Deserving Design with Vern Yip
September 26, 2007 by Maricar
Filed under Home Decor, Home Improvement TV shows
I used to follow TLC’s Trading Spaces, and one of my favorite designers then was Vern Yip. These days, I don’t get to watch a lot of TV anymore. But I found out about Vern’s new show on HGTV, called Deserving Design, and I just had to check it out. I like the concept behind the show, that of giving a break the the people who need it the most. I’ve always liked Vern’s style on Trading Spaces, and he doesn’t disappoint in this new show.
Today’s featured homeowner was Carolyn Kayne, a community leader in Atlanta who has done her part in cleaning up her neighborhood. Vern cleaned up her living room which had egg yolk orange walls and a mishmash of Asian decorations and sagging accessories. He redid the fireplace, painted the walls a soothing purple color, hung up floor to ceiling silk curtains and spiffied up her furniture. Before the reveal, I was unsure of the purple palette that Vern chose. But he made it work!
As is the practice on the show, Vern also redecorated a second room in the house. The large hallway of the house had grimy checkerboard tiles and practically no seating, even though it was used by Carolyn to hold jam sessions with her friends. Vern installed a bamboo floor and hung huge black-and-white photos of local scenes on the newly-orange walls. The orange walls were tastefully done and opened up the space. I like the glass-topped dining table that he put in. However, I think it could do without the enormous baskets which made the space look cramped, and hampered conversation during meals (a short clip at the end of the episode show Carolyn’s friends eating around the table and barely seeing the tops of each other’s heads across those baskets). Also, my husband wondered whether putting candles near the ceiling (beside the chandelier) constituted a fire hazard.
You can see before and after photos of the two rooms here. The show airs on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. e/p, with replays at various other times. More information is available at the HGTV website.
Tags: Deserving Design, Vern Yip, HGTV, designing shows, home decor, interior design, housekeeping, homemaking
Dear Mr. Yip:
I wish to nominate my daughter to be a recipient of your program. She had a terrible experience (domestic) and had to leave her home for something less than she had. The kitchen needs much work, and since she is now supporting two children, alone, there is no money for such luxuries as kitchen updates.
I need to know about the expense to her for this type project (as her father and I will have to take on that responsibility) so we can be prepared to make this, much deserved, effort happen for her,
Thank you for your time.
Can someone tell Vern Yip to stop using so many candles! His designs are fabulous but the candles are impractical. Who wants to go around lighting a million candles on a chandelier. In one of his show he made a beautiful outdoor room using hanging hurricane candle fixtures that couldn’t be reached without a ladder. I don’t think there were pulleys to bring them down in order to light them. A good design needs to be practical also.