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desperatehousewives
  • desperatehousewives

    You may not want to take relationship advice from the ladies of Wisteria Lane, but here are some decorating tips from the ever-popular show.

  • desperatehousewives

    When decorating the home of Bree Van de Kamp on Wisteria Lane, production designer Thomas Walsh chose tans, beiges and strong contrasts to support the complexities of her character.

  • desperatehousewives

    Katherine's dark, wood-filled Craftsman-style home is purposefully decorated in direct contrast to Bree’s more traditional house.

  • moodboard

    Desperate Housewives production designer Thomas Walsh created a Mood Board (half shown here, half in the next image) as a point of inspiration for the set design.

  • moodboard

    Desperate Housewives production designer Thomas Walsh created a Mood Board (half shown here, half in the previous image) as a point of inspiration for the set design.

  • palette

    The original color palette for Wisterial Lane and its residents. The actual Benjamin Moore paint colors are listed below.

  • palette

    More of the colors production designer Thomas Walsh used to create the set design for Desperate Housewives. The actual Benjamin Moore paint colors are listed below.


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More of the colors production designer Thomas Walsh used to create the set design for Desperate Housewives. The actual Benjamin Moore paint colors are listed below.

 

Each of the main characters’ homes on Desperate Housewives has a distinct color pallete. While colors appear differently on television than they do in person, here’s a look at the actual Benjamin Moore shades production designer Tom Walsh chose to achieve the right look for each home:

 

Susan:

            • Provence Crème

            • Whisper Violet

            • Crisp Straw

            • Hollingsworth Green

            • Sweet Salmon

            • Pink Pearl

 

Gabby:

            • Dark Beige

            • Beeswax

            • Annapolis Gray

            • Soft Pumpkin

            • Acorn Yellow

            • Summer Peach

 

Lynette:

            • November Skies

            • Strawberry Yogurt

            • Beacon Gray

            • Cherry Malt

            • Melted Ice Cream

            • Rose Silk

 

Bree:

            • Durango Dust

            • Wickham Gray

            • Arizona Tan

            • Wythe Blue

            • Butter Pecan

            • Hathaway Peach

 

 

 

 

“There is no failure. You learn by doing, and every experience is something you can apply to your next judgment."~Thomas Walsh, production designer for Desperate Housewives on ABC.

 

 

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  • Desperate Housewives Decorating

    Define your own decorating style with tips from the man who created Wisteria Lane’s signature look.

    by Paula Hendrickson

    Like the main characters’ homes on ABC’s Desperate Housewives (now in syndication), your home should reflect your unique style. The trick is defining who you are, what you love and what you aspire to become. That’s what production designer Thomas Walsh focused on when designing sets for each character on Wisteria Lane.

     

    Rooms that Represent Character

    On a TV series that quickly cuts from one scene to another, it’s crucial for characters to have distinct styles. “As you cut from one person’s drama to the next, you always know where you are at any point in time,” says Walsh. “It’s almost subliminal: ‘Oh, I’m in Susan’s world now,’ or ‘I’m in Bree’s world.’”

     Dedicated fans know the homes on Wisteria Lane have subtly evolved along with their residents. “The first year, Bree had a dead marriage. Everything was about form and presentation, but was devoid of passion,” Walsh says. “We used tans, beiges and strong contrasts of right and wrong.”

    Just as Bree’s home initially underscored her repressed emotions and a desire to be in control, other characters’ homes reflected their own lives:

                • Susan (Teri Hatcher): creative, romantic, on-a-budget, shabby chic flair

                • Lynnette (Felicity Huffman): nice-but-worn furnishings, slightly chaotic, a little messy at times

                • Gabby (Eva Longoria Parker): nouveau riche, warm, sensual Mediterranean colors

    Upon the arrival of Katherine (Dana Delany)—the only domestic goddess fastidious enough to overshadow Bree (Marcia Cross)—Walsh created a new set just as perfect as Bree’s, yet very different.

    “She was going to be a counterpoint and competition to Bree,” Walsh says. “She was to mirror Bree in certain respects. There’s a certain control and power in her environment, but with enough different stylish elements to create an identity different from Bree.”

    Katherine’s dark, wood-filled Craftsman-style home is in direct contrast to Bree’s more traditional house. “There was a sense of mystery about Katherine’s house and what happened in the past,” Walsh says. “We needed to support that and give the house more drama than a regular suburban home.”

     

    Define Your Own Style

    Walsh uses character’s back-stories when designing sets, something you can do, too, using your own histories, values and dreams. Walsh suggests the following questions:

             • What are my aspirations?

             • What do I want to project about myself through the choices I make for my home environment?

             • What colors are most important to me?

     “Start with the fundamental things: palette and which colors give you the most comfort,” Walsh says. Draw inspiration from artwork you admire. “Do a little scrapbook of things that really give you pleasure and of what you aspire to be. From there, start to do your own research. If you’re into the shabby chic thing like Susan, then the world of flea markets and thrift stores becomes a goldmine for a very wonderful creative journey of finding things that fit the scenario you’ve created for yourself.”

     

    Details Count

    On the set of a TV show or in your home, details complete the picture.

     “The details are very important,” Walsh says. “Often I’ll start with the details and work out to the bigger picture. But when laying out a new room from scratch, you always start with the larger key objects.”

     Next he adds accessories based on the colors, textures and patterns of the larger items. View each accessory as a way to inject your personality into the space. For Bree that could be an exquisite vase she’ll never use, whereas Susan would probably stick wildflowers in an old Mason jar. Gabby once had paintings of herself on the wall, now she might have her daughters’ artwork on the refrigerator instead.

     

    Don’t Panic

    Instead of worrying about decorating, try to keep it fun. “Don’t be afraid of failing,” says Walsh. “There is no failure. You learn by doing, and every experience is something you can apply to your next judgment.”