Trumped

Jay Johnson -- Those of us who live in New York like to follow famous New Yorkers' comings and goings with arch good humor. We laugh at ourselves for being jaded about the celebrity of others, yet keen to stargaze. I once followed George Hamilton closely for a block up Third Avenue and through a revolving door because (a) I couldn't believe how tall he was in real life and (b) his tanned skin tone was amazing.

I would not follow Donald Trump down the street, but then again I might find that (a) he is incredibly tall in real life and (b) his wheat field hairdo is fascinating. Kidding aside, The Donald is an icon, and I would probably get an adrenalin jolt if I did bump into him. And why would I be interested?

It's would not be because I watch The [Aging] Apprentice on NBC. I don't watch this show. I'm not drawn to fawn over tycoons. My interest would be purely design related. Mr. Trump has a new furniture collection at Macy's and independent stores around the U.S. There are two furniture lines: traditionally tailored Westchester and the sleeker Central Park. All items are copies of (official marketing speak would be: inspired by) furniture in Trump's five homes and business properties. One example: a favorite sofa from his Mar-a-Lago $42 million Palm Beach estate. "The furniture is extraordinarily opulent and large, like the house," said Mr. Trump in a recent interview for his new line. He dives deeply into adjectives whenever he talks about his wares.

Trump claims to like the value, look, and feel of the lesser expensive furniture in his new collection. He claims to like some of the pieces better than their more expensive counterparts in his homes. "I wish I could get a bargain like this," he told reporters. Somehow I'm not buying either that line or his furniture line.

Our New York City apartment falls somewhere in between The Donald's furniture line and Mar-a-Lago. It's beautiful (we've been told), it was featured in The New York Times in a splashy House & Home section article, published in South Africa's Style magazine, and is now the subject of one of my home videos. It is devoid, however, of Trump furniture, Trump vodka, or Trump shirts and ties.

In the over 200 home videos contained in my Design2Share Video Diary on YouTube, you will see examples where I have taken my video camera -- a sturdy palm-sized Radio Shack $99 camtastic special -- and lovingly explored our Trumpless apartment. I invite you to watch Our NYC Apartment Living Room and you will find a source of pride and why we love coming home after work.  

I wonder if The Donald would find any inspiration for furniture knock-offs if this were one of his properties. "I love those club chairs," he would chirp. "I'm going to TRUMP them!"

Tell me about your living room. What makes it special to you? Add a post . . . .

Photo Credit: The New York Times

Closet Case

Jay Johnson -- In the world of people who love home design, there is a huge subgroup I like to call The Organizing Army. This legion of dedicated souls will track down storage and neatnik tips to the ends of the earth. They will do anything it takes to make sure their apartments and homes are spotless, picked up, alphabetized, and labeled.

I first became aware of The Organizing Army when I was in 8th Grade summer school Biology class. My friend and classmate Charlie asked me home for lunch, and I expected a bowl of soup, a great sandwich, and snacks galore. I got a bowl of Fruit Loops instead -- but I got an amazing peek at the World's Most Organized Refrigerator as he reached in for the milk.

Charlie's mom (he nicknamed her "Static") was the quintessential neat freak. She had each shelf in her refrigerator organized according to strict food group. Within each group, large containers were to the left, with smaller containers lined up in descending order to the right. The shelves on the door were similarly organized. Containers were color coded as well, and it was clear that Charlie's mom liked to buy things according to the colors of their packaging. Wild. Crazy. Neat.

"Watch this," said Charlie, with a conspiratorial wink. "This will drive old Static crazy!" He took one of the shorter jars on the second shelf of the refrigerator door and placed it on the far left. That was the spot where only the tallest containers were supposed to go. Static arrived home shortly thereafter, opened up the refrigerator door, and started yelling. Her eye went to the non-organized food item, and she asked her son why he insisted on "destroying my perfect system!"

In the over 200 home videos contained in my Design2Share Video Diary on YouTube, you will see examples where I have taken my video camera -- a sturdy palm-sized Radio Shack $99 camtastic special -- and tried to document tips to keep The Organizing Army happy. Typical of the neat freak genre is my Bedroom Closet Tips video. We're pretty proud of our organized master bedroom closet. It's in a NYC apartment, and it's tiny. But it fits everything for two adults and everything has a logical place. It's not always neat looking. We don't try to emulate Static and her system. And we just got one of those new plastic, collapsable hampers on wheels (our laundry is in the basement of the apartment building) and it completely stunk up the closet for weeks with its New Plastic smell.  

I admit that a nice-smelling messy closet is much better than a foul-smelling organized closet.

Are you like Static, a charter member of The Organizing Army? Please share your tips for keeping things neat and tidy with the rest of us . . . .