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In honor of tonight’s Oscars, I wanted to share a very exciting and personal interview that I was fortunate to have with the designer of the Oscars Greenroom!! For this year’s 84th Academy Awards, Architectural Digest selected Waldo Fernandez, designer to the stars, to design their backstage greenroom! We were given the chance to have a private phone interview with Waldo, and Emily generously passed along the opportunity to to me (her assistant, Taylor) and I was so thrilled to do so! I could not wait to talk to Waldo about his glamorous design for the Oscars greenroom, but little did I know he would share amazing, personal stories about his relationships with some of Hollywood’s biggest names (including Elizabeth Taylor and Brad Pitt!!)

Here is a little background information on Waldo - Waldo Fernandez is one of Hollywood’s legendary interior designers. He came to the United States from Cuba to explore his passion for design and love of the arts. Waldo’s career began as a set designer for 20th century Fox, and his involvement in the entertainment industry led to his very successful career and large list of celebrity clientele. Fernandez’s impressive portfolio, spanning more than three decades, not only includes homes for an incredible roster of clients—Elizabeth Taylor, Brad Pitt, Keanu Reeves, and Darren Star among them—but also a number of commercial projects, such as the Beverly Hills Hilton and the West Hollywood Soho House club. So you can imagine how excited I was to talk him!!

Waldo was just as friendly and humble as he looks in the picture above!

Take a look at his fabulous design for the Architectural Digest greenroom, inspired by 1930′s and 40′s Hollywood glamour. Oscar greets you as you enter the gorgeous space! -

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

Waldo has a passion for furniture and said that for this space he wanted to start with only good quality furniture – no reproductions. To achieve the 1930′s and 1940′s Hollywood look of the greenroom he went back to his sources and selected only the highest quality furniture from the 20th century. He carefully selected Schumacher fabrics for the upholstery and told me that, “if you select beautiful fabric and good quality furniture, the whole room comes together.”

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

Architectural Digest partnered with Caesarstone, California Classics Reserve Collection Flooring, Circa Lighting, Feizy Rugs, Giati Designs, HP, Questroyal Fine Art, Samsung, and Schumacher Fabrics to furnish this beautiful space and provide it with the latest technology!

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

The color palette of the greenroom was inspired by his love of gray – specifically a cool gray wall finish from Donald Kaufman Color. From there, Waldo layered the color throughout the room in different tones and then added in the cream color with Schumacher upholstery fabrics. In all of Waldo’s designs he uses a neutral color palette because he believes that the art, furniture and fabric are what give life to the room. He believes the walls should be a soft color because it goes with anything and “walls without art are dead.” – We couldn’t agree with him more!

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

Waldo used rugs from Feizy to soften the space.

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

In a smaller sitting area, Waldo centered a Ruhlmann-style dining table beneath a simple chandelier from Circa Lighting. This is a perfect example of Waldo’s refined, glamourous style and his appreciation of quality furniture.

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

The custom bar features a CaesarStone countertop.

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

The outdoor space is furnished with Giati Designs “Castillo” metal furniture.

Here is Waldo lounging in the Oscars Greenroom with the amazing HP ENVY Spectre laptop. HP provided ENVY Spectre laptops for the greenroom so the celebs could keep track of the action online during the show!

Be sure to check out this video tour of the greenroom provided by HP!

Waldo was one of the nicest and most inspiring people I have ever had the pleasure of speaking with, so I am very excited to share this interview with you all! Here are more highlights from my amazing chat with Waldo -

Of course I had to start the interview with MG’s favorite quesiton: “What is your favorite material?”

Waldo replied that his favorite material would have to be fabric. He loves textural fabrics that are woven with beautiful materials – he does not like plain fabrics with prints. For the upholstery in the greenroom he selected an ivory Schumacher fabric that was a mix of cotton, rayon, wool, and silk – VERY luxurious! Of course Waldo could only select the best for the Oscars!

