Design Diva: Jen Bertrand

JEN BERTRAND — BLOND, cheery, four-and-a-half-months' pregnant — is perched atop tall scaffolding in the big, beige front room of a house in Silver Spring. She's using stencils to paint vase-shaped patterns on the walls as part of her upcoming HGTV special, "Paint-Over" (airs Jan. 1 at 5 p.m.), in which she shows people how to use paint to update their homes. This pad belongs to a couple who didn't know what to do with their enormous front room — so they just stuck an enormous TV in it. In an effort to make the room feel cozier, Bertrand is showing them how to break up the space with painted patterns.

As Bertrand paints, she also explains why and how to use stencils — when suddenly she flicks a blob of paint where it isn't supposed to be.

"That's the best part about paint: Everything is fixable," Bertrand says to the camera, dabbing the mistake and showing how to paint over it.

Not too long ago, Bertrand, 33, and her husband, Chris, were running their own design business in Kansas City. Then Bertrand made it onto the third season of HGTV's "Design Star," a seven-week reality competition among nine designers to win the chance to host their own design show. Bertrand won the weekly reality show in August, which led to her hosting "Paint-Over." Ever since, she says, it's been a whirlwind of television and travel, with the occasional visit home.

We caught up with Bertrand during her lunch break from filming in mid-October.

» EXPRESS: How can people start to develop their own style in their first condo?
» BERTRAND: I have all my clients do this, even if they're working with a designer: Create your own style file. Basically, you just go through home magazines and rip them apart. You'll start to see your personal style, and you'll see what you're drawn to based on that alone. [You'll realize,] "My gosh, I like everything clean and light," or, "I really like bold color."
If you are really intimidated by choosing colors, you can find designers who will do color consultations for you and come help you choose your paint palette. But be sure to find a designer who you feel understands your style and what you're about.
And when you're ready to paint but still not sure [where], paint two coats of the color on huge poster boards and hang them around the room. Look at them in morning, day and evening light to see how the light in your space affects the color. A little quart of paint and some poster board — [those materials] can help save you a lot of time.

» EXPRESS: What are some of your tips for making a small condo seem bigger?
» BERTRAND: Don't break up all of your flooring. For example, run dark hardwood floors throughout and then create separate spaces with area rugs. You can do the same thing with paint on the walls. Find a shade of a color you love, and either have that color flow or just change tones of that color as you progress through the condo, going up or down a few shades on the paint strip.
Also, remember you can paint your ceiling the same color as your walls, and that helps it feel taller in there because you're not stopping your paint at the ceiling. Try it in a guest bathroom first and then you'll see!

» EXPRESS: Where do you recommend people shop for inexpensive accent pieces like cool pillows and art?
» BERTRAND: I love finding artists' one-of-a-kind pieces. Sometimes art institutes will have holiday sales where students will sell their work. You could also go to eBay, or take blank canvases and turn them into pieces of art - paint them with abstract designs or with solid colors.

I have dresses that I love that I don't fit into and I'll find a tailor to make pillows out of them. Why waste money when you may decide this season you want lime as your accent color and next season you want turquoise?

If you need a cool sculpture, go to a garden store and look at outdoor garden things. Architectural salvage places are awesome.

I always tell people, on your big expensive things, go very classic — little black dress — because your style may change and you could get sick of something. It's OK to play it safe on the expensive things.

And if you can't afford to design it all at once, do it a little at a time, as your budget allows. But don't think of each room as an individual. You're trying to create a harmony throughout the whole thing.

» EXPRESS: What should people do with their TV in a small space so it doesn't take up an entire wall?
» BERTRAND: I love to hide them away as if they're works of art with happy surprises behind them. You can buy an unfinished cabinet, and you can either mount a photograph [on it] so it looks like a work of art, or you can paint an abstract image on it. You could also wrap a mirror on a cabinet to make your space feel bigger.

But you don't want to look like you're designing around a TV by hiding it in a cabinet. Some of my friends have bought frames to put around the TV, so you still see the TV but it's framed out so it's not just hanging on the wall.

» EXPRESS: You went from being a small-business owner and interior designer to a TV show contestant to the host of your own HGTV special. What's it like being a TV show host?
» BERTRAND: I love it! This is what I love to do — to inspire and enable homeowners to create fabulous spaces themselves.

My favorite part is that every design I do is unique to that homeowner because I get to figure out what their "warm fuzzy" is. You should walk into a space and it should feel like home. It should impact your emotions and you should say, "I love this room!" And it's just helping people figure out how to be able to make their spaces feel like a beautiful, cohesive design without breaking the bank.

Written by Express Contributor Arin Greenwood
Photo Courtesy of Nijme Rinaldi-Nun and iStock