In a city where apartment space is tight and bicycles often end up on balconies or in hallways, Dawson Interior Design student Maryssa Baril set out to design a better solution.

Her project, VeloVibe, earned an honourable mention in the 2026 FORM Student Innovation Competition, standing out among more than 300 entries from across Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. Created for this year’s theme, “Mood-Boosting Design,” the piece combines functionality, ergonomics and bold material choices to transform bike storage into an integrated, visually engaging part of urban living.

Developed as part of her Furniture Design and Construction course, VeloVibe incorporates Formica® portfolio materials, including interactive and recycled elements, to create a practical and thoughtful response to a common urban challenge.

Maryssa will complete her program this May and present her work at Dawson College’s Interior Design Vernissage and Exhibition May 28–29 at Dawson.

The Communications Office spoke with Maryssa about her project and experience. Here’s the Q&A.

What inspired you to create VeloVibe, and why did you choose bicycle storage as the focus of your project?

Maryssa Baril (MB): When thinking of the theme (Mood-Boosting Design), I came up with a few ideas of tables and seating but nothing felt like I would make an impact or be original enough. I actually came up with the design while looking out the windows of Dawson trying to find ways I could impact the everyday lives of people in Montreal. That’s when the initial idea of creating a designated space for bikes since it’s such a big part of Montreal and urban areas in general, yet we often have no space for them.

Can you walk us through the design process, from your initial concepts to the final version that received the honourable mention?

MB: A bit like I explained in the first question, after finding my initial inspiration I had to now bring it to life. I played with a lot of different concepts. It started off being just a vertical bike stand on its own, but I felt like it needed space for bike accessories and really make it its own storage space and not just a bike on a stand. I started playing around with the bench placement. Once I finally landed on the design, I started working on its functionality and construction documents. This led me to add details like clips to keep the bike up on the vertical stand and a bike stopper that holds the bike up when folded in and when folded out it creates an easier way of getting the bike up on the stand. I then finalized my construction documents, final presentation package and sent it off to Formica in January 2026.

The competition theme was “Mood-Boosting Design.” How did you incorporate that idea into VeloVibe through materials, colours, textures, or functionality?

MB: At first I was limiting myself to bright colours and what the stereotypical idea of mood-boosting was but then I started realizing that it didn’t have to look like a rainbow to be mood-boosting. I thought about what made me happy and I thought of sports and then I tried to think of what sports are Montreal specific and that’s when I came up with the bike idea while looking out the window at Montreal.

What does receiving an honourable mention in an international competition mean to you at this stage in your studies and career?

MB: I’m really happy about getting an honourable mention with my project, It gave me validation of my capabilities in interior design.

As you prepare to graduate and showcase your work at Dawson’s Interior Design Exhibition, what are your goals for the future in interior design?

MB: Right know I’m working on getting all my projects into one portfolio and getting ready for our interior design exhibition. In the future I’d like to work with companies who work sustainably because it’s something I’ve come to be really interested in since studying in interior design and learning about how it’s one of the industries that consumes and wastes the most. I actually got my LEED Green Associate certificate as well as my Dawson Environment and Sustainability Certificate and hope to continue learning to create a less wasteful industry.