San Diego Designer Rebecca Robeson's Christmas Video House Tour

Jay Johnson - Irwin officially "passed" on doing this particular post. It's not that he's bah-humbug about holiday decorating, but he's very critical of being too kitsch and decorating everything. I'm just the opposite. Maybe it's my Midwestern upbringing, but I love turning a home into a magical wonderland that tells either a Christmas, Chanukkah, or Winter story. Rebecca Robeson, an interior designer in San Diego, CA, mentions in today's featured video that being in her perpetually warm and sunny part of the world requires special decorating to make it feel like a festive time of year.

But even if there's a foot of snow on the ground outside, one still can use some merry decking of the halls to make special family memories. Enjoy Rebecca's video (she shops at HomeGoods - don't we all!), and definitely check out her other holiday how-to videos for more decorating advice. (I love the way this interior designer has taken to the communication-friendly video medium; she's way ahead of the industry curve on that one!)

And speaking of a California Christmas, here's a video from sunny CA to put you into right spirit, with a rousing Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree from the artists performing in A Christmas Together.

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Bolt and Build - Modern Quick-Assembly (and Green) Prefab Housing

Irwin Weiner ASID - The Loblolly House by Kieran Timberlake is an amazing structure in Maryland that uses an aluminum beam frame with "smart" and "dumb" components bolted to it. (Smart components contain "stuff" like wiring, pipes, etc.; dumb components are filled with insulation and nothing further.)

Components are created off-site and assembled on the building site, and environmentally it's superior construction because everything can be unbolted, taken apart, and moved - or components that age can be switched out easily. Watch today's featured video to get a complete picture of the design and construction process of this vibrant future housing option.

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Decorating Fun: Start with IKEA, Finish with Something New

Stunning tricked-out IKEA kitchen cabinets (Apartment Therapy / House Beautiful)

Jay Johnson - When Apartment Therapy and House Beautiful start to include design details that feature modified or "tricked-out" IKEA fixtures and furnishings, then you know you have a serious trend on your hands. Modifying the clean design of IKEA's furniture, cabinetry, and other home goods has become a global pasttime as do-it-yourselfers and home designers make modifications to create custom looks from basic pieces. The kitchen cabinets in the photo above, for instance, never looked like that in the showroom or catalog; they were custom detailed and finished to elevate the look. Saving money on the basics is what IKEA is all about, but elevating and tricking-out the basics to create a one-of-a-kind end result is what interior designers and DIY homeowners are all about.

The Gallant wall storage shelves were tricked out to create a new media console (IKEA Hackers) 

This trend has become so hot that there's even a popular website documenting a wide array of tricked-out projects: IKEA Hackers. Here are a few tricked-out projects that really caught our eye. Click on each photo for more information.

High gloss red tabletops become a backlit headboard (IKEA Hackers)

Regolit lamp covered with paper muffin liners (IKEA Hackers)

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Carpet Tiles Change the Rules of Floor Covering

Jay Johnson - The question is: Are you brave enough to decorate a room with carpet tiles? In case you've been living on the moon for the past few years, carpet tiles - loose carpet pieces that can be joined together with other pieces to create a free-form rug arrangement - are providing a fascinating option for interior design.

Vorwerk Carpet - Free-Form Carpet Tiles

We once were locked into three floor fashion options: (a) uncovered flooring like stone or tiles or wood planks, (b) wall-to-wall carpeting (see top photo, a beautiful design by Vorwerk Carpet), or (c) area rugs over the flooring material. But with carpet tiles, we're freer to create patterns and shapes on our floors. Art is no longer just the province of the four walls in a room!

Vorwerk Carpet - Free-Form Carpet TilesVorwerk Carpet - Free-Form Carpet Tiles

As you can see from the Vorwerk Carpet tiles above or the FLOR carpet tiles below, one can create patterns that form an area rug or asymmetrical shapes and various floating carpet pieces can decorate the floor. The challenge is to not compete with the decorating in the rest of the room, but if you have a stark space that could use a free-form carpet tile solution, by all means go wild and have your flooring shout out, "Look at me!"

FLOR - Carpet Tiles (Dashed Off pattern, Jailbird color)

FLOR - Carpet Tiles (All Dolled Up pattern, Grey color)

FLOR - Carpet Tiles (Suit Yourself pattern, Raffia color)

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