The Art of Shade

Good News....Outdoor living is here to stay!  Have you added it to your own yard?  Are you having a hard time figuring out what to do to shade yourself while enjoying your "new" space?

I am in LOVE with this product to say the least.   I not only think they look great but the shadows are so beautiful as well, this is one product that will enhance every outdoor setting.

Parasoleil (para-sol-AY) specializes in creating designs and products to withstand the test of time.  They are able to specify the best material, thickness and pattern too.

Being that we are in Texas covering your patios are a very smart idea to protect against the harsh sun.  A lot of times from the 2nd floors of my clients homes the view of their covered porches from above are well ugly to say the least, but check this out, it looks good from all angles don't you think?  And the added vegetation also will soften the look and provide more cover as well.

As soon as I get some time to focus on my own projects these will definitely be added to my own yard if not to my clients before then...I will keep everyone posted with "befores" and "afters" when that happens.

In the meantime, "stay cool my friends".

It's Okay to be BLUE

I recently went blue (Sherwin Williams 0019 Festoon Aqua to be exact) in my office because I found some carpet tiles (see above picture) that I fell in love with and I love color so I threw caution to the wind and went blue.

Blue shouldn't always mean the color of sorrow. On contrare, it's a very soothing color and it has actually been shown to increase your self-confidence and happiness.

(Please excuse the mess & my dog's bed)

Researchers in the UK exposed both sexes to different colors of light, measuring their brain activity, heart rate and sweat levels while asking them how the colors made them feel. Blue was the only color that helped everyone feel calm.

So instead of avoiding the blues embrace them and consider them for your own spaces, like I did for my office...See my FIRST video ever here....

And I am sure you are dying to know if I feel self confident, happy and calm now that I work in a blue space...The answer is sometimes. ;) I wonder on certain days what I would be like if I wasn't working in a blue space...Can you relate?

New Day....New Way

Welcome to BRY design's blog!

I have found that it's sometimes hard to share great design info. with past/present/future clients and anyone else who is curious.  So I have decided to start this blog.   This will be a place to learn all things Interior Design....I will share client projects; expert interviews; give advice on how to hire a contractor; fun design tips along the way; etc.   You get the idea right?

I plan on posting this 1x a week and if you are interested I would love it if you would follow/sign up to receive this.

There are a couple of ways to follow me of course...

My Twitter page @....

http://www.twitter.com/brydesign

My "fan page" on Facebook....

http://www.facebook.com/brydesign

You can always RSS or sign up at Feedburner (both to the right of the body of this post).  Feedburner sends all updates right to your email inbox when a new blog is posted. You can unsubscribe at any time, no pressure and of course no one will have your email account and we won't sell your list either.

In the meantime, here's a little something about me if you don't know me yet....

I am married to an amazing man, I know everyone says that about their hubby and I hope it's true, mine is a perfect match for ME.

We have a Great Dane/Whippet/Border Collie dog named Calvin and he is truly a rock star, everywhere we go with him we get stopped. I don't think my hubby and I will ever get used to his fame but he seems used to it, as a matter of fact if you pull up to us at a red light and choose to "ignore him" he will bark until you look.

We moved to the "best" city in Texas...Austin that is, back in 2001, 2 weeks before 9/11. I am a native Californian and miss it terribly but we won't talk about that right now except to say I despise humid/hot weather, if you know me this comes as no surprise to you, especially if we worked together in summer.

I started my own firm, BRY design in 2002 and hit the ground running.....

I truly love what I do for a living.  I get to work on some great jobs with WONDERFUL clients. Between my vendors, craftman and contractors I feel like I have a great team who aren't just VERY creative but really are into customer service like myself.

When time allows, my hubby and I love to travel, both by car so Calvin can come or by air to more exotic destinations.  I love to cook, golf, ride horses, play all sports (but not watch them).  I love to learn new things, which is very easy in my line of business. I am constantly keeping up on what's going on in the home industry.

Ummmm what else....I don't know, do any of you have any questions at this point?

Oh and I am always updating my website with lots of pics with dramatic "befores" and "afters" of my client jobs, so swing by and check them out there too.