California-based designer Phyllis Bowie cherishes any opportunity to demystify the decorating process.
She gets two chances to do that each week on her new Fine Living Network show, “Mail Order Makeover.” In the series, Bowie is one of a pair of designers pitted against each other in a test of decorative skill. Their goal: Create a room that meets and builds on a homeowner’s wants and needs. The catch is they can use only furnishings and accessories from mail-order catalogs. Here, Bowie tells us more about her entree into television.
Q: How does your work on the show make the design process less intimidating to clients and viewers?
A: We open up the viewers’ eyes to the possibilities of any given space. It amazes people that completely different looks and designs can come out of the same exact space.
Sometimes people feel they are confined to whatever the architectural design elements are in their home. For example, if they have traditional molding, some find it hard to envision a modern style with all that traditional molding. The show explains how you can take the bones, or the architectural details, and transform them.
Q: What key elements redefine the style of a room?
A: The number one thing is the use of color. In the show, each designer gets a chance to decorate. After (that), the homeowner looks over the finished product, (then) all of the furnishings and accessories are removed and the second designer comes in to the same space and designs something different. The only things left in the space from the previous designer are the “permanent things” such as painted walls, flooring and lighting.
The second designer distinguishes himself or herself by color choices, floor plan, layout and accessories.
Q: Do the homeowners have a hard time deciding which design they prefer?
A: The homeowners are always torn. Before we do anything, each designer meets with the homeowners and asks them pertinent questions to investigate their preferences and find out how they want to utilize the space. We ask what they like, we point to items and ask why do they like it, and we ask about favorite colors. We look at other rooms of the house and help them define in their own mind what their style is.
Through that investigation, both designers meet the homeowners’ needs or solve whatever issue they have with the space, but we do it in two drastically different ways. They always want to take a lamp from Design No. 1 and put it into Design No. 2. So many times they ask us if they can have both.
Q: How are the design battles eventually won?
A: Somebody has to give in. Usually among homeowners who are couples, there is one strong person in the relationship who has more of a (decorative) eye or just has more influence.
Staff writer Sheba R. Wheeler can be reached at 303-954-1283 or swheeler@denverpost.com.
