Design Star – 3rd Episode

As the quote states” “Architecture is music in space, as it was a frozen music”

This week both teams got to design a patio space using music and instruments as their inspiration.
When Vern Yip told, that because there are only 4 girls and 6 guys, girls can pick one of the guys for their team, all I wanted was to see a close up of their (boys) terrified faces. Dan was the unlucky guy who got picked.
Luckily for the girls (and us viewers) Dan not only
brought his carpentry know-how to the team but also managed to tone down the "hissing".

Girls:



overall the girls space was more on key with better harmonies (hey, I am just playing along with this weeks theme ;-) ), and as this is a team challenge, that is important.

My favorite things in this space were Nina’s wall, Stacey’s fun fence with plants and the lounge furniture. The purple color on one wall was unexpected and great. The art work represented her instrument, French horn, brilliantly, although I was not as excited about it as the judges. The wood blanks were great,but the swirls looked a bit too free hand for my taste. I would have preffered something else for that, a cord, a wire perhaps.
I loved Stacey’s wall. It was my favorite detail of this entire challenge and the way that and the purple wall complemented each other was just lovely.



Casey selected xylophone which was visible in the space, on the design of the fence, with the votives.

Emily’s instrument of choice was the tuba, low and slow. I think Emily succeeded really well in her interpretation. The low, loungy furniture was a great choice. I also liked the fact that she was more vocal about her point of views than during the last two weeks. Way to go girl!



Dan is a great designer but his design was slightly off key this week as his instrument, guitar, was not very visibly represented. Also his explanation of guitar as an upbeat instrument really conflicted with the very loungy feel of the space.

My only complaint in this space was the floor. Were those white paint stains?...all over the floor. Maybe an area rug would have been a good idea.

Boys:



The boys team was not very cohesive this week. Tom’s day bed was beautiful and nicely crafted, especially taken into consideration that it was a Plan B. Plan A was another beautiful daybed that unfortunately did not make it through the doorway to the elevator. Now, when you are a designer at that level, you should know not only to measure the space and the furniture, but also every doorway and hallway that piece will travel through.


(click the images to enlarge them)

As beautiful as Tom’s daybed was, and one of the two of my favorite details in that space, it did not match well with the other furniture, or the other furniture did not match with it....which ever way you want to look at it. As a matter a fact, all of the pieces in that space had very little to do with eachother.

My other favorite detail was Michael’s art piece. Loved it.



I can see Tom’s sax and Michael’s Trombone in this space.

Alex’s great idea of representing the Conga’s with those accent tables went down with the Plan A day bed, so he quickly throws some blue pillows and blankets on a pile, which was not well received by the judges.

Courtlands orange Venetian plaster wall was not a bad idea, but it did not match the very dominant blue in the space. And, what is it with this guy and faux finishes?! 3 challenges, 2 faux finishes. Really?!




Trent picked a keyboard and a BBQ to represent it. It is so sad that I dont even know what to say. Yes, he was being pushed aside, but it is up to him to stand against it. He was deservingly eliminated, as Nina took her second "Top Design" title.

The pattern that I personally see each week, is that eventhough the designers have their individual design tasks each week, they fail to delegate tasks to one another as team members. I wonder how many weeks will it take for them to realize that unless they work well as a team, they will end up in the "boardroom"

New Ingo Maurer Showroom in Germany

Lighting designer Ingo Maurer has opened a new showroom in Munich, Germany. This new 7500 sq ft Showroom will provide a permanent showcase for Maurer’s entire lighting collection, and gives him an opportunity to exhibit his work in the way he would like people to experience it.

Idea for you Business Promotional Item

I attended an event organized by an industry partner, and wanted to donate a door prize for a raffle, and at the same time promote my Creative CoLab+ firm.
Most of us like wine, right? I decided to decorate a nice bottle of wine with a custom label of my firms postcard. At the back of the bottle I added another label listing our services. I topped it with some leaf and bird decor and a coupon for free consultation and 30% off from Design Fee.
I get to promote my firm a little, you get a nice bottle of Saracco Moscato d'Asti
(click on the image to enlarg it)

Design Star - The first Design Star fashion show.

Contestants were challenged to design an apartment based on the design of an outfit.
First of all, the outfits were not particularly pretty or inspiring, besides the first pretty evening gown. Nina, being the winner of last weeks challenge, got to pick the outfit first, and smartly picked that gown. Rest of them…oh well good luck with the pyjamas, suits, and a wedding gown.