My next question for Waldo was whether or not he was going to attend the Oscars this year. Waldo replied that he was not attending, and that he preferred to spend the night at a friend’s house watching the show with a cocktail in the comfort of their living room. He said the bar was way too crowded at the Oscars! In past years, he spent the evening at his dear friend, Elizabeth Taylor’s home, just the two of them, watching the show. Then we talked about his history and friendship with Elizabeth Taylor – I was so star struck I could barely speak!! Here is Elizabeth Taylor in her home designed by Waldo Fernandez -

Firooz Zahedi for Architectural Digest

Waldo told me that the most memorable experience of his design career was his opportunity to work for Elizabeth Taylor and the close friendship that developed between the two of them over the years. He met her for the first time many years ago when he was “fresh out of Cuba,” he said he was shaking at their first meeting because he couldn’t believe he was talking to THE Elizabeth Taylor – I couldn’t even imagine! He recalled that, “She was sitting by the pool in a bathing suit with a reflector on her chest” – so glamorous! She told him that she was leaving for the Cannes Film Festival and needed her house finished in two weeks!! Like any designer would say, Waldo said, “That is impossible.” (Here was one of my favorite moments from the whole interview…) Elizabeth Taylor replied, “Nothing is impossible, my love.” – And amazingly Waldo finished her entire home in two weeks!

See the tour of Elizabeth Taylor’s home in Architectural Digest HERE!

My next question for Waldo was, “If you were going to the Oscars who would you be most excited to see?”

Waldo told me that he would love to see his clients Angie and Brad!! (As a huge fan of both, I could not contain my excitement!) He told me that “Brad was fantastic and a pleasure to work with.” He said that he and Brad were a perfect match because, “Brad has a passion for architecture, good furniture, and art” just like himself! He said that Brad reads about design and architecture and really gets into it. – So from what Waldo told me, Brad really is perfect!!

I asked Waldo what his favorite room to design for Brad was and he simply said “the whole house.” I can imagine it would be hard to pick just one!!

Waldo also just finished a project for the writer of the Sex and the City movies, Darren Star! This project was featured in the February issue of Architectural Digest! Here is Darren’s living room -

Roger Davies for Architectural Digest

You can see the full tour of Darren’s Bel Air home HERE.

To wrap up the interview, I asked Waldo, “What is one piece of advice you would give young, aspiring designers like myself?” He told me, “Never be scared talking to your clients, but still listen to them, and stick to what you believe is right.” Such wise words! He also told me that the most important aspect of interior design and being a designer is knowing scale – Once you understand scale you know how everything in a room works together! Thank you so much Waldo!

It really was a dream come true talking to Waldo and getting a behind the scenes look at the design of the Oscars greenroom! Thank you HP for this amazing opportunity! Be sure to watch the Oscars tonight and be on the lookout for the greenroom and Waldo’s beautiful design!

Our Material Girl dreams are coming true… Schumacher has announced that they are collaborating with THE Mary McDonald to create a fabric collection for 2013!! It is such a shame that we have to wait so long, but we thought it would be fun to predict what her amazing line will look like!

For those who don’t know, Mary McDonald is an acclaimed interior designer based out of L.A. and was recently on Bravo’s Million Dollar Decorators. Her signature style is timeless, elegant, and modern all in one! There will definitely be some greek key, bold colors, black & white, luxurious silks and velvets, and funky animal prints in her line (at least we hope so!!)

There’s a little greek key in almost all of her designs. As you all know, we can never have enough greek key! She uses a lot of bolster pillows with greek key tape trim on the ends.

More Greek key pillows!

Gorgeous navy and pink room. Did you spot the Greek key bolster?

Her line is sure to have some bold geometric prints- possibly in black and white? She is the master of black and white color schemes with bright pops of color!

She uses black and white chevron patterns a lot too! See the rug above and the amazing floor below-

This is a room Mary designed on Million Dollar Decorators. I am so obsessed with that floor.

Another great example of Mary’s layered black and white patterns.

She’s not afraid to throw in a little animal print here and there, and we hope she includes some in her line!

She really loves that zebra, and we do too!

Leopard wallpaper, so fab! Just wait until you see the whole room…

Wow, lots of leopard!

She includes stripes in a lot of her designs, so there are sure to be some in her Schumacher line. (And I do believe I see Schumacher wallpaper in the background!) I would just love for her to create a wallpaper line as well.

This room is girly in pink with chinoiserie accents. She frequently travels to Europe and the Far East, so we’re guessing that her line will contain ethnic prints and global influences.

We like to think that we’ve got her all figured out, but Mary McDonald is full of surprises.  All we know is that her line is sure to be ahhh-mazing! I guess we will just have to wait and see in 2013!

