San Francisco & Las Vegas Interior Design Show
The American Institute of Interior Design attends the furniture market in San Francisco twice a year in January and July. This is an extracurricular event and the financial responsibility for this trip including air fare, hotels, food, etc., becomes each student's own responsibility.
European Study Tour
The American Institute of Interior Design invites you to join us for a study tour of Italy, France and England. The itinerary has been designed with professional interests in mind to include such valuable experiences as guided tours of magnificent palaces and historic cathedrals, visits to major museums of furniture and fine arts and meetings with interior designers of Europe. Please contact our school director for current information on this fascinating study tour.
Europe still leads the way
when it comes to fashion, both in clothing and homes. That's why Judy and Dana
Thompson, owners of THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF INTERIOR DESIGN take their
students to London, Paris, Lucerne, Venice, Florence and Rome each year. It's
usually about two years before home trends reach Arizona. The lag time for
fashion has almost disappeared.
What did the students at AIID discover this year? Silvery soft materials,
including a silver metallic fabric as covering for an easy chair, and embossed
silver faux crocodile, used to cover a bench and a desk! What's old is new and
Europe is flirting with the 1950's. Men's wear tweed upholstery in black and
white used alone or with touches of color, especially red or lime was seen in
the design showrooms of Paris and applied ornament such as feathers, sequins and
fur were the added detail.
One surprising trend in London was to see colorful patterned drapery panels that
do not match on the same window! There also seems to be a welcome to 18 century
opulence again and au revoir, finally to minimalism. Botox Houses (spotless,
wrinkle-free gleaming residences with that "do-not-touch" quality ARE OUT! Shag
carpeting and faux animal prints are 1N and plexi-glass furniture in delicious
candy colors are being mixed with 18th century French chairs and settees. Good
lighting will always be IN and originality is noted in lighting with lamp shades
made of sweater-like knits or recycled computer chips.
TEXTILES: Textural directions for fabrics included unfinished or frayed edges
and trims that somewhat resemble eyelashes. Linen fabrics combined with Lurex
(metallic) threads and Chanel tweeds are huge this season.
Trends in home colors tend to follow clothing; look for PURPLE (amethyst, grape,
violet, lilac and plum) to be very HOT! Purple, wasabi green and ocher were the
trendy color combinations as are hot pink, lime and Hermes orange.. Egg yolk
yellow, teal and turquoise (going to the green side of blue) and peacock are
also up and coming colors. The new neutral is a RED that resembles "red. velvet
cake" - it is so delicious you might want to eat it! Other neutrals include
chocolate, bronze, gray, white and copper.
FASHION: Vintage clothing has reached its boiling point this fall with 2nd hand
clothes from Chanel to stewardess uniforms from the 1970's. CHIC CHAOS fashions
such as yellow sweat pants, green tweed jacket, lilac dress, and lime green
boots all worn at the same time are one such example. Colorful Barbie Doll looks
with mini skirts; stripy hose and plastic fruit
jewelry are worn with stirrup pants and leg warmers. Turquoise corduroy blazer
and pink corduroy jeans with a rose embroidered on the back pocket of the jeans
and corset, skirt and pink lambskin coat were seen at the trendy boutique in
Paris known as "Colette".
SHOES: Footwear was very fun and included "wrestling boots" (yes, you read correctly),
Ugg, the Australian classic with an attitude, and vintage sneakers such as time
green Converse are the height of cool. Kitten heels and Mary Jane's were seen
along with rubber flip-flops worn with leg warmers. Extreme pointed toed shoes
are giving way to round or square toed and last years "red bowling shoes" (a
tribute to the American television show The Soprano's) are now out!
Jeans-jeans-jeans, expensive jeans and low-rise jeans still rule. Vintage and
antique brooches and jeweled pins worn on the jeans or on any necklace rounds
out the retro look.
MISCELLANEOUS: Live plants and trees are back for indoor use and acrylic
furnishings add the touch needed to make a modern space ultra chic! Black is
being used on kitchen cabinetry and is a wonderful neutral and an ideal backdrop
for BRIGHT accessories. Piero Fornasetti porcelain plates, like the ones hanging
in the kitchen of contestants on TRUMPS APPRENTICE 2 prove that Europe,
especially Italy and Paris are now bowing to America's design statements.
Knowing what's coming is important to interior designers, and now you'll be a
step ahead of the game too!