The collection consists primarily of lecture notes and course-related notebooks maintained by designer Carolyn Nesbitt Wagenseller ('63) during her studies in Parsons School of Design's Interior Design Department.

Stanley Barrows (1914-1995) graduated from Parsons School of Design in 1940 and taught interior design there for over twenty years, becoming mentor to several generations of notable designers. The collection includes examples of student work compiled by Barrows, course outlines, class travel itineraries, photographs of Italian decorative styles, biographical material, and correspondence from Barrows related to his work as a designer and teacher.

The collection consists of five photograph albums and three scrapbooks compiled by the designer, style arbiter, and Parsons School of Design administrator and president Van Day Truex (1904-1979). Truex's travels and social interactions are documented in the albums' captioned photographs, while scrapbooks chronicle his design and artistic successes. One scrapbook, annotated by Parsons faculty member Stanley Barrows, documents Truex's apartments and the home of his predecessor as president of Parsons, William Odom, while another is devoted to singer and actress Grace Moore.