And make way for Ty Pennington and the Great Big Texas Home Show!

The home show starts tomorrow, March 11th and goes through Sunday, March 13th at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.   Anyone who has visited Cowboys Stadium before, knows what a huge monstrosity it is, so you can just imagine how many great things there will be to see in all that space.

Some of the highlights include-

-Gorgeous gardens by Texas Nursery and Landscape Association

-Tours of an “Idea Home” by Sandlin Custom Homes

-A room contest in which local designers have teamed up with celebrities (with proceeds going to The Salvation Army)

-Celeb presentations on the main stage

-Tours of Starpower’s Ultimate Man Cave

-Also….everyone’s favorite TV personality, Ty Pennington, will be at the show all day Saturday (his only scheduled home show appearance this year).

For more info, click here!

Jenny McCarthy has come a long way from her days as a co-host on MTV’s Singled Out (remember that one?)

We’ve seen her try nursing school, pose for Playboy, date Jim Carey, raise an adorable little boy, Evan, transform into a best-selling author from her parenting books and also become an activist for autism.

Just when you thought you’ve seen it all from Jenny, she has come out with an ecofriendly crib bedding line, called “Too Good” sold at Bed Bath and Beyond, Buy Buy Baby, Target, Baby Depot, and Baby Supermall.

What are your thoughts on Jenny’s new line?

I always get so happy when this arrives in my mailbox…

{Jan/Feb cover of Veranda}

This month I was especially thrilled because there was a story in there that I particularly loved and it happens to be the house of someone you may have heard of before-

J Lo!

Her California home was designed by Michelle Workman and it is so incredibly dreamy! Just look how peaceful her living room is with all the gray-blues-

Lots of understated glamour!

What I loved most is how her home is a mix of high end pieces and affordable pieces (I hate saying high/low as it makes those low pieces come off as subordinate to the high!)  These affordable pieces are certainly anything but inferior. I noticed immediately that her end table was Global Views’ Directoire table in brass and white marble and it looks like she also has the Global Views round Directoire table in the far left corner.  Her accent table between the two chairs could quite very well be Arteriors (if not, it’s very similar to one they used to have).

Her custom klismos lounge chairs in the foreground of the photo are eerily similar to ones I’m getting custom-made for a client’s wine room as we speak.  J LO and I must be on the same wavelength!

I would love to know what blue-gray paint colors she used.  Anyone know?  They are incredibly serene and mix beautifully with the cream and gold accents.

Also notice that they mixed golds AND silvers in J Lo’s home (a great way to add interest and warmth to an overall gray room)

Also, the designer chose to add dark wood on furniture pieces to “ground the space” and so that the room wouldn’t just float away!

Look at this kitchen! Not only is J Lo the Queen of Pop, but she’s apparently also the “Queen of Nailheads” too!

(The light fixture is another affordable, “to the trade” piece by Arteriors)

Oh the bedroom..(sigh).  I’d love to rest my head at night here!  It reminds me a lot of the guest bedroom that Jan Showers designed for Kimberly Whitman.  Same elements- tufted lucite bench, peach wall color, white bedding, abstract art, drapes with valance that match the wall color, and white accent chair.  The only thing that’s missing is the funky light fixture that J Lo added!

For more photos of her stunning entry, informal living room and dining room, pick up a copy of Veranda!

Word on the street is that British interior designer Kelly Hoppen (and ex-step mum to Sienna Miller) will be helping William and Kate with the interior design of  their future London residence, Kensington Palace.

{Kelly Hoppen and Sienna Miller via Pop Sugar}

Apparently Will and Kate “want to create a modern quarter to live in” at Kensington (as told by Us Weekly).

I’d think that Kelly would be the perfect designer to help them achieve this.  She is apparently one of Victoria Beckham’s faves and if she is good enough for Posh and Becks…

Not only does Kelly provide interior design services, but she also has a furniture line through Halo that launched at the October market at Highpoint.  Oh, and did I forget to mention the multitude of other lines that she has- including paints, candles, clothing, fabrics, shutters, and wallpaper?  She’s like the British version of Candice Olsen!

Can’t wait to see what she comes up with for Kate and Will (and let’s hope her design is featured somewhere for the public to see…hmmm I see an Architectural Digest cover in their future!)

Calico Corners has just debuted a new fabric collection, Iman Home, designed by the supermodel herself.

