India's Must-See Sites

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Irwin Weiner ASID - I had the joy of taking clients shopping in India for home decor and architectural features two years ago, and the trip has been like a "song worm" - it stays in my head and replays again and again. But in a lovely, memorable way. The beauty of travel to another country is that it gives you a deeper connection with other people, cultures, lifestyles, decor, and history. Bring back treasures from your trips to add personality to your home and add your life experiences to any room. Each object or framed photo is a time machine: look at it and it will immediately transport you back to your trip and all its details. 

Enjoy this video on top attractions in India, and bring back goodies from your travels to liven up your decor. 

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Update on January 6, 2011 by Design2Share

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India: Through a Jewelry Designer's Eye

A big thanks to Sheffield School instructor Nova Colette Bronstein (in the striped scarf below) for sharing her beautiful photos of her recent trip to India with Design2Share. See her photos in our Scrapbook collection. Nova is an accomplished jewelry designer, and she encourages everyone to check out her Jewelry Design course (it's a Beautiful Thing).

House Full of Books

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Irwin Weiner ASID - If you want to signal to the world that you are an interesting, open-minded person, design your home around books. I love this video because it shows a beloved long-time university scholar surrounded (literally) by books in his home and inviting his students to share in the joy of learning in such a book-filled interior. 

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Bergdorf Goodman Windows

Irwin Weiner ASID - This was the week that sent blizzards to New York City to finally add atmospheric oomph to the beautiful department store holiday windows around town. My office is a block north of Bloomingdale's, and I'm afraid that their windows completely missed the mark this year. Video screens slowly showing an animated Christmas tree and snow falling and messages of merry, merry, joy, joy. Blank windows filled with video screens on a constant loop. Disappointing, and the store lost the usual crowds of tourists and families waiting in line to see every animated detail of the windows. Hopefully they'll shift back to tradition next year.

Consistently pleasing are the elaborate holiday windows at Bergdorf Goodman. They always amaze, and this year there was a steampunk, industrial chic vibe to their fashion-forward displays. Beautiful gowns framed with Victorian-meets-Information-Age futurism straight out of the pages of a Jules Verne novel. Enjoy this video of the behind-the-scenes making of these wonderful windows.

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New Year's Eve Decorating Forecast

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Irwin Weiner ASID - The year 2010 was filled with growing and shrinking pains for most designers and vendors in the home decorating industry. Those who were bold took big steps to expand and strengthen their businesses as the economy faced challenges. Billboards reminded us that Microsoft started its business during a recession. Our business is all about forecasting trends and tastes and always trying to stay ahead of the curve, so many of us found it comfortable and even exhilarating to surf tough times and come out well by the close of the year.

What will 2011 bring? Here are my predictions.  

• More focus on grays and scaled-back jewel tones, less on metallics and warm creams and beiges
• More quirky handmade furnishings and accessories, less on sterile, hotel-like clone furnishings
• Stronger individuality in home decorating, less on following the tastes of taste-makers
• We'll get tired of mid-century modern and retro and shift to contemporary furniture by true artists
• Fresh new architecture, like the new Lincoln Center in NYC, brings new life to sterile modernism
• Homeowners will focus on quality design and furnishings versus budget options and cost cutting

Happy New Year to everyone from Design2Share! May it be a year filled with good health, joy, and beautiful decorating. We thought it fitting to bring you Mr. New Year's Eve himself, Guy Lombardo, in this video from the late 1950s. Fun fact: Lombardo was the official New Year's media guy from 1929 to 1976. Our interiors should only date so well!

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