Kristin Drohan Collection @TwelveChairs

John Canopy Bed from the Kristin Drohan Collection

available at Twelve Chairs in Boston

A couple of weeks ago I attended the launch of the Kristin Drohan furniture collection at Twelve Chairs design studio in Boston. The owners of Twelve Chairs, Miggy Mason and Roisin Giese, are interior designers and purveyors of sustainable furnishings. Their pretty shop, filled with organic wares, has a warm and inviting ambience. It is the perfect spot to host a party! They recently started to carry pieces from Kristin’s line, and the rooms were filled with guests who were invited to check them out “in real life.”

Each piece from the collection is made from reclaimed woods and is marked with its own “Provence.” The fabrics are extremely durable and the eco-friendly soy-based cushions have extreme bounce back (inner coils = no bootie prints on these seats!) The upholstered pieces are also quite beautiful in design, scale and proportion.

Click here to see Kristin describe the anatomy of her collection in her own words.

The Sydney Lounge Chair available at Twelve Chairs

With Kristin Drohan at Twelve Chairs launch

Kristin Drohan Collection in New England Finery Magazine, summer 2011

Kristin was featured in the summer issue of New England Finery Magazine. Shortly after, she moved with her family to Atlanta. It was so nice to meet up with her during her return visit to Boston. Read her design story here.


One of Kristin’s goals when I first interviewed her, was to expand the offering of her collections to a variety of showrooms and geographical markets. She recently had a very successful sale on One Kings Lane in addition to launching at Twelve Chairs. Lots of designers are finding out about her custom-build options ... I think she is well on her way!

Congratulations, Kristin, and thank you Twelve Chairs for hosting such a fun evening! Below are more pics from the party.

My friends and feature contributors to New England Finery:

 designers Rosanne Palazola and Katherine Hawkins

 

Rosanne lounging on The Reagan Sofa at Twelve Chairs.

Dunes and Duchess: Michael Partenio and Stacy Kunstel

with designer Linda Merrill of Surroundings

FYI: Stacy is the honorary chair at this year’s North Shore Design Show at the Wenham Museum. Order your tickets to the Gala event now! It’s always a fun time (I will be there : ) 

This Dunes and Duchess Chappy Table was stunning,

painted in a rich, charcoal blue-gray. 

The console table by the window is another

pretty piece from Dunes and Duchess.

Photographers Greg Premru and Michael Partenio

Window treatment expert Sarah Devaney-O’Neil, designer Barbara Elza Hirsch  
and Elizabeth Wilcox who works with Sarah at Storibook Designs 

Wendy from BDCs Ralph Lauren Home with Erika Johnson from Radiant Republic

and another designer seen in New England Finery Kristen Rivoli

Katie Stinchfield From House Rules (and Rue La La)

with Kate Van Geldern from DomestiKatedLife

Yours truly catching up with Kate.

With designer Julieann Covino, photographer Sarah Winchester

and her adorable new baby girl - the youngest guest on the list!

Design tip: add orange

Photo credit: Laura Thomson

In case you were unable to attend the Boston Flower and Garden Show in Boston last week, my friend Laura Thomson who blogs at Designing44 posted some of her favorite takeaway tips. Stop by her blog for a tour!

Art in Bloom 2012

Last week was the Village Garden Club of Lynnfield’s Annual Art in Bloom display at the Lynnfield Library. Seasoned artists from the Lynnfield Art Guild along with talented students from the Lynnfield Middle and High Schools were asked to submit their works of art to be interpreted with flowers. 

“Soaring Colors” by Alison Council

I fell in love with this collage by Lynnfield High School student, Alison Council. First, the typography combined with hand written words of inspiration really appealed to me. Second, the bird image is made up of little bits of ripped magazine pages. You know how much I love magazines! The composition of the piece impressed me and I admire its confident message.

Arrangement by Yvonne Blacker

“Soaring Colors” by Alison Council

For my arrangement, I chose mini carnations which look like crinkled pieces of paper. I found these really neat floral accessories that looked very Dr. Suess-like (the tall curled brown branches remind me of Alison’s poetic script, bright pink orbs repeat the pink of the bird, and the fragile white pods resemble eggs). I supported the flowers with a nest of feathers tucked into the tall, vintage silver vase. In order to incorporate some blue into my interpretation, I twisted a pale blue silk ribbon around the vase as one might wrap a hand-held bouquet. This arrangement was all about the container, the scale, and finding inspiration in whimsy. 

It was such a pleasure to meet the artist, Alison, on opening night. Her parents were also there, and I could tell they are very proud of her! The audience was quite lively being composed of students, their families, and those of us who have been at this Art in Bloom thing for awhile : ) I think it was one of my favorite shows because it really captured the spirit of community. 

“Life, The Universe and Everything” 

Artist Gabriel Fadel, Lynnfield High School

Arrangement by Ann Encarnacao

“Eiffel Tower” by Britt Daw, Lynnfield Art Guild

Arrangement by Laura Thomson

“Spring Blooms” by Ashley Bass

Arrangement by Chris Barbosa of Northeast Nursery

Lynnfield Middle School student Ashley Bass

discusses what inspired her painting.

