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What can the Design Star season six finalists do when they start with basically nothing to work with? In this year’s white box challenge, some of the contenders step outside of the box when they decorate with items from a food and restaurant supply warehouse, but not all understand the task.

The finalists don’t need to create functional rooms, but they do need to create vivid and exciting rooms that express their personalities. They’re also charged with filming a 60-second home decorating tip.

Afterwards, their rooms are judged by the usual Vern Yip and Genevieve Gorder. But Candice Olson isn’t around; rather, Thom Filicia is a guest judge.

Design Star: Middle of the Pack

First up are the folks who didn’t take top honors but were deemed good enough to be safe for one more week. But just because you’re safe from elimination, Genevieve warns, stop playing it safe with the designs.

Karl had another great color palette, but the judges want to see another one of his superpowers, since he portrayed he can paint and choose color last week in the Design Star season six premiere.

Kellie starts off not knowing what she’s doing, and it kind of shows. The story seems unfinished in her room, even if it’s interesting, what with the foot prints and paint drips.

Bret makes his white box room Martha Stewart industrial, which really isn’t a compliment.

Doug pays tribute to a graffiti artist, but, in doing so, he doesn’t say much about himself, even if his room is quite bold.

Leslie writes important phrases on two of the walls as decoration, but that’s not enough. The judges would have liked to see the writing covering all the walls.

Design Star winners in week two

Three stood out from the crowd in a big way, with innovative and beautiful, bold designs. But did the right finalist win the challenge?

Tyler has a theme: “in the hot seat with nothing to drink.” His powerful lounge is created with few elements, including a ton of water bottles, and it works well. It’s innovative and fresh.

But Mark’s room is phenomenal, too, just in a different way. In a tribute to his grandfather, the designer transformed a futon into an airplane. He clearly wasn’t scared to take the risk.

Kevin listened to the judges last week, and he proved that he can do chic design, too. Using brown butcher paper, he created a stand-out wall. But can he harness his enthusiasm, so that it’s less of a shout?

While all of these rooms were stunning, particularly Tyler’s, the judges chose Mark as this week’s white box challenge winner, if only for his innovative futon.

Design Star Bottom Three

Not everyone can do well, and these three struggled in different ways. J tried to do too much, again, and it made it seem like she has a creative mind that’s still young. Her firebox just didn’t stand out, much like this finalist’s personality.

Meanwhile, Cathy is too polished and conventional. She may use broken pieces of plates, but not enough for Vern.

Meg isn’t sure what she wants to do, and again, it shows. Her room, even with her coffee shadows, is missing a sense of completion. Her self-doubt is killing her.

So who goes home? Well, Cathy at least knows how to act in front of the camera, so she naturally stays for another week. Meg, too, holds some promise, if she can get her act together.

The young J is sent home during week two.

Design Star airs on HGTV Mondays at 9PM Eastern. Next week, the finalists are tasked with a homeowner’s design, and things get personal.

© 2011 Elizabeth SanFilippo at Gather.com

Stacey Tapinis gives it to her clients straight.

“I tell them when it’s time to throw the drapes in the fireplace,” she says with a grin.

Tapinis is a painter by trade and a designer by instinct, rather than by schooling. “I can’t tell you what a Louis XIV-style chair leg looks like but I can feel what works in a space. It’s a taste level and a natural passion.”

She started out in her family’s house-painting business, which led to design consulting for painting clients, and in 2003 she opened House to Home, focusing on supplying retail solutions for shoppers looking to go beyond the cookie-cutter big box home improvement store linens, drapes, rugs, furnishings and accessories.

Tapinis advises clients and customers to finalize their vision and plan before they make any purchases.

“So many people head to Home Goods, and get 42 items that add up to thousands of dollars instead of one or two quality pieces for the same price. I always say spend your money on a great quality couch, drapes and a great paint job,” she said.

Expert advice is another great investment, Tapinis believes. “Instead of making a costly mistake, hire someone who can help you,” she said.

House to Home offers consulting services that start at a one-room “road map” and go up to a full home design service. Tapinis acknowledges that not everyone can afford to hire a decorator, but getting some inspiration is a must.

“Get an inspiration room: check out the magazines and see what they’re doing. You don’t have to copy it exactly but it helps you narrow down what you like.”

Tapinis says she sees the same mistakes again and again.

“I see bad paint jobs…people spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a renovation, then try to save a little by doing their own painting, and if you mess it up, it can ruin a room.”

She also cautions against too small rugs (“rugs should anchor a room and be big enough to fit the space”); shoddy drapery from, again, big box chain stores; and window hardware placed on the window frame itself, rather than above the frame, to make windows appear larger.

“I also see too many accessories. Get one or two statement pieces. And no one is doing the roped off living room look now. Arrange your spaces to reflect how you really live. Decorate your bedroom and your family room. That’s where you spend your time.”

Current style trends that Tapinis sees reflect a transitional design aesthetic — a mix of traditional and modern — and she says gray walls are particularly hot right now, along with solids, layering of textures, geometric details, and tone-on-tone color schemes.

