Home by Novogratz is a new show on HGTV that I taped over the weekend. When it was first being advertised, I wondered, who are these people? Should I know who Cortney and Robert Novogratz are? (Am I that in the dark in the design world...)
But I have to say, I enjoyed the premiere. I was impressed first and foremost that they are married with seven (!) kids, and run their business from home. Their first project was for two sisters who bought a beach house and basically wanted something "girly surfer bohemian." I'm not sure how bohemian I felt it was, but I think they had a lot of good ideas, and what I liked most about it was Cortney's hosting - she made the design really feel accessible, and it wasn't over the top expensive (which I assumed it might be as they live in New York - and most of the other HGTV shows out of New York have designers that come across very snooty and high brow - at least to me). I just grabbed these images off HGTV's website, and am bummed they didn't have a better kitchen shot - they put in really cute, vintage-inspired appliances (blue fridge, pink stove).
I loved the striped stairs (although it looked very tedious to do), and the wallpaper: although girly from afar, was rather risque patterned and quirky (busty amazon-type woman in various scenes, not your average toile).
Anyways, not surprising I liked a lot of the girliness of this house - the inspiration was Betsey Johnson, and I have always loved her home style:
I am curious to see how the show unfolds, but for now, it's definitely on my short list of new shows on HGTV with potential. But I've gotta run, Sara came down to Orange County, and we have a big day of lounging by the pool together ahead of us. Maybe with a cocktail and some guacamole...
