Design MegaStar

David Bromstad was the first Design Star and he's the best: period. His show, Color Splash, is one I DVR because he always has ideas we, the real people, can not just appreciate, but incorporate into our own spaces. He tosses off design advice that gives me courage to try it myself, such as "If you want to change the look of an old piece of furniture, paint it!"

I do like color, but real color, NOT color that takes the place of good, livable design. David's approach to design, "don't be afraid of color," gave me the courage to paint the guest room a shade of purple I really like, rather than a nice, soft sort of lilac shade I could have (safely) used. Using David as my personal design star, I added a few accessories that complemented the purple, with white as the color to tone down the fussiness of the room and give the blank canvas upon which to paint with color. I will admit, however, that I have not painted the heavy furniture white, which it should be to finally finish off the room the way it should look.

David is now in Miami and he's tackling design projects that I never knew existed, such as 25' ceilings!! He knows how to fill the empty spaces well, creating little special living spaces within the design space. His design style has evolved over the past few years into what I think of as elegant simplicity accented with a dramatic use of effective color. Instead of bright red walls, he paints elegant, cool grey or white walls that survive long past the design make-over, and then adds the red here and there, where it best serves a specific purpose. I still cringe when I remember the black dining room with yellow accents on one season of Design Star -- and a stunned designer who could not fathom why the client absolutely hated the end product.

David also adds signature art to his designs, creating exactly the right piece of art to go in the absolutely right space to finish the design, sort of like creating the perfect topper for a couple's wedding cake. He also brings in specialists, such as the glass artist in Miami who has created some unique designs for David's Color Splash Miami make-overs. The difference with Design Star Miami is that the homes are ... over the top and obviously expensive, which means David's designs have to step up to the client expectations. Bromstad is no longer splashing color on common walls, but creating showcases for the higher end client who not only expects that level of design performance, but can afford to pay for it.

Another David, David Tutero, who hosts My Fair Wedding, makes the point in another way: never add spray-on glitter to a fake flower bouquet. If the flowers don't dazzle on their own, no amount of fake glitter is going to do it for them, and if David Bromstad's designs don't dazzle on the drawing board, no amount of faking it is going to result in a satisfied client.

I'm happy to see that David Bromstad and his program, Color Splash Miami, continue to be part of the HGTV programming line-up as other design star program winners have been named, but none can match David for strong, solid design -- and execution of the concept in a way that makes him the best of all the Design Stars currently on TV.