by intern Carly Maltzman
Photo credit: intern Nichole Nicholas
“We didn’t want to do a book that just presented tips on style….this is a script not only of style, but of culture,” co-author Bryan Mason said.
Room and Board, a modern furniture store located in the trendy 14th Street corridor, was the perfect setting to host the launch of Remix: Decorating with Culture, Objects and Soul. Co-founders of the interior design blog – Jeanine Hays and Bryan Mason – discussed their book on Thursday, November 7th in the chic and fun setting that complimented the content of their interior design book.
Angela Hays-Belt – Room & Board’s head visual designer with Jeanine Hays and Bryan Mason
Jeanine, in addition to being a blogger and author, is a regular contributor to HGTV. Together, she and Bryan have a great background in the design world and came to share their knowledge and influence of the ethnic background on design style and give the audience tips on how to create the ultimate personalized space. Special guest Chef Rock Harper provided the hors d’oeuvres.
Seven years ago this married couple started AfroChic, an interior design blog, with aspirations to turn it into something more. Their book pinpoints several aspects of interior design: “We wanted to offer something different and unique to say; we wanted to focus on homes with cultural style and modern faces that reflected someone’s personal heritage,” said Hays. With these aspirations, their book was created. Hays feels hopeful that lots of people have connected with their message.”
Specifically, their cultural background is African American and their style revolves around that: “We wanted to create something that was really representative of us as African American, something [that] was not necessarily our culture as viewed from the outside or even us viewing ourselves.”
So far, they’ve had products come out that were on display along with vignettes for audience members to browse. Remix is a culmination of everything Hays and Mason have been working on the past seven years. “This is really a gift for everyone that has been following AphroChic.” Hays expressed her gratitude for her chance to finally allow people “to really see how my design and cultural style can fit together in today’s most modern spaces.”
Although D.C. is home to many beautiful houses and interior design stores, Hays and Mason went way beyond the city to acquire pieces to add to their book: “We shopped this look all over the country – DC, LA, New York, Philadelphia – and every home where modern style and culture are coming together where people created the most personal individual spaces, and that’s what we want people to do,” Hays emphazed.
Sheena Brackett and DJ Civil
Everything this creative couple does is culturally creative and culturally embedded, whether its fabrics, patterns or furniture. They continue their endeavors as interior designers, authors, and bloggers and hope that people interested in design and culture can connect to the greater message of their newest book: Remix.
