Interior designer Thomas Pheasant spends a lot of time visiting clients from Singapore to San Francisco, and he has an apartment in Paris. But Pheasant, a fourth-generation Washingtonian, also has a lot going on right here. Last month, Pheasant, 57, introduced his latest furniture collection (75 pieces) at the Baker store, just a block from his Georgetown office. Hes working on houses in Kalorama, McLean and St. Michaels. And he recently began a long-term project to refresh the rooms at Blair House, the presidents guest house.

Pheasant is known for his look of luxurious understatement, with interiors that are at the same time modern and traditional, with mainly neutral colors. His client list includes the Hay-Adams Hotel and BET co-founder Sheila Johnson, for whom he designed a 100-year-old stone house in Virginias hunt country. Pheasant is one of the most published designers in Washington, although many of his well-heeled clients prefer to keep their names, if not their living rooms, out of the limelight. He is a fixture on the AD100, the annual list of top architects and designers compiled by Architectural Digest. In the 2012 list, the magazine describes Pheasants work as having restraint, clarity and timelessness.

(From Thomas Pheasant) - Thomas Pheasant

(BAKER) - Pheasants Constellation Mirror was inspired by a brooch he saw in the window of a Paris antique shop.

Pheasant grew up in a split level in Adelphi and studied architecture and interior design at University of Maryland. When I got out of school, all my friends went to New York, but I decided to stay here, Pheasant says. He worked briefly at a fabric showroom and after graduation was hired by designer Victor Shargai as an assistant. At age 24, Pheasant opened his own firm.

I caught up with Pheasant a few weeks ago at the Baker store in Georgetown, where we tested out his new furniture and discussed current projects. Here is an edited transcript.

When did you first know you wanted to be a designer?

On my third-grade field trip, we took a big yellow bus to the National Gallery. As I waited in line, I looked up at the Rotunda. It just overwhelmed me. Its the first emotional connection to a space that I recall, and I was thinking I would love to live there.

In the past decade, how has your design changed?

Both my furniture designs and interiors are moving in the same direction. I am putting a lot of effort into streamlining both. I take classical ideals and strip them down to the essential, whether a sofa or an interior.

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Checking in with Thomas Pheasant

by Lori Caldwell Sun-Times Media October 29, 2012 6:18PM

Updated: October 29, 2012 6:18PM

Jane Leslie Carpenter, owner of Jane Leslie Designs, told acquaintances in Crown Point, Ind., that her late husband was murdered.

The interior designer never mentioned she was the primary suspect.

On Monday, more than 10 years after 71-year-old Brent Carpenter was found dead the Prescott, Ariz. home he shared with his wife, Jane Leslie Carpenter was charged with his murder, police said.

He was sickly. Its my thinking she was tired of taking care of him. It was quite a task, Prescott Police Capt. Ken Morley said Monday, hours after Carpenter, 61, was arrested at a clients house in LaPorte.

She is charged with first degree murder, and could face additional charges, Morley said.

On June 4, 2002, Jane Leslie Carpenter called police to report finding her husband on their kitchen floor. He had been stabbed in the back with a knife and also had a head wound, possibly from a rock.

Prescott police dont have a whole bunch of homicides and didnt get charges approved the first time they presented the case, authorities said.

By employing forensic experts, a full-time detective and two cold case investigators, police established a case.

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Crown Point interior designer charged with murder of husband in Arizona

The Society of British Interior Design announced Lighting Designer Christopher Thompson and his Studio Lux design team, as the winner of the prestigious 2012 SBID International Design Award. Studio Lux won Best Technology in lighting in the Contract sector for Thompsons work on the Mercedes Benz Autohaus located in Bellevue, Washington, USA.

London, UK (PRWEB) October 23, 2012

The Studio Lux team is thrilled to receive the prestigious Society of British Interior Design Contract Award for lighting design under Best Technology. The complexities of incorporating LED lighting as the primary source of illumination in a project of this size and nature provided us with an excellent opportunity to showcase twenty-first century lighting design techniques and applications, said Christopher Thompson. We offer our sincerest gratitude to the judges for recognizing our work among all of the excellent projects that were selected.

