Hi Everyone,

It’s been a looong time since I wrote on my blog but hey, watching Design Star Season 6 tonight I just HAD to weigh in! I’m really loving Meg, Tyler, Mark and Karl. Kevin is fun to watch. Meg’s room with Tyler last week was awesome! It’s so funny after having been there I really feel for them and the frustrations they go through. But this season they are able to shop in some very nice shops and NO budgets are mentioned. NO timelines either!  AND they have makeup and hair! woo hoo!  I think that’s great!  My year was the last year with the production company that makes….wait for it….Jersey Shore, Tilla Tequila, Tool Academy, the list of quality TV goes on.  Great group to be doing a wholesome HGTV show right? HEINOUS!  Who knew?  That’s why we had 4 hours sleep a night, interviews at 3am and were pushed pushed pushed to fight fight fight.  We even had our own version of Cathy who loved to push our buttons, but oh yeah, he won! ha!   SO when I heard Genivieve Gorder say to Cathy and Kevin, “when we don’t work well together it’s so apparent and tangible in our final product” I literally gagged!…. and threw the remote at the TV!  (ok, not really, I didn’t want to break my screen) That was a priceless little bit of wisdom that could have been used Season 4 for sure.  In the judges defense, (and I still love Vern Yip) they are fed by earpiece A LOT of what to say and who to say it to. I mean really, I knew after (actually during) our first challenge who our winner was and so did everyone else on the show.  Maybe it’s not as apparent to the contestants this season as it was to all of us our season.  But hey, it’s a business and the network needs what it needs. I have absolutely no regrets and really feel some great things came to me from Design Star. My line of baby furniture, PetitNest, with Tiffani Theissen would never have happened if it hadn’t been for the show. So I say, thank you HGTV and thank you Design Star!  Good luck to all of you on Season 6!

Hi Everyone!  Thank you again SO much for your outpouring of positive comments about my room and in support of me!  I am definitely trying to answer all the mail so please be patient with me!  I’ve had so many requests asking where to get the items I used in Tiffany and Brady’s room so I’ll give you as much info as I can!

The wallpaper is sold only “to the trade” (interior designers) so please ask your interior designer about it!   But when I spoke to the owner and told him of the fabulous response, he said you can go to www.designyourwall.com  and order your custom wallpaper at retail through the company!  I hope that helps!

The beautiful roman shades were made by the John Crawford Company  22311 Ventura Blvd. Ste. 102 818-884-5464  Very professional and wonderful workmanship!

The amazing organic felt pillows, organic bamboo sheets and organic comforter and towels are available on www.planetlonni.com Please contact me if you need anything before the site is fully running!!

The bamboo furniture is from Crate and Barrel, the wood floors from Lumber Liquidators and the sisal rug can be purchased at any carpet dealer and custom sized.  Just have them finish the edges for you!

I hope I haven’t forgotten anything!  Thank you all again!!

xoLonni

Hi HGTV fans! First of all, I was so touched by all of your kind comments on the HGTV message boards, my Facebook Fan Page, and Design Star Facebook Page last night. They just kept pouring in, and I couldn’t believe what supportive things everyone had to say. Thank you so much for helping me to go out on a good note! And of course, keep on voting for me at http://www.hgtv.com/designstar and go to Fan Vote at the top. You’re the best

Just so you all know, I loved working with Tiffany & Brady on our eco-friendly guest room challenge. They are an amazing couple and no matter what happened in the judging room, I’m really proud of how my room turned out. Reality television editing being what it is, you can only imagine how hard it was to pull that room together in the time we had and the obstacles put in the way.

