The apartment dweller’s ultimate design resource, ApartmentTherapy.com, has chosen 5 men from across the country for an apartment re-design. The lucky dude selected for a room makeover in the Southwest happens to be in Dallas and –icing on the cake — he lives in the Design District!

Michael Brandes, a resident of the Alexan Design District, explained his design dilemma in yesterday’s kickoff post.

“I need help picking a new wall color and living room furniture. I would like to get away from the “Asian” theme and try something new. I need a space to entertain and lounge and be comfortable. I live in a brand new, cool building overlooking the Dallas skyline, and I need a space that has my personality and blends into the Dallas landscape.”

Apartment Therapy founder, Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan is serving as Michael’s personal design consultant. (Seriously, could I be any more jealous?!) In yesterday’s post he explained that on the first visit they moved around furniture, planned their shopping list, and zeroed in on colors. The next post in the Dallas series will go up tomorrow, with several features to follow on the design process and results.

Michael, a recent transplant from Seattle, gave great insight into his choice of living in the Dallas Design District, explaining:

“The area has an industrial and artistic vibe that I love. For many years I lived in studio apartments in major cities, including Seattle. When I moved to Dallas, I realized I could actually afford a 2-bedroom, 2-bath apartment with ample windows, natural light, and more space than I know what to do with! Also, this time instead of “city-living” I’ve opted for a lovely terrace that overlooks Dallas and its skyline. I didn’t think I’d be able to find a skyline view here — I have to say, I’ve absolutely fallen in love with how pretty it is.”

I agree, Michael. Lower Oak Lawn apartments certainly have some of the best and most unique views of downtown Dallas!

The view of downtown Dallas from Michael's Alexan Design District apartment.

Michael’s apartment redesign is being featured as a part of The Inside Man, a special blog feature, sponsored by Valspar Paint, dedicated to daily (Monday – Friday) posts from Apartment Therapy and GQ about men’s color conundrums, decor decisions and style questions. You can read more about guy style at theinsideman.apartmenttherapy.com or check out GQ’s guide to guy style at gq.com/theinsideman.

I look forward to following Michael’s living room style upgrade and promise to bring LowerOakLawn.com reader updates on the design progress!

Alexan Design District
1551 Oak Lawn Ave.
Dallas, TX 75207
www.alexandesigndistrict.com

Photos Courtesy of Michael Brandes and Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, Apartment Therapy