Gypsy Interiors: Intimate Portraits of Colorful People and Interiors

Irwin Weiner ASID - We love to show our readers how other people around the world live. You won't just get our take on interior design and decorating in the United States. (How boring would that be in a world alive with color and imagination!) I was delighted to find today's design video, featuring Roma (Gypsy) families from Bucharest, Romania in their homes. Carlo Gianferro's photographs were taken between 2007 and 2008 and they comprise a coffee table book called Gypsy Interiors: Contemporary Roma Portraits. Gianferro took portraits of individuals and small family groupings posing on stairways and in living rooms, dining rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms.

The interiors show a strong, in-your face decorating style. The patterns, colors, textures, and layering aren't for the feint of heart. Some of the interiors are extremely modern while others are quite traditional. All the rules of decorating are broken, which I personally love. What's the fun of decorating if you can't color outside of the lines? Above all, the photographs capture a sense of pride; these homeowners are showing off their homes, and their portraits are very intimate and inviting.

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Play It Safe or Go Wild: 2 Celebrity Chef Turkey Recipes

Jay Johnson - Well if you ask me, any turkey that you don't have to personally prep, fuss over, roast, carve, serve, and clean up after is the best turkey ever. But if you're in the situation of having to host the annual Best Feast Ever, perhaps you should consider some great turkey recipes.

I searched online for recipes that really stood out, and I narrowed my list down to two options. There's still time to shop and prepare, so never fear - or feel free to save these for next year. Both recipes are from celebrity chefs, so I reason that they don't want to ruin their reputations with duds. Further: I chose one because it looked safe and the other because it looked wild and extraordinary. Which do you prefer?

Alton Brown's Turkey

Celebrity chef Alton Brown wants you to know that his recipe may be superior to others for one reason. "It's scientific and foolproof." Hmmm. That does appeal to me. If I'm trying a new turkey recipe, I'll go for one that helps compensate for my first-time mistakes. It's tough to practice a new turkey recipe before Thanksgiving, yet it's uncomfortable to experiment with your houseguests and family on the Big Day.

Start out with 1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

For the Brine:

1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/2 tablespoon allspice berries
1/2 tablespoon candied ginger
1 gallon iced water

For the Aromatics:

1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves sage
Canola oil

Click here for the full recipe and prep directions. (See top photo for Alton's glorious final results.)

Bobby Flay's Turkey

Celebrity chef Bobby Flay, the famous "throwdown" cook, offers an amazing way to prepare turkey that just seems to be lightyears in the seasoning and spice department above other recipes. Here are the ingredients for his Black Pepper-Pomegranate Molasses Glazed Turkey.

For the Turkey Glaze:

1 1/2 cups pomegranate molasses
3/4 cup prepared horseradish, drained
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper

For the Turkey:

1 (about 15 pounds) fresh turkey
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium canned broth

Click here for the full recipe and demonstration video (plus his Wild Rice/Goat Cheese Dressing).

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Paris Scene: Art Elysees

Irwin Weiner ASID - A distinct pleasure in visiting a city like Paris is soaking up the beautiful art scene. Take your pick for genre, artist, and style in this city filled with many art choices. It was a wonderful opportunity to see the annual Art Elysees exhibits set up along the Avenue des Champs-Elysees, exhibiting private gallery stashes of contemporary art.

In today's featured video, the curator of Galerie Dil talks about Bernard Buffet and other featured French artists from his exhibit. Buffet's 1950s minimal, stark style is extremely expressive, and I enjoyed the equally spare interpretation of some of his exhibited pieces, particularly the one which described a sailboat scene as being "filled with dreams."

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The "Jewelry Effect" Hits Everyday Design

Jay Johnson - We're seeing the strong trend in everyday objects to guild the lily by adding a jewelry element. Today's design must be both beautiful and functional. Take a spatula, for instance. We could have a boring, traditional stick of wood with a white rubber spreading tip affixed to the end, or we could add color and interesting materials like bamboo or steel or resin to really make the object pop and distinguish it from the ordinary.

UK artist Damien Hirst's diamond-encrusted skull, 2007, helped start the trend

Enter the jewelry effect. We're seeing precious and semi-precious stones added to art, like Damien Hirst's diamond skull (above), and everyday objects to greatly increase both their bling and price tag. Click on each photograph for more info on the be-jeweled items.

Vertu: diamond-covered model is costliest cell phone in the world

The Natural Sapphire Company: $700,000 for its white gold and sapphire-encrusted iPad caseIndia's Nano Car: the cheapest car in the world has a gold, silver, semi-precious stone edition

HYLA Vacuum: $21,900 model boasting 32,000 Swarovski crystals

Dussault jeans: $10,000 denims boast gold, diamond, ruby wallet chains

We thank Sheffield School, New York, NY, for permission to reprint this post. Sheffield began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

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