The winners of the SBID International Design Award underwent rigorous preliminary judging and were chosen from a pool of both leading brands and new talent on five continents in over 27 countries. The award marks a notable achievement for Thompson whose design techniques have been recognized and sought after for exclusive commercial and residential projects in both the U.S and abroad.

Using his ingenuities to weave romance with the calculus behind successful design, Thompson successfully satisfied the desires of the Mercedes Benz Autohaus to make its luxury automobiles shine while simultaneously meeting energy use constrictions set by local city officials. With 80% LED lighting, the project uses 30% less than the allotted watts per square footage.

The SBID Award will join a host of Thompsons existing awards, most recently earning the IESNA Award in both 2010 and 2011 for International Illumination Design. He looks ahead to several prominent ventures currently in progress, including Energizing Taliesin West, a collaboration with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation intended to drive the historic Taliesin West site to sustainable energy. The Lighting Designer is also beginning preparation for an unprecedented build of a LEED Gold hotel in Palm Springs, CA. Construction will utilize the latest in green technologies to assemble and is set for completion early 2013.

About Christopher Thompson

From the design projects of Seattle to the architectural wonders of Frank Lloyd Wright, Architectural Lighting Designer and Studio Lux LLC Founder and Principal Christopher Thompson has forged a versatile design style cemented in the tactile relationship between light, mood and audience. This relationship is the driving force behind Thompsons design concept, which is merging the artistic qualities of lighting effects, his background in the fine arts, and his expertise and degree in electrical engineering that result in the designers highly technical side of lighting precision.

Together these elements form a lighting design that encapsulates innovation while redefining the role of traditional lighting dcor. Christopher Thompson and his internationally-recognized lighting firm Studio Lux LLC. set out to find the balance between lighting artistry and lighting practicality; a practice that is evident in the companys lavish portfolio of world-class museums, hotels, institutions, homes and future constructions.

The recipient of more than a dozen industry honors, Christopher looks to expand his knowledge of green technologies with a masters degree in Green Building Design. He continues to design renowned projects for both commercial and private sectors around the world while simultaneously maintaining Studio Lux as an industry leader within a rapidly advancing field. For more information please visit: http://www.studiolux.com

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Society of British Interior Design Names Lighting Designer Christopher Thompson Winner of 2012 International Design ...

Ask any interior designer if they would rather buy a perfectly polished, newly renovated home or one in dire need of TLC, and chances are they'll opt for the latter.

After all, a fixer-upper - especially one with great bones and its original architectural features still intact - is an opportunity to put their own stamp on a place, while building on its inherent character.

This was the case for Antonio Martins when an 1891 Victorian in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood came on the market three years ago. It had been in the same family for over a century; Martins, whose eponymous practice is based in the city, would be only its second owner.

"Nothing had been done to the house," he recalls. "It didn't have layers and layers of paint. The woodwork was all original and just needed to be sanded and painted."

In the garage, a glass case is filled with reminders of the home's past: a sepia family portrait that was taken out front in 1903; leftover bits of molding, wallpaper and tile; and the original metal numbers that once graced the facade.

While it's clear that Martins reveres its history, the house is certainly not stuck in a time warp. Immediately after purchasing the dwelling, he launched into a large-scale rehab.

Now classic Victorian attributes like the ornate moldings and ceiling medallions are counterbalanced with of-the-moment touches such as the stainless steel fireplace surround and Limn sectional in the media room, as well as modern art choices (including a Rubens Gershman painting in the master bedroom and a couple of Drew Kelly photographs in the living room).

The kitchen is a perfect example of old and new beautifully coexisting. The room is anchored by an O'Keefe & Merritt stove that dates back to 1948. (Martins admits that it doesn't get much use; he takes advantage of his proximity to restaurants such as Serpentine, Just for You Cafe and Piccino.)

Above the stove is a weathered wood parlor door cornice. For years, Martins' best friend, Tom Roe, collected architectural details from mansions that were demolished in the city. "This specific one was in (Roe's) Berkeley garden for more than 20 years," says Martins. "When he passed away in 2011, I inherited the piece."

Juxtaposed with these bygone accents are stainless steel elements - open shelving, a barn door that conceals a pantry, industrial tables - fabricated by Scott Adkins of Profab Metal Design (he is also responsible for the media room's fireplace surround). Rounding out the kitchen decor is a contemporary 85-bulb light fixture by Rody Graumans and a set of Ikea barstools.

