Tammy Prestipino, owner of Home Point Lake Anna, a popular home décor store at Anna Point Marina, has welcomed Stefan and Stephanie Dytrt and brightblack Design Works to her shop. Brightblack is the name for the Dytrt’s company that creates custom signs for Lake Anna homeowners.
After working for years in commercial architecture and corporate interior design, having designed and managed the construction of millions of square feet for defense contractors, law firms and associations nationwide, burnout set in for the Dytrts, and it was time for something different. Stefan and Stephanie decided to start briteblack in their Arlington garage in January of 2025.
Stephanie’s love for Lake Anna began over 25 years spending many summers visiting her aunt and uncle (Tammy and Vincent Prestipino) learning to wakeboard and drive the boat.
Stefan grew up learning woodworking from his late father and missed working with his hands. That, combined with a need for a new creative outlet, led to the formation of briteblack design works.
What made it even better was when the Dytrts decided to invest in a professional level CNC machine that could turn their ideas and art into finished pieces.
Prestipino told Life & Times she saw some of the initial pieces at a family holiday party and offered to display them at Home Point. After a successful pop up in the spring, she formally offered up a corner of her shop to make it their own.
The Dytrts have enjoyed meeting many members of the Lake Anna community and working with them to design personalized artwork and signage for their homes. The design process starts with a drawing of a place, scene or wildlife. The couple then converts that artwork into a digital image that is processed by the CNC machine to carve the design into a wood panel. Their past design experience allows them to distill the information and ideas provided by a client into a unique one-of-a-kind art piece.
“I love having Stefan and Stephanie at Home Point,” Prestipino told Life & Times. “They are both extremely talented artists and designers that decided to take on a ‘expensive’ hobby! Last Christmas they brought a few items to the Prestipino family gathering to give out. I told them I thought they would do great at the lake!”
Prestipino says they’ve had fun coming up with fun ideas for the signs like paddleboarders, wakeboards, waterskiing, herons and anything bourbon.
“I wanted to support them on this new venture, and it has grown quickly. They are doing custom work for folks all over the lake,” said Prestipino.
You can find brightblack work at Home Point and can find more information at www.briteblack.com.
