Sunday, June 15, 2014

Out Spotlight

Today's Out Spotlight is an award-winning architectural and interior designer who gained national acclaim for his expertise in transforming homes and restaurants in his private design practice and on prime time television. The designer, TV personality, businessman, and activist is also a proud father of two. Today's Out Spotlight is Vern Yip.

Vern Yip was born June 27, 1968, in Hong Kong before moving to the United State with his family. He was raised by his mother, who was a loving and strong presence in his life. Yip has a sister, who lives in Hong Kong.

Yip attended high school in northern Virginia at McLean High School graduating 1986. After earning two degrees, just prior to entering a pre-med program, he changed his mind, and decided to get into architecture. With a Bachelor of Arts in economics from The University of Virginia, a Master of Science degree in management and a master’s degree in architecture from The Georgia Institute of Technology, he has used his varied educational background to build a distinguished business.

He has said he would have been quite happy running a design company, and never intended to become a television personality, but felt it was what he was meant to do.

He began his television career appearing on TLC's Trading Spaces and was known for frequently including silk, candles and flowers in the rooms he designed.

Yip hosted four seasons of HGTV's show Deserving Design and he is one of the panel of judges on HGTV's Design Star. He also hosted an HGTV special called Urban Oasis, in which he designed a Chicago loft in the Trump International Hotel, to be given away to a winner.

He runs his own design company in Atlanta, Vern Yip Designs, and vernyip.com, where design tips are dispensed with consumer value in mind.

His creations and room transformations range in budget from frugal to eight-figure projects for high-end clients, including the design for a high-profile Oscar party in 2006. His eclectic style is influenced from his world travels, which include childhood trips to Asia, Latin America and Europe.


Vip, who describes himself as a classic overachiever, has garnered an impressive list of design awards, such as the 2003 Distinguished Southerner Award from Southern Living magazine, 2000 Southeast Designer of the Year, 1999 Best New Restaurant for Fusebox restaurant in Atlanta and 1999 Best New Night Club for DeuxPlex Bistro and Night Club in Atlanta. In addition, he has been prominently featured in various publications such as Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times and USA Today. He is frequently seen on such television shows as Today, The Early Show, Oprah, CNN and Live! With Regis and Kelly.

He continues to be involved in nonprofit efforts and has served as honorary chair for ‘Eleven – the Event,’ the 2009 fundraiser for The Ulman Cancer Fund, where he established the Vera Yip Memorial Scholarship in honor of his mother. He also works closely with UNICEF to help raise awareness of the needs of children around the world. Since 2009, Vern has designed the UNICEF snowflake ball in New York. In addition to the designing the organization’s 2011 ball, Vern also has been designated with the honor of lighting the UNICEF Snowflake that hangs above New York’s famed 5th Avenue.

Yip and his partner, Craig Koch, welcomed son Gavin Joshua Mannox, born by surrogate, on January 6, 2010. The couple's second child, Vera Lillian Beatrix, was also born via surrogate on March 12, 2011.






8 comments:

prairiegirl said...

Just want to say hey and I look forward to reading this OutSpotlight. Great looking family.

I have to say that I have been so swept up by J2. Beautifully and wonderfully swept up and away. The material on them is ginormous - gifs, con panel videos, pictures, and the fanfic is out of this world. m, they have so much slash out there, it isn't funny. I am in the midst of a glorious J2 AU that I stayed up until 1330 last night, unwilling to put it away. LOL!! These girls are inspiring me to be a better writer with my stories but for right now, I have to say that it is so wonderful to be a reader and I can't say enough about how exciting it is to read these stories.

Have never used my YouTube account so much in my entire life either. I've learned how to login to YouTube on my TV and to watch their musical vids and the con panel vids big as life is so awesome.

The J2 fans have so much available to them via these videos - 9 seasons worth. And I laugh because what did we as Jaustin fans have? We had one set of pictures for 2006 of the Lakers game, a few biking photo ops, the Sushi lunch video and then a grainy, fuzzy video from Berlinale and the back of Austin's body going up the red carpet stairs. BWAHAH!!! In ten darn years.

It is a true testament to all the OMGers from the very beginning and old timers like Vespy and Stubborn, et all who found clues in photos and dug around for interviews, everyone past and present. It is an incredible collection.

Jared & Jensen make themselves so available to their fans through encounters on the street and at the con's. Jake and Austin are very removed - not nearly as accessible at all. So for the information that has been discovered to this point to be archived here on OMG, that is just mindblowing. I'm very proud of everybody here.

There are similarities in the "investigations' and fans who follow J2 and Jaustin, there are a lot of differences. It is a totally fascinating study to this point in looking at the differences and similarities because both are ongoing at this very hour.

This is probably kind of rambling but I've got to get to my story as I only have 30 min. left in my lunch hour.

Disney approved said...



NikkiFinke.com reports a sequel to Father of the Bride is in the works (currently not working under the title Fath3r of th3 Brid3), with the original film's director Charles Shyer attached to write and direct. (Nancy Meyers, who co-wrote the first two films, passed.) Steve Martin will return as the titular bride-father. The movie will focus on Matty, played by Kieran Culkin in the originals, who is now 29 and engaged to be married to a man (a Navy SEAL's son). Martin's character isn't sure about this whole gay-marriage thing, so Diane Keaton's character kicks him out of the house. Shenanigans ensue. Live birds will likely be involved.

prairiegirl said...

lol, meant to say I stayed up until 01:30 this morning reading. Can't tell time, I guess.

Watching a bit of the USA/Ghana game. Isn't it funny how America can only get into soccer during World Cup? It just never really caught on professionally, although the Kansas City team does pretty good, I think.

About done with my story - it's called "In It For Love" and it's based on shows like The Bachelor. So, so well done. I haven't hardly been able to put the darn thing down & will finish it tonight - a real power read. I heartily recommend it as well one called The Courtship of Jensen's Co-Star. That one is unbelievably good. Just in case anyone is interested. ;D

Geez!!! Ghana is just taking shot after shot at our goalie, what in the heck.

prairiegirl said...

GOOOOOAAAAL!!!!

Did you guys see that?

WOW!!! Intense!!

Special K said...

Wow! What a game!!! US beats Ghana 2-1!

prairiegirl said...

What a finish!!! That was so exciting!
Jared tweeted as soon as that game was finished, lol.

wow. That was something!

Methodical Muser said...

I did see the goal. Exciting game. USA! USA! USA!

destiny said...

Oh man, missed an exciting game I see. I was out with a friend seeing a new musical based on the music of 2Pac. Kind of disappointing, stock story, and didn't like what they did with the music.