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Lower Oak Lawn – Designer Spotlight: Bradley’s Bold Abode

Lower Oak Lawn  – February 2010

Designer Spotlight: Bradley’s Bold Abode

Today’s designer spotlight features Nest Interior Design in the Dallas Design District. I discovered Nest through their fabulous design blog so when Beth, the blogger and VP of Interior Design, began posting before and afters of her recent design for Bradley Agather’s Uptown Dallas condo I couldn’t help tracking down both designer and client for a little Q&A. Keep reading after the jump for interviews with both ladies.

Q&A with Bradley Agather {The Client}

How would you describe your personal style?

{Bradley Agather} Eclectic. Very feminine, but with an edge. I like to mix old and new, traditional and modern, high and low.

As a fashion intern at W Magazine and a fashion blogger, you have a strong sense of personal style. How did your fashion taste and knowledge of fashion trends affect your interior design style?

B.A.} There is such a strong relationship between fashion and interior design. Dressing yourself and dressing a room are equally creative tasks; and they have one major thing in common: they’re personal. I believe in investing in timeless pieces (the perfect LBD or a neutral couch) and then accessorizing these items with your own personal touches.

Nest Design worked with a lot of your existing furniture to create your new design. Where did you get the unique chairs and furniture pieces?

{B.A.} About 50% of the pieces actually came from the home I grew up in. My parents were looking to de-clutter their home, and I was happy to take some pieces off their hands! I believe that your home should be a collection that represents your past, your travel, your experiences.  For instance, two of the chairs were in my aunt’s house in the 1950s. We took them from the turquoise print they once were to a more sophisticated gray and white.  I did a lot of browsing through consignment shops, including Again and Again (one of my favorites), and vintage stores. One of my favorite finds was the vintage Pucci fabric used for the couch pillows. I found the Pucci fabric at Zola’s, a vintage store located in the Bishop Arts District. The fabric was actually the leftover pieces that were used to make the Braniff Airline uniforms in the 1970s!

What is your favorite part about the look of your condo?

{B.A.} I love that every room has a nod to vintage style. Beth did such an incredible job of taking some of my favorite antique pieces and making them fresh and modern.

Q&A with Beth Dotolo {The Designer}

How would you describe the look of the redesign?

{Beth Dotolo} Feminine, yet modern. We accented with fun pillows and pieces, but at the core of all the pieces is a neutral that can grow with Bradley.

What was your inspiration?

{B.D.} As always, the client is my inspiration. She is fashionable and feminine, and lethally organized! Her new condo reflects that by being stylish and girly, yet still modern and clean.

Bradley describes her taste as “girly.” How did you maintain a feminine feel while also creating an environment suitable for a young professional?

{B.D.} We kept clean lines but added softening touches. It’s all in the details! Her furniture is such that she could simply trade out her pillows for a completely new look!

Because you recovered and repurposed much of Bradley’s existing furniture, this project could be considered very eco-conscious. Was that the intention?

{B.D.} Absolutely! I am a LEED Accredited Professional with the US Green Building Council, so environmentally conscious design is always important to me, especially when I have clients that are willing to re-purpose. It is also much more budget friendly! It gave us the opportunity to splurge on other items.

It sounds like you spent a lot of time working with fabrics. Where do your source your fabrics? Are any of them available retail?

{B.D.} Most of the fabrics I use are trade only sources. I love Osbourne & Little, Robert Allen, Kravet. I always want to try to give my clients the advantage of having trade-only sources available to them.

What was the most fun part about this project?

{B.D.} I loved working with Bradley! She’s fun, energetic, and willing to take risk. She has her own sense of personal style, so she keeps me on my toes. It was also a fun challenge to breathe new life into her old pieces. One of my favorite parts of design are the before and afters!

How can other young professionals work an interior designer into their budget?

{B.D.} Hiring a designer is like hiring any other professional. If you are making an investment you want to be in good hands. Those of us who are Registered Interior Designers are trained in all things design, including health, safety, and welfare. We will end up saving you money and time in the long run by selecting durable options that will last you longer and by executing correctly the first time around. The most important thing to know is that a good designer can work within most any budget and the success of the design and meeting that budget is all about good communication between the client and the designer.

Bradley Agather {The Client}

Bradley Agather is a young professional living in a condo in the heart of Uptown Dallas. Bradley is an intern for W Magazine and is co-writer of a the popular fashion blog, Luella and June.

Beth Dotolo {The Designer}

Beth Dotolo is an award winning Registered Interior Designer and Vice President of Interior Design for Nest Design. Beth writes the Nest Interior Design Blog, which offers daily design inspiration.

Photos courtesy of {Kevin Dotolo Photography}

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By Kendall Shiffler / Photography by Kevin Dotolo