Modern Speakeasy Comes to Kip's Bay Dallas

If you have never attended the Kip’s Bay Decorator’s Show House, you owe it to yourself to visit the 2022 Dallas Show House when it begins on September 22. The Kips Bay Decorator Show House is an event in which highly respected designers are brought in to transform a home, which is then opened up to the public to raise money for charity. The Kip’s Bay Boys and Girls Club partners with local charities, Dwell with Dignity, and The Crystal Charity Ball this year.

In 2021 the show house was located in Old Preston Hollow. The 12,000 square-foot home was located just minutes from Northwest Highway and the tollway, and miles from the American Airlines Center and the fantastic shopping and dining of Preston Center. Among the designers chosen to participate were Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Pulp Design Studios, and Traci Connell.

Dallas-based Yates Desygn was invited to transform the basement living area, and they chose BRAVAS to imagine the technology solutions to deliver their vision. Bryan and Mike Yates, the partners behind Yates Desygn, created an entertaining space inspired by prohibition-era speakeasies. Based on their incredible vision BRAVAS was able to intertwine technology in a way that added to the space but didn’t distract from the intricate design.

When BRAVAS learned that the room would be in a basement, a rarity in Dallas, we immediately recommended Ketra lighting. Ketra lighting is fully color-tunable, allowing Yates to create an immersive environment with light. As the walls were covered in hand-painted suede controlling the light to show off the beautiful walls was very important.

Those Ketra fixtures were controlled by a Lutron Homeworks QS lighting control system, and visitors were able to interact with the lighting using a Lutron Alisse Keypad. Alisse was chosen for its timeless look and unique metal finishes, which go well with the jeweled quality of the space.

Finally, it wouldn’t be a speakeasy without music, and BRAVAS provided the atmosphere with Sonance invisible speakers and a Savant control system. The invisible speakers were vital to maintain the timeless feel of the space, especially with the low basement ceiling.

To read more about the project, visit https://www.yatesdesygn.com/gallery/kips-bay-dallas-2021.