Margi Kyle- The Design Doctor & CoCo Couture's TOP MODEL!

 

 CoCo Couture Top Model Spotlight: Margi Kyle

The Designing Doctor, The Color Doctor & a Woman Who Proves You Can Always Rewrite Your Story

At CoCo Couture, our Top Model isn’t simply the woman wearing the clothes. She is the woman inside them—the story, strength, confidence, accomplishments and personality that make her truly beautiful.

This week’s CoCo Couture Top Model has a story that is nothing short of extraordinary.

Meet Margi Kyle, IDS, ASID—also known as “The Designing Doctor” and “The Color Doctor.” Designer, educator, entrepreneur, television and radio personality, philanthropist, mother, survivor and a woman who has spent her life turning obstacles into opportunities.

And Margi’s philosophy might just be our favorite:

“Life is short and sweet—write your own story and go and live it.”

 A Story of Extraordinary Determination

Margi learned very early that life doesn’t always follow the plan we create.

Beginning at age 16, she survived three major automobile accidents. After one of those accidents, she was told she would never walk again.

Margi had a different plan.

Through determination, hard work and physical therapy, she learned to walk again.

Years later, her family would face another devastating challenge. Margi’s son suffered a diving accident at age 15, breaking his neck and becoming paralyzed from the waist down.

Once again, determination became part of the Kyle family story. Her son also worked incredibly hard through rehabilitation and learned to walk again.

Those experiences would eventually inspire one of the most meaningful chapters of Margi’s life.

 Putting a Smile on a Child’s Face—One at a Time

Margi knows the hospital experience from both perspectives. She spent extensive time hospitalized herself as a child and later experienced the fear and uncertainty of having her own child hospitalized.

She knew she wanted to do something for children and families going through those frightening moments.

So, in 2009, Margi founded Little Smiles, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing happiness to children during hospital stays.

Working with nurses, the organization helps fulfill children’s needs and wishes—from laptops and birthday celebrations to character visits and other special surprises.

For Margi, the mission is beautifully simple:

“Putting a Smile on a Child’s Face—One at a Time!”

Of all the chapters Margi has written, helping frightened children find moments of happiness is one she holds especially close to her heart.

 Meet “The Designing Doctor”

Margi’s professional journey is almost as colorful as the rooms she has designed.

Her first college degree was in Early Childhood Psychology, and she spent several years working in that field. She opened a daycare center in Michigan, became a mother and eventually discovered another creative passion—food.

That led to a catering business, which grew to the point where Margi was catering events for as many as 500 people.

Then it was time to rewrite the story again.

Margi returned to college to study Interior Design. In classic Margi fashion, she says she graduated on a Thursday night and was teaching by the following Monday!

She went on to earn her master’s in design and taught Interior Design for Hunter Douglas throughout North America.

Her design business flourished, and at one point Margi says hers became the largest and best interior design company in Toronto, supported by business partners and secretaries.

Her mission?

Helping people become “Healthy, Happy and Decorated” in their homes and offices.

We think that’s pretty fabulous!

 She Wanted a TV Show—So She Got One!

One of our favorite answers on Margi’s questionnaire came when we asked about the craziest “dare” she had ever taken.

Margi wanted her own television show.

Instead of waiting around hoping someone would discover her, she bought a director’s chair and placed it on the lawn of the television studio where she wanted to work.

Within a day, she says, she had her own show.

Now THAT is a CoCo woman!

Her television projects have included “The Designing Doctor” and “Desperate Design,” and her media career has extended into newspapers, radio, podcasts and television. She has also served as president of multiple design organizations.

Today, television shows, radio shows and podcasts are actually among her hobbies, along with musical bingo and Mahjongg.

Apparently retirement isn’t exactly Margi’s style! 

 And What Makes an Outfit? JEWELRY!

Of course, this is CoCo Couture, so we had to talk fashion.

When asked to choose the most important accessory—shoes, jewelry or a purse—Margi chose:

JEWELRY!

Margi sees shoes and purses as functional, but jewelry is personal.

