Jennifer Bertrand talks color, 2014 design trends, and paint inspirations.
Design guru Jennifer Bertrand talks future trends of 2014, the psychology of design and faux finishes with MyFixitUpLife hosts Mark and Theresa
Mark: You’re back inside MyFixitUpLife with my wife Theresa.
Theresa: And my husband Mark and I am asking you to put on your hat and look into your crystal ball.
Mark: Because we’re talking design trends coming up.
Theresa: Yes, we’re predicting the future. I’m reading your palm.
Mark: That’s a scam.
Theresa: Not a palm sander, your palm.
Mark: Palm sander.
That is a total scam.
Theresa: It’s not a scam. Have you ever had your palm read?
Mark: I’m not letting anybody touch me.
Theresa: Really?
Mark: No, that’s not true either.
But we are talking with Jennifer Bertrand speaking of Star’s HGTV Season 3 Design Star Winner. Super Designer in her own right, current show on HGTV Paint-Over!
Theresa: Paint-Over! Is that like Ruck Over?
Mark: Ruck Over.
Theresa: I know, really.
Mark: Let’s talk rugby.
Theresa: If we’re serious.
Mark: Let’s talk rugby.
Theresa: No, I’m curious to find out what Jennifer thinks about design trends in the future 2014. What’s going on in 2014? What will we all be … just like oohing and ahhing over for the rest of 2014?
Jennifer: Hi you guys. I always love being on your show and I’m very excited because I recently found out that the color of the year is a color of navy, which I have to say I’ve always said that navy and gray are now the new brown and chocolate and it’s funny because navy’s just a great classic.
I was just recently trying to convince someone to do navy cabinets and it makes me laugh because it freaks them out and that to me is such a safe color that it makes me laugh but trends … I’m thinking, honestly, I have so many people, like in the Midwest of the United States that are wanting to do a coastal Hampton’s look and I find that lends itself to navy very easily.
Theresa: People in the Midwest are going coastal. I love that.
Jennifer: I know right, it’s because we dream of water and all we get are mountains or flat lands.
Theresa: I’ve recently read in … was it in Psychology Today? I love that magazine and it said something about that people are naturally happier when they live near some kind of water.
Jennifer: I agree and I say that because I live on a lake. That’s where I live and honestly though, I think people underestimate the psychology in design because you can … As designers we all get to influence the way someone enters their home and how it impacts their soul. Because I find that even if someone likes traditional there’s still lending themselves to clean lines.
I’m seeing the trends towards more transitional for everyone who considers themselves more traditional. They just maybe won’t call it transitional or admit that they have a contemporary line but it’s that sanity in the midst of the chaos of life.
Theresa: Sanity in the midst of the chaos of life, I love that. I would like a lot more sanity in the chaos of our lives.
Jennifer: You guys have kids, right?
Theresa: Yes.
Mark: I think we have 40 of them.
Theresa: Or two.
Jennifer: It does feel like 40. It’s funny because once you have kids you’re kind of in this different club of depending on how old your kid. It’s like sometimes I’m like, “I just want to look like I don’t live in my car,” like, “I have low standards at this point,” like, “I’ve just a four year old.”
I always admire people who have more than one child but I find that in design people are starting to go, “I need my house to be the calm and make it look like I have my act together when really I may not have it together,” I mean, you’re soaking lots of white woodworks and just clean and lovely.
I am seeing the new, like, two-tonal cabinets like when they do a stainless steel inset with a white surround. I’m not a huge fan of it but some people like it. I agree it’s something different. What do you guys think of that?
Theresa: Stainless steel inset with a white surround cabinet, it kind of makes me anxious.
Jennifer: I know. I kind of … it was like … to me it looks like you couldn’t make up your mind, like, “I couldn’t decide so I choose both.”
Theresa: I’m actually getting like a little anxious and nervous thinking about that.
Mark: You got to think about function though if you’re doing any kind of live fire exercises.
Theresa: Live fire?
Mark: In your kitchen you need to bounce the bullets off of something. You got to be practical.
