Going Gray, Pink and Lavender
Designer Barry Dixon brings bespoke POV to Decorative Center Houston Spring Market
Interior designer Barry Dixon has lived on every continent and draws inspiration from the colors and textures discovered during his global journeys, but when designing for clients, it’s their own authentic voice he finds most engaging.
“Clients don’t want the design to look like everyone else," he tells CultureMap. "There’s a bespoke level of personal attention to a room. Colors are specifically suited to that person."
Dixon is a keynote speaker at the Decorative Center Houston Spring Market on Thursday and kicks off the day-long event with a lecture at 10 am focused on how color and fabric pattern become the story of a home. A reception in the Fabricate Showroom follows the lecture.
His home base is Elway Hall, his 271-acre estate in Warranton, near Washington D. C. and his work has been featured in House Beautiful and Southern Accents, and on ABC’s Good Morning America and on HGTV. In addition to publishing beautiful coffee table books, Dixon stokes his creative juices with products such as original furniture designs for Tomlinson/Erwin-Lambeth, accessories and furniture with Arteriors and the Naturals Color Collection by Barry Dixon for C2 Paint.
Color is at the heart of every design project and Dixon says his clients are going gray and accenting the hue with touches of gentle colors.
“My clients are moving into a warm, gray world. Foggy mist and grayer sides of dark white,” Dixon said. “Lavender is holding strong and pale shell pink too.”
Layering is also crucial to a home’s look and feel, so Dixon isn’t just designing spaces that please the eye. He’s looking for colors, fabrics and accessories that convey who his clients are and how they want guests to feel.
“Make a statement to the people who come in the door. Add layers of authenticity that represent that person,” Dixon said.
It’s a design philosophy he applies to his own home. Each guest room draws on different colors to convey a masculine or feminine vibe, but creating a soothing space for visitors is the goal. His own master bedroom is awash in sepia, ecru and rose quartz tones, giving the space a living water color feel.
Dixon’s most cherished room, however is his library, a room he fondly refers to as his curiosity shop. It’s dark and brooding and filled with art, books and mementos he’s discovered during throughout his life. It’s a personal example of his authentic layering mantra.
“I love travel and the library triggers my memories. The room is a trip down memory lane,” Dixon said.