In her words, your jewelry sets you apart and adds your own personality to an outfit.

We couldn’t agree more.

Fashion should never erase your personality. It should announce it.

 A Former House Full of Pets

Over the years, Margi has had cats, dogs and rabbits, although extensive traveling eventually made pet ownership difficult. For more than 30 years, her pets have primarily been birds.

Given everything Margi manages to fit into her life, we understand!

 Why Margi Is a CoCo Couture Top Model

Margi’s story beautifully represents what we want our CoCo Couture Top Model series to celebrate.

It’s not perfection.

It’s individuality.

It’s walking into a room knowing that the years you’ve lived, the obstacles you’ve overcome, the people you’ve helped and the lessons you’ve learned are part of what makes you beautiful.

Margi has reinvented herself again and again—psychology, childcare, motherhood, catering, interior design, education, entrepreneurship, television, radio, writing and philanthropy.

When life put an obstacle in front of her, she didn’t simply find another road.

She designed one.

And perhaps that is exactly what we love most about our very own Designing Doctor.

 Congratulations, Margi Kyle—CoCo Couture’s Top Model!

Margi, your resilience, creativity, fabulous personality and enormous heart make you exactly the kind of woman we are proud to celebrate.

Keep designing. Keep dreaming. Keep helping children smile. Keep wearing fabulous jewelry. And most importantly…

Keep writing your own story—and living it beautifully.

We love our CoCo Girls! 

 More Than a Top Model—A Woman With a Mission

What makes Margi’s story especially meaningful is that all of her accomplishments seem to share one common thread: she wants to make life better for the people around her.

Whether she is transforming a room through interior design, teaching students, entertaining an audience, mentoring another professional, or creating a magical moment for a hospitalized child, Margi brings her creativity and energy with her.

Her personal mission statement says it beautifully:

“Using all of my expertise and experiences to motivate, rejuvenate, and educate my clients and students through their design journey to embrace their world.”

That isn’t simply a business philosophy. It is a pretty accurate description of the way Margi has chosen to live.

 Confidence Never Goes Out of Style

One of the reasons we created our CoCo Couture Top Model series is to remind women that style has absolutely no expiration date.

Confidence doesn’t belong to one generation.

Beauty doesn’t belong to one age.

And being fashionable certainly doesn’t require fitting into somebody else’s definition of what you should look like.

Margi has spent a lifetime creating, changing, learning and reinventing herself. She understands that the best design—whether it’s a beautiful room or a beautiful outfit—should reflect the person living in it.

At CoCo Couture, we believe the same thing about fashion.

Wear the color. Add the jewelry. Make the statement. Be noticed. And most importantly, be YOU.

 Margi’s Story Is Still Being Written

Perhaps the most inspiring thing about Margi is that after everything she has accomplished, she isn’t finished.

There are still people to inspire.

There are still rooms to design.

There are still microphones to speak into.

There are still children who need a reason to smile.

There are still fabulous outfits to wear.

And we’re pretty certain there is still plenty of jewelry to accessorize them with! 

Margi reminds us that life isn’t about following one perfectly planned road from beginning to end. Sometimes the detours become the very chapters that define us.

She survived.

She walked again.

She raised a family.

She built businesses.

She educated others.

She created television shows.

She became a leader in her industry.

And ultimately, she turned some of the most difficult experiences of her own life into a mission to bring happiness to children who desperately need it.

That is beautiful.

 From All of Us at CoCo Couture…

Margi, we are thrilled to shine our Top Model spotlight on YOU!

Thank you for reminding us that a woman can reinvent herself as many times as she chooses, that determination can change the direction of a life, and that sometimes the very best thing you can do is put your own director’s chair on the lawn and say:

“I’m ready.”

You are colorful, creative, determined, compassionate and wonderfully one-of-a-kind.

 Congratulations to our CoCo Couture Top Model, Margi Kyle!

The Designing Doctor. The Color Doctor. A champion for children. And one fabulous CoCo Girl.

 Life is short and sweet. Write your own story—and go live it.

XOXO,
Your CoCo Couture Family