Guest Blogger Julieta Alvarez Shares Her Favorites From the Kips Bay Decorators’ Showhouse (Part 2)

Yesterday, Guest Blogger and Pierre Frey Sales and Marketing Assistant Julieta Alvarez gave us the behind-the-scenes scoop on being a Kips Bay Showhouse volunteer, and today she's sharing a few of the rooms and designs she loved most. Here are a few of Julieta's many favorites.

By Julieta Alvarez

It's hard to narrow down and pick favorites, but one of the rooms that really stood out most was Brad Ford's The Stereo Lounge. I loved how calm and comfortable the room was. It really helped gravitate people to hanging out and socializing in the space, and it even avoided being too masculine or too feminine—which is hard to do!

An oversized paper lantern ballooned over the room and the fabrics that Brad used were gorgeous, soft and sophisticated. A pair of shaggy stools sat near to the natural skins on the sofa and rugs made the room casual and earthy. What a versatile room!

I can see it in a beach house in Montauk, a penthouse loft in Manhattan or anywhere in California. And did you notice the turntable on the coffee table? What a fabulous idea! And while the coffee table isn't from one of the D&D Building showrooms, the stunning beige rug came from Stark Carpet and the sheer, linen drapery fabric hanging as a backdrop are from Schumacher.

I was also a huge fan of the staircase designed by Janet & Carolina Rauber (Rauber+Rauber). This staircase was a beacon of glow! Taking advantage of high ceilings, the sisters upholstered the walls in a large-scale Ikat pattern. Beautifully colored in a graphite grey and mustard yellow, it was just beautiful! Of their product, the wall upholstery 'artwork' is from Dedar, which can be found in the Jerry Pair showroom.

And if you missed it this year, don't stress, there's always next year! And if you doubt a visit or two will give you your fill—then you can volunteer!

You can expect more from Julieta on GoDesignGo, but in the meantime, visit her fabulous design blog.

Guest Blogger Julieta Alvarez Shares Her Experience Volunteering at the Kips Bay Decorators’ Showhouse (Part 1 of 2)

Julieta Alvarez, Pierre Frey Sales and Marketing Assistant, gave us a behind-the-scenes tour of the Kips Bay Showhouse last week. As a volunteer for the showhouse, she gave us the inside scoop shared her experience working with top designers.

By Julieta Alvarez

After deciding to volunteer at Kips Bay Showhouse with three of my favorite classmates from New York School of Interior Design (NYSID), I got to be part of one of the best events in the industry—and it was a blast! I had never been to the Showhouse before, but after seeing it in person, I'll be there every year from now on!

This year, 22 top interior designers were chosen to decorate rooms in a beautiful neo-Federalist style home on 63rd Street in Manhattan. The spaces included bathrooms, kitchens, stairways, hallways patios and a backyard, leaving no space un-designed.

One of the tasks of a volunteer included learning about the materials in the rooms, including the wallpaper, carpeting, furniture, colors and more. By doing so, we were able to learn about a few rooms we loved and then spend time in them while telling the coming and going visitors all about it.

My job at the D&D Building also made me even more interested in knowing which product came from the showrooms I love. Everyone wants to know what materials and product make up the room, and as long as I made sure they didn't go beyond the red velvet rope, I had the luxury of talking shop with them for as long as they wanted!

Stay tuned for more from Julieta's experience at Kips Bay Showhouse to learn which rooms stood out most for her, and visit her design blog to hear more from her.