Large Painted Colour Boards
Why I Created Large Painted Colour Boards:
After my workshops, students would leave with my curated list of paint colours but no way to actually use them properly. During the training, everyone had the same revelation: you CANNOT specify neutrals without large samples. Period.
Here’s why: The difference between the right beige and the wrong beige is so subtle that it’s impossible to see without comparison. You need to place potential colours SIDE BY SIDE to see which one actually works.
And it’s really difficult if you’re trying to compare with just small paint chips.
This is the secret to getting colour right – you don’t need magical colour powers! You just need to COMPARE properly–with large paint samples.
My students kept asking for these large samples, and that’s exactly how this income stream was born – out of pure necessity!
As colour expert Janice Lindsay perfectly said:
“The difference between an experienced colourist and a novice is not that we can see the subtleties without comparing; it’s that we know we can’t.”
Ready to stop guessing? You can purchase my large sample sets right here.
7th Stream of Income – Affiliate Commissions
When you buy a product through a link from someone who recommends it, they earn a small commission from the sale. This is called an affiliate commission. It’s like a thank-you for helping spread the word about a product they believe in. It does not affect the price to the consumer.
If you don’t have enough projects to justify a purchase of 50 neutral or colour collection of large paint samples from me, I also have curated collections with Samplize. I earn a small commission when you buy through my links, but it doesn’t cost YOU any more.
My business also generates affiliate commissions on home decor products we recommend on my social media channels and via our eDesign packages.
8th Stream of Income: Neutral Colour Wheel
In 2019, my website agency pointed out something obvious – I needed a visual tool to show my Understanding Undertones System! 🤦🏼♀️
The neutral colour wheel has had many design iterations. And finally, we landed on one with flat edges.
The reason this colour wheel has flat edges is simple: paint colours are almost always applied vertically—on siding, cabinets, walls, trim, and more. To ensure accuracy, all samples should also be viewed vertically to determine the correct colour.
Neutral Colour Wheel
How My Colour Wheel Actually Works:
The wheel helps you identify undertones in your finishes so you know EXACTLY which samples to pull out and compare. And yes, COMPARISON IS EVERYTHING in getting colour right! Get yours here!
Already have my colour wheel but still confused? Here’s the simple truth:
The wheel isn’t magic – it won’t make the final decision for you (just like those tiny paint chips can’t help you). What it WILL do is help you narrow down which undertones are in your countertop, flooring, or tile, so you know exactly which paint samples to compare.
Think of it as your undertone detective tool! It points you in the right direction, then you use large samples to confirm. I’ll show you exactly how in my trainings – it’s so much easier than you think!
9th Stream of Income – Membership Community
THIS is the community I wish I had when I started out!
Last September, we FINALLY launched our membership site after years of students begging for advanced training.
Here’s what you get:
- Weekly team meetings where we solve REAL design challenges together
- Learn to choose timeless finishes for kitchens, bathrooms, exteriors and more
- Master eDesign skills that save THOUSANDS in shipping costs
- NEW: Styling School launching next week!
Maria Killam Community
I would have paid ANYTHING for this kind of “here’s exactly how you do it” training when I started. No one else is teaching how to design actual homes across different styles like we are inside the community.
Even the most expensive home with gorgeous furniture falls flat without proper styling. We’ll show you how to bring spaces to life!
Plus, you’ll immediately join our vibrant community of colour lovers who actually “get it” – no more explaining why that greige is wrong or defending your white choices! We speak your language and can’t wait to welcome you inside.
Never tackle a decorating project ALONE again! Transform your colour and design journey today. Join us here!
10th Stream of Income – Ads / YouTube
- Implemented website ads during pandemic: Added $5,000/month
- Removed them this year because they were annoying (why send potential buyers away for pennies?)
- Now earning ad income through my YouTube channel launched in 2023
Seventeen years ago, I sat down and wrote my first blog post – a simple act that completely transformed my life. That one decision led to building my dream home in Yarrow (where my Mom and sisters live too!), growing a team of 12 amazing people, and creating a seven-figure business doing what I absolutely LOVE.
Here’s what I want you to know: if I could build this business with just ONE colour theory class under my belt, imagine what YOU could do with my complete system!
Ready to skip the years of trial and error I went through?
Next week, I’m teaching a FREE masterclass that will show you how to turn your colour talent into a $2,000 side business in just 60 minutes. I’ll share my exact 4-step formula for tapping into this booming market, crushing that pesky imposter syndrome, and setting yourself apart with a foolproof colour system that WORKS.
Whether you’re starting from zero or looking to supercharge your existing design business, this is your fast track to success. I’ve helped hundreds of students build thriving colour businesses – you could be next!
The world needs your colour talent – let me show you how to share it (and get paid well for it)!
Ready to make your first $2,000? Save your seat now for the free masterclass and let’s get started on YOUR colour journey!
XO, Maria
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UPDATE: The New Understanding Undertones Neutral Colour Wheel is Finally Here!
