our design team:

We hope that 2010 is a healthy and prosperous year for everyone. Despite the tough economic times of 2009, we try to remember how lucky we are to live in a vibrant area of the country, and we always try to be conscious of our blessings. So with that, we are starting the year off right with enthusiasm and lots of good energy.

Keep us in mind for any of your design needs and keep us posted about good things happening for you in 2010.

The Simm family, from Crownsville MD, interviewed three different designers as they embarked on finishing their custom home. Their goal was to create a beautiful customized home with the help of professionals. The Simm’s said they ultimately chose Dream House because we really took their goals and vision to heart, ultimately helping them create a truly unique place to live.

Through our creative process, we discussed the Simm’s goals, likes, dislikes, and style. They brought example material to us for inspiration, but let us help in every selection from paint to flooring to lighting. Pictured here is the kitchen and family room, where the Simm’s family will congregate and spend a lot of their time together. We had to keep this in mind, choosing materials and furniture pieces that were family and kid friendly.

So in combination with the Simm’s goals and our own creative vision, we helped create a home that compliments the style of the family that resides there.

If you live in Maryland and want creative interior design that matches your style, give us a call at 410.224.7588.

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We traveled to High Point Market this October looking for some inspiration after a slow design year. We always look forward to seeing the new additions to each of our favorite lines.

One of the main reasons we headed to market was to see the introduction of Thom Filicia’s new line with Vanguard.  We really loved his modern pieces, especially the Mandana dining table and the Greek Peak Side chairs in bright yellow!  Don’t cringe, but he has introduced Oak back into the design world in a fresh and clean way; he mixed it with leather and metal accents. We met Thom in the showroom and he was awesome.  He walked us through the whole collection and also pointed out some of the sustainable items in the collection that he was particularly proud of. We have already specified some of these pieces for our current projects. The top two pictures below are from the Vanguard collection.

On to our favorite showroom….Hickory Chair!  All three of us lingered in the showroom for hours soaking up all of the amazing pieces and new additions. Hickory Chair has some of the most famous designers in America as part of their family and we are always lucky to be able to meet them at market. Last fall we met Suzanne Kasler who has been an inspiration for us for awhile. This market we met Mariette Himes Gomez and Alexa Hampton.  All of these designers are inspiring for their individual design vision and long standing careers. We spent some time with Alexa Hampton discussing her new introductions and lounging on her new Truman Sofa (above) that can be made up to 120”long.  The “Grant” chair (above) is a horseshoe shaped back chair with a piece of swirl grain mahogany that wraps around half of the chair and is trimmed with nail head trim.  This is a BEAUTIFUL chair to see in person!

Lillian August has moved to Hickory White and we returned to her showroom this fall (Taxi ride to HW was the most disgusting, smelly ride EVER). We had the fortune of meeting her and she personally showed us some of the new fabrics from the fall introductions and was quite interested to hear more about our Design Studio and how things had been for us during the past year.  She was a delight!

In our obsession for gorgeous lighting we of course could not skip the Visual Comfort and Currey & Co. showrooms.  Both had wonderful new fixtures and we ordered some fabulous chandeliers for clients and our storefront that we cannot wait to hang.

Overall, it was a fast trip but we did feel inspired and ready to begin the New Year with some really awesome new pieces for our clients.  As always we want to provide our clients not only with the best quality but with unique products that are a real WOW factor.  We would like to give a shout out to Ryan’s restaurant in Winston Salem.  We had dinner there two nights in a row and fell in love with the food, warm southern atmosphere, beautiful picture windows and cute waiter (“J” – you know who you are).   We would have gone back a third night if we had the chance.  Oh well, there is always April market!

Dream House Studios was recently featured in the “Hot Talent” piece in the October 2009 issue, and we couldn’t be more thrilled!

When talking to Home and Design about Dream House, we really wanted to hit on our belief that our relationships with our clients is key. We really want to create a fun and relaxing process for those that come to us for design help. Our relationship with clients is what really helps us to create great design.

Our featured design was something we created for a home in Fairfax, Virginia, that has a light and subtle palette in warm peach and coral tones. The white painted millwork and moldings relate to the home’s interiors to the Federal style architecture. To read the entire article, click here.

The Lilly family came to us for help designing and creating their mudroom. They loved the result so much they asked us to create something spectacular for their dining room. With an open mind, the Lilly’s were willing to go with the flow. Wesley Thompson, one of our designers, had ideas that were unique and fit the family’s style, making the Lilly’s feel right at home. Check out the beautiful new room.

Kristie Lilly said, “Wesley was so great to work with. She came up with a plan that suited our tastes and needs perfectly and created a room that is functional, unique and beautiful. She somehow managed to come up with exactly what we wanted when we didn’t even really know ourselves!”

Transforming the old room to a new one with personality, Wesley’s designs hit the nail on the head. Note the grass cloth on the walls and the antique table, which is actually a European parquet floor transformed into a table. The room includes a fully upholstered and skirted host and hostess, Hickory chairs that are finished with Sunbrella indoor/outdoor fabric, and Hickory White side chairs. Together with a unique chandelier, the room provides visual comfort, a perfect blend of modern and traditional, fitting the Lilly family perfectly.

Come hang out with us in our studio for a holiday jewelry party. You can sip on some holiday cocktails while shopping for Stella & Dot jewelry. Their pieces are unique, beautiful, and feminine: a combination we enjoy! Peruse the selection for the favorite girls on your holiday lists (or shop for you, too!). You can also mix and mingle with our other guests from the local area. We are excited; it should be a good time!

We’d be happy to have you, so stop by our studio at 6 pm on December 8 if you can make it. If you can’t, no need to worry! You can order jewelry online, or come to one of our upcoming events (which will we fill you in on soon). Give us a call or shoot us an email if you have any questions. We hope to see you there!