I must say that I’ve always REALLY liked Iman.  She has such a calming presence about her.   She doesn’t bring the drama like some other supermodels do (ahem, Naomi C) and she has always come across as very classy and sophisticated.  Don’t you agree?  Other models should take lessons from her on how to behave!

Her colorful collection for Calico reflects her world travels and unique personal style.  The patterns are rich, exotic and textural.  With all of the rage over animal prints and ikat fabrics, I have no doubt that her collection will do well!

My favorite might be this peacock print.  Anything peacock is very hot right now (I think I saw about five people who were dressed as peacocks for Halloween!)

She has tons of other interesting and bold fabrics to choose from too….this is only the beginning!

Great job Iman on taking your love for fashion and beautiful clothing and turning it into something good!  Other supermodels should be more like you!

Uma Thurman’s five story NYC townhouse is currently up for sale and going for $14.2 million!  I discovered this today while reading Perez and was a little surprised when I viewed the slideshow of her former home.  The home’s design is far from what I envisioned the Kill Bill star’s house to look like.

During her rise to stardom, Uma has played out many personalities….

but never did I take her for the white slipcovers type? A white and blush color palette and an overall formal, dainty residence is a stark contrast to some of the characters Uma has played over the years (and it definitely wasn’t what I would have pictured for her real life persona!)  Why did I think she was more boho chic and eclectic than this?  Am I dreaming?

Some of the comments on Perez are not too favorable either.  Most reviews gave it a thumbs down.  Some comments- “it looks like my grandmother’ s house” and “no wonder Ethan Hawke left”.  Ouch!  Do you think it’s as bad as they say it is?  What type of place would you have envisioned for Uma?

With every new year, comes a re-cap of the last.  For the past two years, I’ve carried on the tradition of doing a post right before the new year, entitled “Flashback (insert year here) Trends”.

Last year, my post, Flashback 2008 Trends highlighted the year’s fashion crazes and how they ultimately influenced the world of interiors.  The year before?  Same concept- how fashion paralleled with interiors in 2007.

2009- what a year!  Here’s a look back on the year’s most popular prints, colors, and materials in fashion and some examples we found of how they can be used in the home.  (thanks to all the celebs who participated!)

1) Hot pink

{House Beautiful}

{Traditional Home}

2) Leather

{Metropolitan Home}

3) Neon

{Domino- via Coco Kelley}

{Jonathon Adler- via La Dolce Vita}

4) Pastel

{Domino}

{Domino}

5) Fringe

{Domino}

6) Futuristic

{Metropolitan Home}

{Metropolitan Home}

7) Sequins

{Nate Berkus for HSN}

8- Boho Chic

{Domino- via Coco Kelley}

9) Plaid

{Domino}

{House Beautiful}

10) Neutrals

{Veranda Magazine}

{House Beautiful}

Oh the Tanners!  How could we ever forget you?  Jesse’s mullet, Michelle’s baby voice, Danny’s obsessive cleaning disorder?  I’m still wondering why and how this show ever left the TGIF lineup!

But what was even more memorable was their San Francisco based home.  In the opening credits, a row of Victorian houses are shown to the memorable tune “Everywhere You Look”.  Remember these?  They are located in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Fran and some even date back to the 1800′s.

Most people think that one of these houses must be the Tanner’s.  But in actuality, the red doored home that they claim to be the Tanner residence, is really located on another street named Broderick.

Some unforgettable interior shots of the Full House house.

Notice the plaid sofa-

And that overdone window treatment!

Can we say 80′s wallpaper? (and I spy…a mullet!)

This kitchen needs a renovation!

Luckily Full House was just a make believe set and we can now fast forward to the decor of 2009.

Ahh much better!

I know you won’t believe me just by looking at it, but this home (owned by Courtnay Daniels Hayden) actually has a lot in common with the Full House set…and that is, they were both featured on the show!  Well, to get more specific, the exterior of the Hayden residence was.

Courtnay’s San Francisco home is often surrounded by bunches of tourists taking photos of the home’s exterior.  Such a unique conversation starter when guests come over- “I live in one of the Full House houses!”  But this house is certainly a far cry from the outdated set of the 80′s sitcom.

So you want to see photos? You got it dude!

{Elle Decor- January Issue}

That’s the end of the tour. Chity chi bob botta!