“You can mix leather with woven wood, with soft linens, with a nickel furniture piece.”

It’s that designer’s eye, that willingness to mix and match and to push the envelope a bit, that Tapinis lends to her clients.

“Sometimes they fight me; they say ‘but it won’t go’ and I tell them, you have to trust me.”

If you also trust Tapinis and want more of her advice, you’ll have to stay tuned to HGTV: she has tried out for the network’s competitive reality show “Design Star” and is considering shopping around a pilot that combines her do-it-yourself painting professional ethic with her comfortable, eclectic design style.

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Striped staircases and lavender walls? They’re not just for high-profile designers anymore.

Home-decorating TV shows and glossy shelter magazines have many homeowners embracing the bold, unexpected use of color that cutting-edge designers love.

But creative color can be tricky. Three experts offer advice on doing it right:

Unexpected places

Bursts of color are perfect for areas that normally get little attention, said Cortney Novogratz, co-host of the new HGTV series “Home by Novogratz.” Stairs, alcoves and unused corners of rooms, she said, are spots “that people don’t realize they can really dress up and have fun with to show a reflection of who they are as homeowners.”

For her show’s first episode, she painted a beach house staircase white with pink and blue stripes from top to bottom. This narrow approach to the second floor suddenly became bright and inviting.

Skip the standard pairings

Black and white. Red and green. Brown and light blue. These common color palettes surface frequently in home decorating. Freshen up these typical pairings by bringing in a third color no one would expect, said Brian Patrick Flynn, HGTV blogger and founder of Decor Demon.com.

“If you really want chocolate brown with pale blue, which has been done to death, then add something like celery green,” he said. “All of a sudden, it’s fresh and you’ve made it your own.”

If you love wild colors like bright orange but aren’t sure how to decorate with them, Flynn suggests using a bright hue alongside a very dark and a very light one. Orange might be a disaster mixed with green and yellow, but it can look sophisticated when used with silver and dark charcoal.

Bold doesn’t have to mean bright

Being adventurous with color doesn’t always mean using loud hues. Betsy Burnham, founder of Los Angeles’ Burnham Design, recently chose lavender for the entryway of a home in Beverly Hills.

Her client had expected the walls of this two-story space to be painted a classic neutral — maybe cream or taupe. Lavender was an unexpected choice, but the owner was thrilled: It gave the entryway subtle drama without looking outrageous.

For some time, I’ve wanted to write a column about the great decorating ideas you can take from restaurants into your home. Three trips to Vancouver eateries with wonderful interiors have finally set me in motion.

By sheer coincidence, the three restaurants all have the same designer, Craig Stanghetta, whom I’ve never met. Bao Bei (Chinese for “baby,” the term of endearment) is in a freshly gentrifying corner of Chinatown, one of the city’s oldest precincts. Meat and Bread sits amid the trendy lofts and boutiques of Gastown. And Stackhouse occupies a plot on Granville Street, in the city’s entertainment district.

Why these three? They’re all accessible. In ambitious and well-executed interiors like that of Market (at the Vancouver Shangri-La), say, or recent additions to the Cactus Club chain, big, costly build-outs are the norm. But the small budgets of independent bistros force a designer to be innovative, and Stanghetta is doing it better than anyone in town. His interiors are there to admire – and they can inspire invention in the design of your own home.

Stanghetta’s work is organic, by which I mean it’s natural – more tree than telephone pole. It’s clear that he spends time with the sentiments and ideas of his clients, adding crucial design elements as the spaces evolve. This is an important lesson for homeowners; it’s very much the way a good DIY renovation or decorating job goes.

On to the restaurants, then. From each, here’s one fresh idea anyone would be wise to bring home.

From Bao Bei, vintage floral wallpaper.

It seems appropriate to start with the interior where Vancouver first saw Stanghetta’s talent – Bao Bei, Vancouver magazine’s best new restaurant of 2011. Stanghetta collaborated closely on the design with the owner, Tannis Ling, whose parents emigrated from China.

The room evokes the collision of generations in its tension between nostalgia and industrialism. The design feature I can’t resist is the vintage wallpaper. Robin’s-egg blue, with coral and petal pink flowers, it dresses the rear wall of the long, narrow room, making it feel more like a home than a business.

Vintage wallpapers (or “vintage” new prints) are a great way to add visual tension to a bland room. Their high contrast and dramatic pattern impose a feminine grandeur on a space. The key to preventing wallpaper looking indulgent and overwhelming is to follow Bao Bei’s lead: Put the paper on one wall only and make it more artwork than wall finish.

Great places to do this at home: standalone, narrow sections of wall in a kitchen; the living room; or the bedroom. Near the wallpaper, it’s a good idea to blend contemporary furnishings with accent pieces that glance over their shoulder. (In Bao Bei hangs an overscale photograph of Ling’s father in his high-school rock band.) Find items that hit a similar note for you. They give a room warmth.

