IDS Podcast S3E6: Swatched — Inside Long Island's Biggest Design Gala

This one's all about Swatched, IDS Long Island's design competition and gala that only rolls around every other year — and this fall marks the eighth one. Brian sits down with the two co-chairs running the show: Joey, who a lot of you know from Sights and Sounds on the AV and smart home side of things, and Amber Freedman of North Sea Works, a residential interior designer out of Huntington Station and last year's IDS Designer of the Year.

If you've never been, here's the gist. Designers get one hour, a room layout directive, and a bag of mystery materials, then work the room pulling swatches from sponsor tables to build an original design board — no phones, no outside help, no ChatGPT, everything anonymous. Judges score on creativity and how well each board represents the sponsors, with separate categories for students and seasoned pros. Wrapped around the competition is a real party: a DJ, dance floor, photo booth, a mountain of raffle baskets, and John Tedisco on the mic.

Amber and Joey also get into the part that matters most — the charitable side. This year's proceeds go to the Parkinson's Foundation, the National Kidney Foundation, Tunnel to Towers, and Mama's House. They're still taking sponsorships and raffle donations, and as Amber says, no donation is too small.

Swatched happens this October at Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury. Watch the IDS Long Island website and socials for tickets. Want to donate or reach Amber? amber@northseaworks.com.

You can learn more about our host Brian Berkowitz:

Brian's Website: https://www.brianberkowitzphoto.com

Brian's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brianberko