Please stop by and say hi!  We’d love to see you there!

So exhausted in fact, that it has taken me over a week to get up the energy to post some images!  But all the time and effort expended were worth it, and the Teen Choice 2009, Bop-it Celebrity Retreat was a great success.

We went with an artist’s loft theme this year, complete with paint splattered drop clothes and quirky accessories.  We stuck to a black, white and red color palette, to provide a good back drop for the retreat’s main sponsor, Bop-it.  If you haven’t ever played with a Bop-it, I can tell you that the celebrities were really getting into it.  I was too busy chatting with people to try it myself, but those who did said it was addictive fun.

We had the support of some terrific companies this year, as we pulled everything together.  The elegant, yet super comfy sofa from Eco-Luxury by D’Bodinus that you see in the image above was much larger (and heavier!) than it looks!  The seat cushion was so full of cushy goodness that it weighed almost as much as the frame!

Idea Paint provided some great interactive boards, which many folks took a turn at signing or drawing on.

Between Miss J reminding us all to stand up straight, and George Lopez’s crazy face drawing, the boards were a hit.  Jordan Sparks actually wrote “Whoa!”, which was her reaction after I told her that Idea Paint can be applied to any smooth surface, such as walls, doors, chairs, refrigerators, etc.

This “cabinet of curiosities”, was generously provided by Cleveland Art, one of my favorite sources for one of a kind, repurposed furniture.  The amazing (and amazingly heavy) coffee table, as well as some other terrific pieces just out of camera range, were all created from items found in old factories and recreated into functional furniture.  The birds were provided by the wonderful people at Stray Dog Designs, who make terrific lamps and accessories out of recycled tin and paper mache, amongst other methods.

Here’s a close up of one of Stray Dog Designs adorable, funky paper mache birds, next to the beautiful tulip and rose centerpiece from The Spiraled Stem, who specialize in eco-friendly floral arrangements and events.

Here’s another shot of the lounge, where you can see the bright red birdcage chandelier, also from Stray Dog Designs.  Everyone loved it!

The beautiful black and white print organic cotton fabric was generously provided by Harmony Art, long my favorite source for fun and creative prints.  I’ll write a little more about the story behind the pillow this week, but it too is a design by Harmony Art.

All in all, things went great.  Celebrities and press enjoyed the space and many nice things were said.  Although I’m a little past my swooning teenage years, I had fun meeting all the up and coming young talent, such as Ashley Greene, Abigail Breslin, and Keke Palmer, who all stood out for their genuine charm and sweet natures.  And while some, such as Britney Spears, looked pretty much as you expected in person, others, like Will.I.Am from the Black Eyed Peas, were even more handsome up close.

Many thanks again to all the wonderful companies who participated in the lounge – Idea Paint, Eco-Luxury by D’Bodinus, Cleveland Art, Stray Dog Designs, and Harmony Art!  Many thanks too to Linsi Brownson for her terrific illustrations, helping me wrestle things up and down ladders and in and out of delivery trucks, and mostly for being a terrific assistant under pressure!  And of course, a big thank you to Karen Wood of Backstage Creations, the retreat’s production company – You make this more fun than work!

Now back to my regularly scheduled programming…

It’s just one of two prints from Harmony Art that I will be using at the Teen Choice Awards lounge, but the other one is a secret custom print that Harmony designed just for us.  Stay tuned to see it revealed at the event!

Green Interior Design

I will be teaching a new Green Interior Design course at CSULB, starting July 27th!

Go green without compromising style…

The demand to use products and practices that are both eco-friendly and promote better health in our homes and the workplace is becoming increasingly important.

This course presents an in-depth introduction to “green” interior design practices and will equip you with knowledge to “Go Green” without compromising style.

Combine your passion for interior design with a working knowledge of sustainable principles and collaborate with architects, interior designers and contractors to produce projects that meet the highest level of green building standards

Topics Include:

* Understanding the core differences between a standard interior design project and a green project
* Acquiring the ability to research and identify appropriate material solutions for project requirements
* Understanding IAQ issues, and how to solve them using green materials and products
* Differentiating between the key product and building certification systems, and how they apply to project goals and needs

Learn more…

I’m always excited when our industry finds a new way to embrace sustainable design, so I’m pleased to tell you of the upcoming Green Design Summit.

The Green Design Summit for Interior Designers and Architects – June 29 & 30, 2009 – is a webcast summit – no travel required!

They will  have 10 great speakers who will share why green is important, what you need to know about it, how to market yourself and get clients easily, how to stand out from your competitors, and much more.  You’ll also receive recordings and downloads of the transcripts for the Green Design Summit, and you don’t have to travel…it is all delivered by webcast to your office or home.

# Early Bird ticket prices $247 – Today till Midnight!
# Tickets price $297 – June 11 – June 28.

Topics include:

*  Why designing with sustainable choices is good for your business and how it can bring you clients easily
* Sustainable products, services and resources to educate you quickly and easily
* What the new LEED requirements are, and why you want to be a LEED AP
* How to incorporate sustainable design and feel good at the same time…you’re protecting the health of your clients
* How to build your brand around sustainable design so you set yourself apart from the competition
* How to reduce your carbon footprint and save money at the same time
* How to work with small space clients and the new Cultural Creative demographic…they’re not like traditional design clients so you need to know how to work with them
* How to build a sustainable business in challenging economic times and add profit to your bottom line

With speakers like Penny Bonda, Sarah Susanka and Ed Begley Jr., it’s bound to be informative and energizing.

Click here for more info…

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