Theresa: Jen, how often are you doing live fire?
Jennifer: You know what’s funny? We just did a stainless steel island counter top and water faucet of the hedge which is so beautiful. It’s a hot pressed steel and it’s just as yummy to look at but I also know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but to me like, starting to push as your seen people are pushing more industrial vibes and urban lock looks in their homes or set, so what’s that edgy material?
I’m playing a lot with metals more and my trends, I don’t know what everyone else’s, I’m mixing metals. I’m fusing metals. I might play with antique brass with a bronze or whatnot and I like to push those boundaries but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.
Mark: That sounds … like the navy blue cabinets you mentioned earlier in the powerhouse colors.
Theresa: I love that.
Mark: I’m going all the way on this mojo but what do you say to a customer, someone who’s asking you design question, maybe they’re a little bit nervous to jump into that lake, so to speak.
Jennifer: If I can’t convince them, because part of it is I have to figure out their comfort zone because my biggest fear is that after I finish a job with someone they go, “Ah, Jen convinced me to do it but it doesn’t feel like me.” To all you designer listeners out there it’s really getting the sense of the push and pull of. Is it their hesitations or fear? Is it a risk that they can take? Or if I can’t convince them the navy blue cabinet then I go, “Well, let’s punch it on an accent chair and some artwork. Let’s push the scale with artwork and do an indigo piece right there, whatever.”
I’d have to realize that just because I take risks not everyone is comfortable with that.
Theresa: There is definitely a fine line of trying to be kind of a coach, in a way, and getting the most out of what they can be inspired by and feel good about with and not let them mis-practice and stuff like that. I guess it’s one way of looking at it.
Mark: When you show up to the design meeting with a welder’s mask and those gloves that go up to your elbows, you might want to tone that down. That’s all I’m saying.
Theresa: I want to ask you though, about faux finishes because I have been …
I heard that you are definitely into faux finishes and murals and everything. What kinds of things are you doing now with faux?
Jennifer: It’s funny because I started off my career in faux painting before I went into design and people go, “Oh, that’s a trend that’s out,” but I always countered that with, “Kings and Queens were doing it for hundreds of years whenever they couldn’t bring in the authentic material.” I always think, “Yeah, bad flows those are out but classic and timeless flows are always in.”
For now, I don’t do tons of them but what I will do every now and then I’ll do a classic, like white venetian plaster or we’re doing one where we’re going to gold leaf a ceiling in a bathroom and that’s just going to be elegant. It’s really whenever we have to save the budget and rather than having stainless steel on the ceiling we might do a silver leaf on the ceiling.
Theresa: I just want to spend an afternoon sitting with you in cozy comfy chairs looking at all of your beautiful work, just flipping through photographs and gorgeousness and luxuriate. I think I just kind of fell in love with you a little bit.
Jennifer: It’s funny because I haven’t done my website since before I won the show so whenever I see it I get mortified because I’m like, “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I still have that phase forward to the world,” so I’m in this whole re-branding phase and I can’t wait to debut it but sometimes taking the time to going back and photographing is the hardest part.
Theresa: Yes.
Mark: Hugely. Hugely complicated.
Theresa: Yes, because just getting the project done is in of itself, the challenge and then waiting and going the next step to take all the photographs and then catalogue all of them and then post them and share them is a whole another thing.
Jennifer: Another side of them.
Mark: This is a gripping interview about office work.
Then the next thing I did was I checked my email.
Theresa: But you know, that is kind of funny though, because we’re just … it just … it’s changed so much because you used to take for portfolio pictures and have them in that way and then websites and now we’re just taking pictures constantly and sharing them everywhere. It’s just –
Mark: Hold on, I got a picture update.
Theresa: You got to take a picture of me talking to you?
Mark: I’m going to take a picture of you talking and laughing and enjoying talking with Jennifer Bertrand. Bertrand Designs HGTV Design Star Season 3 Winner, follow her on Twitter. Check her out on Facebook and in the meantime follow us into our break we’ll be back with more MyFixitUpLife.