From Stackhouse, utilitarian light fixtures.

At Stanghetta’s most recently launched interior, Granville Street burger joint Stackhouse, you’ll find a tightly edited interior, where the space and shapes between objects are as important as the objects themselves.

The utilitarian light fixtures give the space a satisfying edge. The fixtures are simple: exposed light bulbs on the end of a cantilevered arm, anchored by a metal plate on the wall.

It’s the extension of the arm, reaching into the room, that I find thrilling. Rather than hanging from the ceiling – where, hardwired, their electrical source would be concealed – the cords hang down and plug into the wall.

There are a couple of ways you can take this idea home.

Most literally, you could find similar fixtures and mount them on either side of your bed for a chic, eclectic look. Or you could go broad and incorporate industrial lighting in your space – over an island or in a breakfast nook. The key is choosing fixtures that are spare and utilitarian without being chunky and indulgent. You want something that looks delicate and almost feminine, not overwhelming and melodramatic.

From Meat and Bread, nostalgic typeface.

Meat and Bread is really the restaurant that made me a fan of Stanghetta. There’s a well-calibrated balance here of rustic materials, nostalgic elements, and practical design. It’s my favourite Vancouver room for a languid meal on a Sunday afternoon.

Among the retro design ingredients is the huge typeface menu on the wall. White vinyl text on a cold-rolled-steel background, this overscale piece really contributes to a vibe of simple, effortless goodness.

Now, you obviously don’t need a menu on your kitchen wall – but that’s why I like the idea. It’s playful – and a fun gesture for foodies and weekend chefs alike.

While it’s possible to fabricate a framed piece of steel for your home kitchen, it’s more practical to just put plain white words on a black background. One good way: paint an entire accent wall with black matte paint and then install some vinyl lettering. Any sign shop can create a graphic for you – just bring them your menu or an old-school recipe and have them design it for your wall.

Either approach will give your kitchen an approachable and casual air.

What unifies Stanghetta’s three designs is that they’re spare and homey. His ethic of elegant lack of pretension is worth remembering as you decorate your home. For my money, the great pleasures of design and of life combine the fresh and the familiar.

In the first episode you renovate a beach house in Rockaway Beach and have a visit with the designer Betsy Johnson. Any other famous faces making an appearance?
That’s the benefit of having a show, the next season you get a lot of celebrities. For HGTV we re-did the gym where basketball player Paul Pierce went to high school and we did a Fred Segal store in LA. In every episode we feature a different artist, in the premiere we also have a famous New York street artist named Matt Siren decorate the master bedroom.

Do you think there is any space you couldn’t design for?
No! For this season we did things we’ve never done before, a basement in New Jersey, a hipster place in Williamsburg, and another apartment in Williamsburg for supermodels. We also did a 180 square foot bedroom for a set of triplets in Hells Kitchen. We had a really well-known photographer shoot all the projects for us and he couldn’t believe the spectrum.

How is it different shooting a half-hour show versus the hour-long show you shot for Bravo?
An hour for one family in design can drag a little in spots, so this show moves a lot faster. The editing is one process I really don’t get, but they did a great job. We gave them over an hour of material and they found a way to cut it down for each show. We also wanted to include where to source things. We really wanted to show people there are great places to find things other than chain stores.

That sounds like a lot to pack into half an hour.
We had a lot of challenges, because you have to get permits and insurance. Most of the design shows do a lot of decorating, but we like to rip out whole walls because at the end you have a better product. It was a little difficult to do thirteen of those in twenty weeks.

You recently tweeted a picture of a treehouse in Brazil you have going up. Will that be part of the upcoming season?
Not this season, but they promise that if we get another season they’ll film the finishing of it. We own a home in Brazil that we use once a year and then rent out for the rest of the year. So we’re designing a treehouse apartment as a rental. There’s a hotel called UXUA in Trancoso, Brazil that is easily the most beautiful hotel in the world and the guys that built that are doing this.

You have said previously that people buy into your and Cortney’s lifestyle and that’s what you think attracts people to the television show. How would you describe your lifestyle?
Listen, there’s a lot of great designers out there. But you have to create a vibe of fun or happiness. I always use the example of Balthazar, which is one of my favorite restaurants in New York City. You can go there for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and it feels like there’s a party going on. The designer really achieved a lot there. They did more than just create a pretty place. With a house it’s the same. You can just walk into a house and Miles Davis is playing, or Dire Straits is on, and there are flowers and cool art. Our goal is for you to feel comfortable and happy. I’ve been to a lot of beautiful places, but they don’t have the feel that is important. I also think it is because we love Europe so much and that’s the kind of lifestyle we like. You work hard, you play hard, and you don’t take yourself too seriously. You enjoy life because it’s short.

· Home By Novogratz [HGTV]
· Watch A Sneak Peak Of Home By Novogratz [CN]
· The Novogratz [Official Site]
· UXUA Hotel [Official Site]
· @thenovogratz [Twitter]