“Pastorale” by Beth Aaronson, Lynnfield Art Guild

Arrangement by Bootie Stevens

“Twilight Garden” by Juhi Saxena, Lynnfield Middle School 

Arrangement by Karen Hathaway and Betsy Foley

“Happy Pandas” by Marina Maylor, Lynnfield High School 

Arrangement by Mary Schwartz

“Live Free” by Mackenzie Comeau, Lynnfield High School 

Arrangement by Paula McKeever and Debbie Caniff

“Jetty” by Britt Daw, Lynnfield Art Guild 

Arrangement by Jan Lisacki and Karen Hathaway

“Candle Light” by Shaila Desai, Lynnfield Art Guild 

Arrangement by Micki Trigilio

“Henna Design” Samantha Shapleigh, Lynnfield HS 

Arrangement by Judy Barry, Floral Designer

Judy shared a neat professional trick with us ... she created her arrangement in a shallow dish that she then balanced on top of the tall floor vase.

“Window Reflections on Rue De May”

Artist Ruth Mowder, Lynnfield Art Guild

Arrangement by Greg O’Brien of Gregory’s

Flower Shop and Garden Center in Wakefield

“Cat Tail” Connor Reardon, Lynnfield Middle School

Arrangement by Nadine Richie

“Sedona” by Gail Rober, Lynnfield Art Guild

Arrangement by Lisa Green, AIFD

Eric’s Flower Emporium, Reading

“After the Storm” Joanne M Graham-Troy, Lynnfield Art Guild

Arrangement by Darlene Donnelly, Heritage Flowers, Lakeville

Club members Micki, Wendy, Laura, Betsy, Karen, Joan, Ann

Thank you for stopping by to visit our arrangements.

We hope you enjoyed the show!

The Village Garden Club of Lynnfield

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

Saint Patty's Green by designvignettes featuring layered jewelry

SIKA BOUTIQUE — Green Birds Shirt Dress
£89 - boutique.sikadesigns.co.uk

Manolo Blahnik leather shoes
$745 - barneys.com

Bangles jewelry
$19 - lulus.com

David Aubrey layered jewelry
$165 - simplysoles.com

geobloom rug in rugs/pillows | CB2
cb2.com

John-Richard Collection Green & White Faux Flowers
$310 - neimanmarcus.com

1STDIBS.COM - Assemblage Ltd. - Italian Green & Parcel Gilt Carved...
1stdibs.com

Bilbao Green Tumbler
£4 - habitat.co.uk

Crave Cookies and Cupcakes - Lemon-Lime Twist
$1.75 - cravecupcakes.ca

Set of 9 Assorted Moss Covered Balls
$15 - crateandbarrel.com

What I am working on ...

Color and Design Consultations

All of a sudden I have a lot of decorating projects that I am working on again. This mudroom above, is an after photo in a home that I color consulted on about 5 or 6 years ago. It is an historic home with lots of great architectural details and the homeowner was not afraid of mixing it up a bit by using coordinating trim colors in most of the rooms. I recently went back to choose paint colors for three more spaces. I can’t wait to see how the dining room is going to come out with its new gray and cream color palette. Also on the agenda is choosing accessories for a teenage girl’s room, and a complete overhaul of another client’s pet-friendly living room. 

Brick walkway at the Wenham Musuem

North Shore Design Show at Wenham Museum

It’s official! I am one of the participating designers once again for the Wenham Museum North Shore Design Show in May. This show is a perennial favorite of mine, as I have been involved in it since it first began back in 2009. This will be my fourth “favorite space” and I will be including a really cool item from the Designer Bath showroom. It will not, however, be a bathroom! Below is a sample of the carpet from Company C at Circle Furniture that will be part of my vignette.

Showroom Design Project

Speaking of Designer Bath, we are in the process of changing up some of our Beverly showroom displays. This soaking tub from WetStyle will be moved to another area and be replaced with an amazing new piece from Zucchetti. I won’t give it away just yet, but if you get the New England ASID newsletter, we featured it in our most recent ad (Spring 2012 – just arrived on my desk yesterday!) We recently stopped by to visit Lucy Dearborn at the Lucia Lighting showroom to pick out an amazing lighting fixture to go with our new look. It is going to be stunning! 

A Summer Nursery by Yvonne Blacker

Elizabeth Wertz Photography

Decorator Pop-up Shop

This weekend I am having a retail sale of my own. Visit me at TaggArt Studio in Wakefield on Sunday, March 11th from 10am to 4pm. This will be a One-Day Decorator Pop-up Shop featuring dramatically reduced prices on design inventory that has been seen on the pages of New England Finery Magazine. It will be priced to sell! The magazine is scheduled to undergo a slight makeover of its own (more info later!) so I am making room for the changes to come. I will also have lots of fabric remnants, trims, vintage items and even custom window treatments from some of my past design shows for sale. As a special bonus, a friend of mine who reps a designer clothing line, will be having a sample sale. If you are sick of your winter wardrobe like I am – or if you want to freshen up your interiors – stop by and take home something new!

Are you a magazine junkie? I will be giving away years worth of design magazines (free for the taking) and perfect for ripping out room ideas that you like, pinning them on mood boards, or filing them away for inspiration. I hate to part with them, they are almost like scrapbooks to me, but I need to clear some space in my office for new projects.

Laura Thomson’s window display at the Lynnfield Library for Art in Bloom

Art in Bloom

And then on Monday night, March 12th, you’ll find me relaxing at the Lynnfield Library for the opening night of Art in Bloom. This is one of our favorite events of the year. Check out this post by my friend, Laura Thomson, who has just finished decorating the library window in preparation for next week’s show. I can’t wait to see what she does with fresh flowers!

What else?

Along with trying to keep my families schedules on track while I am completely immersed in creative projects, there are also a few design related events coming up that I am really looking forward to attending. I am sure they will provide me with lots of design content to share, and will hopefully energize me enough to keep up this pace : )