Ashley Biden (VP Joe's daughter), in Dodson Design's "Delebrity" tee

I heard but haven't seen yet that this photo of Ashley Biden in her Delebrity t-shirt by Dodson Design ran in yesterday's News Journal!! It is available in boyish blue too!

New Year's Eve Outta My Sleeve.

The Doc decided he wanted to do a New Years Eve installation on Dec. 27th so it meant hustling!

Once he realized that his 1930's, round, vanity mirror was the same size as his round table and easily rmovable, the vignette was set. Against a shimmering backdrop of Platinum satin (borrowed for a few moments from a client's soon to be deco drapes) he started to assemble the elements from his personal stashes and caches of goodies as well as a few (tall candleabra, silver candles, champagne flutes and spakly top(NO!, it is NOT mine!)), from friend and Design Doctor member Karen Miller, and arranged them on set. Doc Dodson offers this set up and photos as inspiration for a festive, uplifting enviroment you can create at home without alot of trouble and maybe a couple of begged, and or borrowed beauties. The best part may be that if you dress up your dining chairs, you can stay in your jammies all night thru to pancake time.

From Trashed Torchere To Eat In Etagere.

It took me a while to diagnose this one but I knew when I saw this ailing Torchere that it could serve a better purpose then suffering and causing suffering, spending it's entire life standing in the corner of an ugly living room. My treatment included, a good cleaning, a change of enviroment, and a higher altitude. A warm and soapy sponge bath, move to the kitchen, and elevation to kitchen island later, this one time "sick" lamp is now enjoying a new healthy second life, doing a little weight/plate lifting as my tall and terriffic plate rack, totally vertical, man!

From Bare To Beautiful Banister For Barely Any Bread.

I thought I had completed my holiday decorating until I realized that my stair banister was suffering from a bad case of  Bland Bareitis. How could such a marvelous place to wrap, wind, twist and intertwine fabric, ribbon, and garland green escape me!? I should be sued for decorating malpractice (shhhh). Anyway, I put down prune danish (prunes are high in fiber!), and picked up my pruning shears (high in evergreen cutting ability), and got to twisting. First I wound the dark wood with white poly, curtain sheer fabric (same as on my holiday balcony) I picked up a huge bolt of in a thrift store for $4, then added the beautiful cranberry red, thick, pleated, Jacquard, upholstery fabric (picked up 15+ yards at estate sale for only $20!), next to NOT over the white fabric, next came the gold lame', wired ribbon (reused for several years), this time on top of the red fabric pretty tightly as to hold the evergreen branches (FREE, snagged them from huge pine tree demo across the street, sad), which is the last step!

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White Branch Out

Branching out, The Design Doctor ditched his white coat for white branches, cotton, and pearlized faux berries (or Ferries). Doc lined a temporarily empty (in between shelf reno), shelf alcove with a few yards of burlap, layed down a few feet of snow (horizontally) stuck the branches and ferries into floral foam under cotton, lit decorated, giant, candle votive and gave hisshelf a pat on the back.

X-sta-ski!

Ever wonder what to do with those old skis in the attic or basement (or both!), and that little bit of wall primer or cieling white paint in the attic or basement or both?? Skis plus paint = X-ellent holiday decoration.

Stripper Curtain Makes Great Giant Tinsel

Friday, Dec. 9, two enormous, at least one hundred year old pine trees bit the sawdust. I heard the chain saws and wood chippers ripping into the beautiful, 50'. specimens and went directly across the street from the Dodson Design offices to inquire, seems the new owner of the apt. building has some new lanscaping ideas of his own. It was sad to see them fall, the up side was lots and lots (I could have opened a evergreenery lot) of free Christmas greens, garlands, swags, and merry merry mantel makings!
I chose to use one very large, single branch and work with it's natural arch and draping, fringe like needles.

A few larger sized string lights and some 7', silver mylar strands (recycled from a tattered "stripper" curtain), later, balcony decor done!  The "snow" you see on railings is just folded and stapled down poly fabric, the heads, or busts are repurposed terra cotta garden accessories with a quick spray of gold, they got a golden spray tan, I got beautiful balconette, you bet!