Here’s what I have to say about that: on Design Star, we had a camera or two in our faces at LEAST 18 hours a day.  If you multiply that times 3 days (to shoot an episode—sometimes 4) that adds up to at least 54 HOURS of footage!  On EACH contestant!  So with a 45 minute show (excluding commercial) we end up on screen for 2-5 minutes each depending on the number of designers per episode. As Dan said last week in an interview, we signed a contract that allows HGTV to do whatever they want to with those 54 hours of footage. Some of their choices have surprised me, particularly the ones that show less of my personality or my professionalism, or show less of the circumstances that would explain, say, why a particular headboard couldn’t be hung in one day, when it was hung in 15 minutes the day after…

I know I’ve promised you all a “behind the scenes look” at my elimination episode, and as much as I’m dying to give it to you, I can’t. I am under contract and so much was edited out of the episode last night that I would be telling you about things you didn’t even end up seeing. So I’m going to stay positive here: the main thing is, I’ve made friends I wouldn’t trade for all the world. And I’ve had all of you supporting me, the entire way. So thanks for that — because at the end of the day, nobody can edit you out, bloggers and friends and fans and family! You’re the best, and you make getting kicked off a reality tv show a true pleasure.

See you here on planet lonni!

xo Lonni

Congratulations too Melanie!

Congratulations to Melanie, the winner of my Paint Can Party Bag Contest!!

You won…

TWO GEOMETRICAL CANDLES FROM THAILAND
A FLORAL THEMED PAD (TO MAKE YOUR DESIGN LISTS ON!)
A SOY PACIFICA TAHITIAN GARDENIA CANDLE
AN ECO-WISE CALENDAR OF 365 ECO-FRIENDLY IDEASA BOX OF TULSI INDIA ORGANIC PEPPERMINT TEA & TWO BARS OF GREEN & BLACK ORGANIC CHOCOLATE!

Everyone, thanks for entering and check back later for more contest!

Let’s get this party started! Every week, for as long as DESIGN STAR on HGTV airs, we will be celebrating with a regular Sunday night viewing party on planetlonni. Since I’m so sad that you can’t all watch it with me every week — especially you, Margie — I’m giving away one of my famous paint can party bags every week, to celebrate all the friends I made and the experiences I had while being on the show.

Here’s what’s in the planetlonni Paint Can:

TWO GEOMETRICAL CANDLES FROM THAILAND
A FLORAL THEMED PAD (TO MAKE YOUR DESIGN LISTS ON!)
A SOY PACIFICA TAHITIAN GARDENIA CANDLE
AN ECO-WISE CALENDAR OF 365 ECO-FRIENDLY IDEAS

and of course, if you’ve ever stopped by the Design Star site, you already know my favorite “guilty pleasures” –

A BOX OF TULSI INDIA ORGANIC PEPPERMINT TEA & TWO BARS OF GREEN & BLACK ORGANIC CHOCOLATE!

HOW DO I ENTER?

Easy! Add a comment at the bottom of this post. You get +1 point for every comment, +5 points for following me on twitter @lonnipaul, and +10 points for every comment you leave on the Design Star site. Feel free to stop by and enter as many times as you want.

A winner will be chosen right after the show every Sunday night, and announced every Monday morning. GOOD LUCK AND GET POSTING!

Stay Green, Lonni

Hi everyone!

Well, it’s finally started…DESIGN STAR is on the air (10/9 central) on HGTV as of last Sunday, and I couldn’t be more excited! I have learned so much about myself and people and the way reality shows are made…kidding! Really, I have made so many wonderful friends, friends I know I will keep with me for life (Dan, you know who I’m talking about…Dan…) and I just feel really grateful for this past year.

Anyways, SO GRATEFUL that I just couldn’t contain myself. So I decided it was time for me to throw a little party, shake my little booty, and enjoy this season of DESIGN STAR while it lasts…(no spoilers!)

I’m invited all of YOU — my family and friends and favorite new fans on Planet Lonni — to throw your own DESIGN STAR viewing party this Sunday. Every week, I will have a little something to share with my new friends…let’s just call it a party favor from the biggest party of the summer! (Well, it feel that way to me…)

Check out my next post for details. Until then, enjoy life on Planet Lonni, where I’m saving the world one room at a time. Kind of like Superman.  Or Supergirl. Or Designgirl? Or wait, I’ve got it — DESIGN STAR!

Don’t forget to watch on Sunday and check out my contest post!

Stay Green, Lonni