Design Blog

What Color is your Spring?

by Trish Land

As usual, mine is green! I just can't seem to get away from it. But this season, I am being brave and I'm adding a touch of yellow to my pallet! The grass is turning green...the leaves are popping on the trees and those adorable yellow jonquils have shown their faces. All I can think of now is how the garden will evolve. Since this will be my first season in the new house, I am excited to see what the previous owners have planted. I love surprised!

Green means growth to me. Not only in my garden, but also in my mind. Living with a "green" mentality will only make our world a better place. When I first began to conserve, it felt hard. Like I was going to have to make too many changes in order to live up to being environmentally friendly. I felt a little inconvenienced! I soon learned that even the slightest shift makes a difference. So my plight to be an eco-friendly earthling really wasn't that difficult after all.

I began to re-use simple things like ziplock bags...aluminum foil and my plastic yogurt containers...I found many ways to "re-purpose" household items. I even re-gifted some items during the holidays! (I learned this trick from my mother who often gave me back gifts I had previously given her!) Ah the things we learn from our Moms...

Becoming environmentally conscious humans has, thankfully, become more mainstream. There are so many options no for building, designing and living a green lifestyle. You don't have to give up anything to have style! Nature is the best designer we know! Have some fun with it.

And the next time you feel the inclination to conserve, try it. It's really easy! If I can do it, so can you...

Re-use, Recycle, and re-think choices with the environment at heart.

Trish Land

Happy Holidays

By Trish Land

Well I don't know about you , but I'm excited about the upcoming Holidays! I just moved into a new house...actually an OLD Historic 1930's Arts and Crafts Bungalow. It's been well Kept and loved and is the perfect home for me, full of charm and style. I've been sitting by the fire every night, imagining my holiday designs coming to life. Given that the Craftsman homes are inspired by nature, I am going to use that thought as a guide to create my garlands, wreaths and other holiday "what nots". events1
My idea is to combine nature with tradition...breathing new life into the classics. I'm going to blend branches from a field I took a walk in just yesterday with fresh garland and then add ilex berries, fruit, and birds! How is that for tradition with a twist! This year I'm going to use true red, moss green and gold. Maybe even a little copper to match the warmth of my home. I'll load up the mantle with urns full of fruit and a collection of mercury glass ornaments accumulated over the years. The finishing touch will be fresh garland draping to the floor. Oh, and I must not forget the mistletoe! Holidays are times for gathering. Be sure to get your voices in tune for caroling and Christmas karaoke. Pull out your family recipes and keepsakes to remind you of good times past. Surround yourself with friends and family and remember to be grateful for all you have and perhaps give a helping hand to someone in need. lrSmall1 Happy Holidays from all of us here at Townhouse Galleries!

Trish Land

Are We Steering the Design Trends or Are They Steering Us?

By Trish Land

I suppose you could say both thoughts are true. Someone, somewhere, creates new trends and shares them with the world. Perhaps it's the creator in all of us who comes up with new ideas of wanting to express ourselves. Certainly, some of us are better at applying the ideas... but we each have our own creativity. fern

Fall is here and I'm excited. It's time to put away summer and think of the changing seasons ahead. Perhaps I could suggest trying on some new ideas for a fall color pallet. Chocolate, plum and moss green instead of the traditional brown, rust and gold we usually lean toward...

The new color pallet evolved from my desire to mix things up a little. I truely love the traditional fall mix, but honestly, I was a little bored with it. I was playing around with a collection of odds and ends around my house and came up with what felt like a fresh idea for my fall decorative touches. Plum nail polish, a dark chocolate bar and my moss green wall in the living room is what I worked with... Perfect! Now, I'm going to go the store and get some plum colored candles, maybe a table runner or linen and perhaps a new container to fill with pinecones, tree bark and moss... My new fall inspired design. trail

Designers are visual storytellers. There are those moments where the "ah ha!" occurs and something is created. I think we want to be daring and push limits... not very often do we want to be 'safe'. I like to be spontaneous and help my clients express their creativity even when I am designing a centerpiece or decorations for an event. I try not to over think things.

Autumn is the time to re-new and create. I like to think of it as a time to enjoy the abundance of the harvest time. The weather is changing, the days are shorter, the colors are shifting, and its time to enjoy the rustling of walks in the leaves, hearty soup and sweaters, football games, carnivals and the upcoming holiday season.

I'm thinking I'm going to sit back in my Stressless chair and catch up on some reading. Maybe I'll even pull out some gift catalogues and start circling things I would like for Christmas... afterall, I've been good this year!
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Enjoy the coming season...smile often...and visit with friends, pets and neighbors!
Happy Fall...

Trish Land

What inspires you?

by Trish Land

The subtle complexity provided by Mother Nature, and the realization she encourages us to use the palette she created continues to be one of my biggest inspirations, especially when it comes to design. For example, this morning while enjoying a cup of coffee in the garden, I noticed many shades of green: Celadon, chartreuse, emerald and jade....and variations of them. I tried to count how many greens there were, but they were too numerous. I noticed that when I came inside, I saw those same greens in my house. It was like I was still outdoors. It was as perfect as nature.

Mother Nature is infinitely diverse - yet she chooses specific patterns and colors for certain environments. Designers can observe nature and create designs based on her examples to add simplicity to our client's lives.

If someone asks me to design a room for the summertime, I like to observe the light and energy in the space. Creating the feeling of the outdoors in your home during this special time of abundance can be as inspiring for my client as it can be for me. Clearly, summer is a time to invite the outside in and a perfect time to create outdoor rooms.

If you are looking for inspiration for the season, open your curtains and bring in the light...crack the windows at sundown and smell the night air...sit under a tree in the morning shade and give yourself the gift of quiet solitude. Observe and create.

Notice what you are drawn to, and if you can't create it yourself, bring your thoughts to me. I'll help you bring the beauty and inspiration you find in nature inside your home!

Here are some summer reading suggestions:

Feng Shui For Everyday Living, by Stephen Skinner
Gifts from Nature, Ideas and Projects for Every Season, by Matthew Mead

Here's to enjoying Nature and all its offerings. Let's take responsibility for our own environment by creating harmony in our surroundings, recycling and re-using, reducing clutter in our home and work place, and becoming great humans on this earth while we are enjoying nature's gifts!