The Fixer-Upper
View from the Bay's Lisa Quinn started her decorating career 12 years ago.
posted May 15, 2007 5:06PM
Lisa Quinn, 39, started her decorating career in 1995 with a desire to make her home in West Palm Beach, FL, look more expensive than it was. “I never had any money,” says Quinn, who moved to the Bay Area 10 years ago. “I think everyone can relate to being strapped for cash but not wanting to live in a hovel.” Her role as the “house doctor” on ABC-7’s afternoon talk show and pre-Oprah appetizer, View from the Bay, has landed her a spin-off design series called Dream Home, which features such local celebrity guests as Michael Chiarello and Discovery Channel’s Mike Rowe chatting about their personal dwellings and tendering their own design tips. For Quinn’s best pointers on how to spruce up your space without taking out a bank loan, read on.
“Paint can really make your artwork and furniture pop. I love low-VOC paint, and it doesn’t really cost that much more—plus it’s green-friendly.” Available at Discount Builders Supply (1695 Mission St., 415-621-8511)
“In my first apartment, I could only afford used upholstery—it was disgusting! Now I go to Discount Fabrics in SoMa. It’s a wonderful resource for inexpensive upholstery fabric.” (525 Fourth St., 415-495-4201)
“You can find beautiful pieces at salvage yards. I made a headboard out of a beat-up old door by tilting it sideways. People ask all the time where I got it, and it was just $35 from Urban Ore in the East Bay.” (900 Murray St., Berkeley, 510-841-7283)
“There are decorators who will, for one flat fee, come in and rearrange and edit what you’ve got. I think Sophie Azouaou at Sophisticate Interiors does a good job of this.” (510-410-3574)
“Paint can really make your artwork and furniture pop. I love low-VOC paint, and it doesn’t really cost that much more—plus it’s green-friendly.” Available at Discount Builders Supply (1695 Mission St., 415-621-8511)
“In my first apartment, I could only afford used upholstery—it was disgusting! Now I go to Discount Fabrics in SoMa. It’s a wonderful resource for inexpensive upholstery fabric.” (525 Fourth St., 415-495-4201)
“You can find beautiful pieces at salvage yards. I made a headboard out of a beat-up old door by tilting it sideways. People ask all the time where I got it, and it was just $35 from Urban Ore in the East Bay.” (900 Murray St., Berkeley, 510-841-7283)
“There are decorators who will, for one flat fee, come in and rearrange and edit what you’ve got. I think Sophie Azouaou at Sophisticate Interiors does a good job of this.” (510-410-3574)
