DIY Chandelier Project

 

The 2010 Hampton Designer Showhouse, with the absence of a Kips Bay house in Manhattan this year, wins the default prize as the premiere decorator's showhouse on the east coast. The assortment of rooms and furnishing styles is wonderful, and we particularly loved Irwin Weiner's brave do-it-yourself project, taking an $89 Home Depot chandelier and recladding it with $10-20 in craft paper from Michael's to make an origami shade that seems to float cloudlike over his sitting room in the house. This video takes us step-by-step through the installation.

 

Home Use of Crystals

 

Decorating with crystals is the basic business model for companies like Swarovski Crystals, but the tenants of feng shui also call on using crystals to enhance focus and energy in the home and sometimes provide a cure for problem areas. We review some very basic crystal use and practice in the following video, and encourage you to do more research into how crystals and feng shui may benefit your family's health, relationships, and prosperity.

 

Royal Gardens - Colorno, Italy

 

We've just returned from a trip to several design-worthy cities and towns in Italy, and we can't wait to show you all the videos we shot. One of our favorites is of the royal gardens at Colorno, Italy, just north of Parma. The 1660 summer villa (and what a villa, with over 400 rooms!) has been the home of royal families - the Bourbons, Farnese, and Sanseverinos. But it was Marie Louise of Austria - famed as the second wife of Napolean, the Duchess of Parma, and champion of the stunning Perfume Violetta di Parma, the famous violet-scented perfume - who turned the original French-style gardens outside the villa into a fashionable and less formal English park. We strolled the grounds, walked the hornbeam palisades and boxwood mazes, and shot this video for you on a lazy summer day in late July.

 

Speed Decorating

 

We've often commented on how many homes don't need a professional interior designer, a building contractor, or a long list of do-it-yourself projects. Sometimes home staging will bring out the best look with the rooms and furnishings you already have. This video gives you an introduction to some of the simple decorating solutions found in designer Jill Vegas' book Speed Decorating. Based on her title's Amazon readers comments, this book will appeal to those homeowners who don't really love interior design books; both men and women seem to be drawn to Vegas' "let's try this," practical tips and approach.