Naughty Bawdy Baldwin or My Dinner with Alec

Soho loft of Giorgio Deluca (of Dean &), mid 1980's ish. C.C. and Alison Golwater (Barry's granddaughters), had their mom Joann fly in a shipment of here dry iced packed, gourmet Goldwater goodies for a tasting dinner (with an initial order for D&G in mind), the massive ruff hewn table was set for 12, we were all seated but there were two empty chairs, one at the opposite end to the right of Giorgio and one at my head end to my left. As if on cu, at that very moment in walks the unexpected (to me at least), and unannounced A.B. and his stunning and overflowing, starlet date. Gio got the boxom beauty I got Mr. Trouble, mind you this is mid 80's Baldwin, yum!, I wasn't quite sure what to do or say, did my best to kepp it cool and clever. At the time I was designing and marketing my line of mens boxers and briefs, Mike & Mike, so we got on al eading topic the leading man seemed to know something about, and seemed to want to know more. When he reached under the table and squeezed my leg from knee to upper,upper thigh, asking me "How high up do they (the boxers) go?" I knew then that the chipotle, jalepeno salsa wasn't going to be the only spicy flavor on the evening's menu. More, wine, more Mexican later things were really heating up at both ends of the table I think Giorgio and Alec's "date" were enjoying themselves as much as I was with mine, it's always a good sign when at the end of the evening your dinner partner asks for you to bring a few pair of underwear for him when you visit their apt. at 303 West 81st., I'll never forget that address, or my dinner(s) with Mr. Bad Boy B!
ps. As you can see I'm working without an editor, sorry.

Hide The Naugahyde.

So, my teal Naygahyde, bus stop (don't get TOO comfortable), sofa (see profile pic), is cool for spring and summer but needed a warmer fell for the chillier months, what should I do Doc Dodson?

Want warmth?, go with the fabric of Kings and Queens!, velvet. Luckily I had just acquired another (the first three are on my windows, see old post), large, sun faded, naturally ombred panel from my Decor Raider buddy Karen Miller, so with a ingenuity and hootzpah I turned it into a slipcover.

1. have or buy a Naugahyde sofa, they accept and unaccept tape very well.
2. Tape fabric to sofa in places that dont show, fold, nip, and tuck the rest.
3. sit, enjoy, the warm fuzzy goodness. If it comes untucked, re-tuck!

4. Pour wine.

Tea/Tree Lite Finished Holiday Tree

Reserve a few more of the used, empty tea light thingys, cut the edges the same way to create snowflake look but do not puncture center, instead make a small hole in one of the snowflake "petals", add wire hook

( I couldn;t find mine or my floral wire ( I could have found the wire but was too lazy to go to basement), so I used paper clips to hang my new free, recycled ornaments on my potted Northern Pine! See pics.

Tea Lights into Tree Lights

I'll show and tell you how I turned tea lights ( or at least the little left over metal containers they are in) in to Holiday tree lights (or at least reflective decorations for your electric string lights). The Doctor prescribes lots of red wine consumption, candle burning, and sleep tonight.

I've got Blue Balls!

What do you do with the pumpkins orchard owners are almost aching to give away the day after Halloween?, Have a big party for your favorite non profit group (inthis case, The Friends Of Wilmington (De.) Parks) call it Blues at The Blue Ball Barn, hire a kick ass Blues Band (Roger Girke Band), Get Bernadette aka Bernie the caterer, make a bluberry signature tini (Martini Mike), order rental linens in 3 shades of blue( Lt. Slate & perriwinkle), and paint 50 pumpkins blue for decorations! Now that didn't hurt TOO bad did it?

New Doctor Dodson Diggs for Fall/Winter 2011

I posted a bunch of new pics of MD's latest "practice"/living room, on the web site ( DodsonDesignOfDelaware.com), I like how it turned out but I do need to lengthen new (to me), velvet panels on windows, may add 18" fringe!! There are three sun faded panels a friend gave to me, they are basically the same color but softly gradate from Dark Brown to Claret, to Burnt Tobacco, a natural ombre'!

The Tin Man

An architectural salvage place in Philly gave me 4 great , 2'x2', old cieling tins with the purchase of a pair of old french doors with green wooden shutters, the other few hundred tins are being installed in the new London Soho Grand hotel but I wasn't sure what to do with mine, until last night! That's Lilu my dog, sipping a Pomegranet tini.

New Fall Wardrobe For $51.26!!

No Sh*t, I bought almost an entire full new fall wardrobe, 1 black puffy vest with leatherette yolk and cool circle snap closure, 2 pair super dark wash boot leg jeans, 3 beautiful long sleeve dress shirts, 2 pair dress pants, 2 pair workout pants, 2 long sleeve knit shirts, 3 sweaters, 1 khaki jumpsuit, 4 ties, and a duck hunter's fowl/foul weather hat the other day, at Salvation Army all for $51.26! Pictures and details to follow.

My RX for looking phat while keeping your wallet fat?, Salvation Army.

signed: MD The Design Doctor