Living Room
Designer: Shelly Riehl David,
Mpls., 952-440-4175,
riehldesigns.com
Minneapolis interior designer Shelly Riehl David splits her time professionally between clients in the Twin Cities and
Florida. She recently completed a project for HGTV’s
Designers’ Challenge. The show features homeowners who select a room renovation plan after presentations are made by three design firms. The winning firm, in this case Riehl Designs, executes the plan in collaboration with the owners.
Design Dilemma: The clients built their home twenty years ago and never really decorated it. The home has great bones and beautiful views, but the existing furniture was actually purchased for their previous home in Detroit. It never belonged in the current home, yet they lived with it for almost twenty years. For their wedding anniversary, the couple decided to redecorate.
Solution: The design is classic modern—David considers the look timeless because it mixes and juxtaposes classic lines and elements that are contemporary in form. The inspiration was vintage pillows discovered on a buying trip, which David thought would be a great starting point. The show encourages prospective designers to interview the homeowners, so David flew to Palm Beach—with the pillows. “Once they told me that they loved them,” David says, “I ran with the scheme. So often you just need to find one thing that somebody loves, and you can build everything else around it and clients are sure to also love the end results.” David says that the owners definitely stepped out of their preconceived zone, but stayed within their comfort zone.
After the show was filmed, Riehl Designs also worked with the couple of their bedroom, den, and kitchen.
We Asked Shelly Vacation vs. primary homes: When people find a vacation home, they just want to have fun with it. They’re a bit more daring to make a statement. They also want it done for their arrival, so that they can spend their time enjoying their vacation instead of furniture shopping. Twin Cities vs. Palm Beach: There’s definitely a different mindset regarding the use of color. Floridians are surrounded by blue skies, lush vegetation, and colorful flowers year-round. It makes them more comfortable living with color inside their homes. The thought of turquoise in January to a typical Minnesotan is just absurd. But if the sky is gray and the ground is gray, there’s all the more reason to bring some color into our lives. Interior design today: I am excited about mixing styles from different periods to give a finished look that transcends time. I love to combine vintage furnishings, modern elements, great art, and classical elements like elaborate wall moldings to exude glamour and a bit of the unexpected. Any design that is completely contemporary or completely traditional can be very predictable, and gets tiresome. I don’t limit myself to any style, and my own tastes are constantly evolving [as I] travel and [help] clients imagine their own personal dream space. |
Watch for Palm Beach Living Room (episode, #1703) on HGTV. No date has been confirmed.
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