The Fashion of Furniture - Handmade, Tailored in Spain

Jay Johnson - Design2Share celebrates handmade goods all the time. Our message is simple: handmade products add warmth and humanity to any home. In our search for home goods counter to the machine-made bloc, we found a Spanish firm dedicated to bringing fashion and tailored design back to classic furnishings. La Tapisseria focus on made-by-hand processes, a love of classic antiques, a blending of interior design and fashion, and a respect and knowledge of antique upholstery and restoration.

Founders Abo and Rusinol started their business in 1992, launching the use of artisan upholstery, traditional techniques, and eco-friendly materials. Today's featured video shows off their making-of skills, and it's fascinating to see some of their own collection pieces built from the frame up.

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Video Interview with Iconic Designer Peter Marino

Irwin Weiner ASID - A dear friend of mine created a beautiful clothing boutique in the glory days of St. Thomas (when it was exclusive and hard to reach), and she commissioned a young Peter Marino to design her space. From her small commission to Marino's meteoric rise as a residential and commercial designer, I loved this video interview because it traces some of the history of his work and his network, from Andy Warhol to Barney's to all the offshoots from Barney's, including boutiques for Chanel, Armani, and Fendi. His honesty is refreshing, and I like the way he insists on not taking on a client if they're going to be too stress-inducing or not interested enough in having a high-quality end product.

Bonus

When we began Design2Share back in 2007 (gasp - we've been around for awhile, haven't we?), we selected Peter as one of our first "Designers We Love." Click here to read what we said back then about Peter Marino. 

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Design Video: Michael Tavano's Urban Outdoor Room

Irwin Weiner ASID - Click here to learn more about Elle Decor's Modern Life Concept House. Finally, a show house that allows designers to show off accessible, obtainable results for contemporary, everyday families! Kudos to ED for opening up the showhouse concept to a key audience that's in danger of falling by the wayside if the interior design industry continues to think only of the highest of the high end client range. In this video, designer Michael Tavano shows off his great urban garden room, an outdoor space with tips that we can all bring into our own homes. Beautiful outdoor room!

Bonus

Click here to watch a how-to video on Summer Project: DIY Deck. 

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Celebrities Are Coming Out ... As Interior Designers

Irwin Weiner ASID - It's exciting to see celebrities come out. For rock star Lenny Kravitz to say that he enjoyed decorating his room when he was a young child and he needs a well designed space in order to make his music, his "coming out" as an furniture designer and interior designer (back in 2003) injected much-needed verve into our sometimes too sedate industry. Look at his energetic, dynamic Mademoiselle chair designs in the photo below for Kartell (click on the photo for more information) or his impressive accomplishments on his Kravitz Design website.

Likewise, international tennis sensation Venus Williams has embraced the expansion of her personal brand by opening up her own design firm - and V*Starr Design is an impressive company (see website screenshot below), complete with an extremely accomplished design team.

Kudos to Lenny and Venus for confirming what I've always believed: interior design is always evolving, and personal vision and energetic drive and a strong sense of style is what it takes to be a success in our field. Enjoy today's featured videos that follow, with interviews that confirm that these two superstars are in love with the design world.

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