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Designer's Dogpatch house - great bones

Asheville, NC (PRWEB) October 23, 2012

HomeSource Design Center will be hosting an Interior Designer Open House for all interior designers in the Asheville, North Carolina area on November 8, 2012.

This evening reception will be a meet and greet, as well as informative information for all interior designers on how they can get exclusive financial benefits by creating a partnership with the design center. HomeSource Design Center is the local choice for home improvement, remodeling and construction needs. The design center features home remodeling products such as cabinets, countertops, hardware, flooring, windows and doors, along with home exterior products.

Register for this event on The HomeSource Design Center website.

The reception will start at 5:00 pm and end at 7:00 pm. Complimentary to all interior designers. Beer and wine will be served.

The HomeSource Design Center is located at 172 Charlotte Street, Asheville NC 28801.

About HomeSource Design Center

The HomeSource Design Center incorporates the entire home building and remodeling process all in one convenient location; providing you with a team of experts to guide you through the process: from products to design, and functionality to the finishing touch. Located off of Charlotte Street in Asheville, support your local source for all your home remodeling or construction products.

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Design and Wine with Asheville Interior Designers

Certified Interior Designer, Renae Farley, recently launched her new website, marking a substantial and attractive improvement in the way her services, information and project portfolio is presented to existing and prospective clients.

San Diego, CA (PRWEB) October 23, 2012

Despite a down economy, Renae Farley has maintained steady demand, redecorating and redesigning homes throughout Southern California including Coastal San Diego, La Jolla, Rancho Santa Fe, Coastal Orange County, and Newport Beach. The new San Diego interior design website opens with a stunning slideshow of Renaes designs and past client work, with glowing testimonials throughout. The About Renae page offers insight to her experience, mission statement, expertise, accomplishments, and charitable organizations she contributes to.

According to Renae, Our goal is to create innovative designs that truly reflect the beauty, uniqueness and function of each home. We strive to effectively satisfy the needs of each client. Renae Farley offers a wide scope of remodeling, redesign, and interior planning services including concept and space planning, kitchen and bath design, custom furniture and cabinetry, job site management and coordination, furniture shopping and interior design for vacation and second homes.

The newly redesigned website also offers a significant number of portfolio images from many of her high-end residential projects. The portfolio page offers interested prospects the ability to view a slideshow of the stunning transformations of client kitchens, living spaces, bedrooms, bathrooms, and even outdoor living areas.

The portfolio also offers pictures of vacation homes and projects outside of the Southern California area including Lake Tahoe, Sedona in Arizona, and even regions of Alaska. Renae Farley offers her professional services throughout the Nation in destination regions as well as offering her services on an international level.

With over 28 years of professional experience, Renae Farley has built a credible reputation in setting the standard in professional high-end residential interior design. She has been a featured designer in San Diego Home Magazine and has been published in San Diego Home and Garden, Dcor and Style, and Phoenix Home and Garden magazines. For more information please visit http://www.renaefarley.com.

Renae Farley Renae Farley Interior Designer 760-931-9151 Email Information

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Certified Interior Designer Renae Farley, ASID, CID, Proudly Announces Exciting New Informative, Engaging & User ...

Cheryl Ann Pfeiffer was remembered as an award-winning interior designer whose work drew praise from both judges and visitors at the annual Parade of Homes.

Her husband recalled she was their company's creative force, and that her eye for color emerged while working in a San Antonio wallpaper store.

But perhaps the most important memory of her came from her 15-year-old son, Cody Pfeiffer.

The best thing about her, he said, was how much she cared about me and my brothers.

They're Connor, 16, and Cameron, 12.

Pfeiffer, who with her husband Craig Pfeiffer owned the design company Interior Ideas, died of cancer Wednesday. She was 49.

The Milwaukee native didn't start out with an interest in interior design. She followed her brothers into computer science and hated it.

In the early 1980s, she came to San Antonio and quickly decided she didn't want to face another Midwestern winter.

She studied interior design at what was then Incarnate Word College, taking heavy course loads to graduate early, in 1986, and working at a Wallpapers To Go store.

Pfeiffer felt at home around colors and textures, which her husband described as being at the heart of their business.

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Pfeiffer was award-winning interior designer