To make the challenge event harder, only after everyone had picked their outfit, the judges told them that this was a team challenge. There would be two teams. Men vs. women. And ……*gasp*…every outfit chosen by each designer had to be incorporated into the design.

Women’s Apartment:



It looked like the “Clash of the Designers”. Lots of cool details and the accessories were great , but they were thrown together with no real communication or plan.

Nina picked what she wanted without consulting with other designers. I did like her mural and rug, but they did not represent the dramatic gown as they could have and should have.


Stacey was in her own world painting a chair, which looked beautiful, but took her all day, so she was really not paying attention what was going on elsewhere.



Tera decided to ignore her outfit entirely besides the color palette, and even when the judges pointed out that this was not the purpose of the challenge, she still chose to defend her decision. She also ignored other designers concern that the yellow might not be the best color choice for bedroom. I simply hated the heavy navy color curtains she picked. Good God!


I did like the chocolate wall and the mirror.

Emily was hiding somewhere behind the ugly basket she chose, from Nina’s nasty attacks.
As a result of this very weak team approach, all the ladies ended up in the bottom 5
Nina and Tera ended up in the bottom two. In my opinion Nina was saved by a slightly better design and MUCH better hosting skills.



Men’s Apartment:



Men’s apartment was not super exiting, but it was more cohesive. Kudos to Courtland for implementing all the colors from every team members outfits to create that wonderful striped accent wall. It was not only a brilliant idea, but also showed his effort to make the space look like a team work. He deserved to win this week. The wall was beautiful.

I do like mixing furniture pieces, but I am not sure about this combination. Also not a fan of these accessories. I want to open that window and accidentally push down that ceramic owl.



I liked the bedroom better than the living room. It was more unified and the headboard and shelves were great, although the headboard did not quite capture the spirit of that wedding gown, which was more whimsical than the very clean and contemporary headboard.



After all that unpleasantness, hostility and clashing egos, it was so nice to watch David Bromstad and “Color Splash Miami”.... it was like going from doing 5,000 ab crunches to a relaxing yoga position......

Please!.....let this be the last team assignment.

It is a talent to work as a team, but usually the result is also better when several brilliant minds work together. It should not be that ugly, it really should be fun.



Casey measuring Nina’s ego, the mystery that remains unsolved, as the longest measuring tape on the market is only 300 feet…....

Photos: HGTV.com

Design Star - “The White Box Challenge”

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.......

There were several single great ideas in the rooms, but judging the overall I would say…

The Good: Tera's bedroom. With that time line and budget, it was the best overall design. Yes, it looks like a showroom floor, but I think it was the most aesthetic and well though of. Great color palette and everything is well edited and flows nicely together. I like the texture, hanging lights and the trays that she used as wall art. Soothing green is always a great choice for a bedroom.



The Bad: Nina, Nina……no matter how good of a designer you are, do NOT be a mean bitch.



The Ugly: ouch…Julie…What happened?! I am sure you are better than this. “This” just did not work…at all…..The mess on the wall….Yes, ocean blue is usually calming and fits bedroom well, but this faux mess was a chaos. And "who decided to execute all the geese." indeed?
In the bedroom, the headboard always offers a great chance for the wow-factor. That tiny photo above the bed just looked so sad and lonely.



I think the judges should have not placed Trent in the bottom 6. Yes, his room looked like a showroom floor, but it was beautiful. Great walls, great colors, great details. I loved the bedding and the hanging lanterns above the bed. Trent obviously has a great eye for design, and I am looking forward to seeing his next project.



I really liked the white wall bouquet on Michael’s wall, but it clashed with the recycled-newspaper headboard, so I would have ditched the headboard, as it also did not work well with the rest of the room and accessories anyway, in my opinion.



I also liked Dan’s room. It was very minimalistic but beautiful. My favourite detail was the continuous white line across the space that opens up at the focal point above the bed to showcase the painted blue lattice. Everything else was kept to minimal, which worked very well.



Winner of the first Challenge: Nina



I liked the walls, and although I am a fan of bold and dramatic design, I did not care for the umbrella mess on the wall. …….or leave the umbrellas, but take off the photo and the little mirror…they do not go together.


Who went home: Julie

and above (The Ugly) you can see why.