Mary McDonald at the Houston Decorative Center

I went to the Houston Decorative Center (HDC) yesterday to pull some fabric samples for a client who is updating her childrens' playroom to become more of a "teen room".  Luckily for me, I discovered the night before that HDC was hosting their Spring Market 2013 yesterday also.  It was lucky that I found that out ahead of time because 1) the parking situation was going to be challenging and 2) I might be able to see a bit of the presentations.

I arrived at the Dec Center at 9 a.m., well before the scheduled presentations which began at 10:30.  I was able to score a great parking spot and head into the showrooms to start selecting fabric for my client.  I walked into the Schumacher showroom, and there was lovely Mary McDonald, sitting two feet away from me and happily signing copies of her new book.  She was also going to showcasing her new fabric and trim lines there later in the day.

Mary McDonald is one of the featured designers on the hit Bravo TV show "Million Dollar Decorators".  She is very funny and irreverent and has great style and design ideas.  My husband and I watch the show and she is our favorite designer and personality on the show.

Here are some of Mary's new fabrics and trims created for Schumacher (photos courtesy of Schumacher fabrics).  Aren't they gorgeous?  I love the specialty details and fresh colors.

All of Mary's fabrics can be seen at www.fschumacher.com.  They are all wonderful!

I had planned to quickly visit several showrooms for my client and make my getaway before the crowds began arriving.  However, when I walked out of the Kravet showroom and saw all of the chairs set up in the open lobby area for the panel presentation scheduled for 10:30, I decided to snag a chair and stay for a bit.

There were about 125 chairs set up, which filled up quickly.  The event site staff brought out about another 30-40 chairs for the additional attendees streaming in to participate.

The topic was "Building Your Brand" and was a panel discussion by Bill Stubbs (AD 100 interior designer, author and host of the TV show Moment of Luxury), Mary McDonald, Charles Pavarini III (Founder and President of Charles Pavarini Design Associates) and John Robshaw (product designer and author of John Robshaw Prints).

It was a great discussion with industry leaders.  Mary is funny and outgoing and willing to share stories of her experiences.   The audience was laughing many times at her comments and enjoyed her input along with the other panel members.

I was glad that I stayed to watch the discussion!

Later in the afternoon I met with my client and we narrowed down two groupings of potential fabrics for her project room.  Her project will consist of valances, window seat cushions and pillows, along with some new shutters. 

One fabric grouping is brighter and livelier, but the other group has some interesting textures and patterns as well.  Which do you prefer?

Hope to see you soon!

Susan