After all the preparation that goes into celebrating the holidays, in the blink of an eye and a flurry of wrapping paper, they have gone.  Regardless of what traditions are practiced, we all end the holidays with more stuff than we started with.  But where to put it all?

Do you know a household that generally doesn’t put Christmas presents away until Valentine’s Day?  2010 can be the year to change this habit and get their home under control.  Lavender & Lotus would love to be part of their next project, whether it be organizational skills, putting an old room to new use, or for a simple color consultation. 

So what are you waiting for?  Pick up the phone and call for a free consultation.

… On a bright [New Hampshire] Christmas day… 

Wishing everyone a beautiful holiday season and a New Year of peace and happiness.

Success!  The faux brick wall in the office of Main Street Concord looks sensational!  Sincere thanks to Sherry Burnett (Burnett Designs) for her creative talent and hard work. 

It’s official:  the project for Main Street Concord, Inc. is underway!   Sherry Burnett and I have been working to create a faux brick wall in each room of the Main Street office.   Below are a few images of our progress so far.

   First room – Tape, tape, and more tape…

Sherry working her magic on the first room.

 As you can see, I was a little loopy by the second room 

 The response so far has been fantastic.  More images are on their way – stay tuned!

During the month of October I was a very busy bee developing a design proposal for the office of Main Street Concord, Inc.  This non-profit group, responsible for maintaining a healthy downtown community, had extended an invitation to local designers to offer a solution for their own office in need of a fresh start. 

To make a long story short, a well established design firm and myself each presented our suggestions for this project.  After careful consideration by numerous committees, the vote overwhelmingly fell in my favor!  What a wonderfully exciting opportunity   

One feature of my design is to have the exterior walls painted to resemble a brick facade (quite fitting for Main Street Concord, huh?)  I am delighted to say that Sherry Burnett of Burnett Designs will be facilitating this element of my design.  She is a remarkable artist, to say the least.  Sherry is available through her website www.sherryburnett.net.

Stay tuned for updates on the project’s progress – Cheers!

The winner of Project Laundry List’s window display in downtown Concord is…  Concord Camera! 

Sincere thanks to the owner and staff of Concord Camera for their gracious cooperation.

Hold on to your delicates and your dryer sheets — today I’m going to talk about laundry.  Did you know that 80% of households in America have a dryer whereas countries like Italy average only 3%?  Air drying clothes can save money, reduce energy consumption, and even kill germs and bacteria thanks to the sun’s UV rays.

Project Laundry List is an event taking place in downtown Concord to promote the green advantages of using a clothesline.  Creative displays have been hung at the Capital building and 13 businesses.  In collaboration with Cyndi Rogers of Mariposa Designs, we worked on the design, construction, and installation of 5 displays:  Bagel Works, Caffenio, Concord Camera, Gibson’s Bookstore, and Gondwana.  Stay tuned to find out which window is the winner!

Bagel Works:  Window on the left - your average plastic grocery bag…  On the right - ANYTHING but ordinary bags woven from the plastic ones!  Created by Crafty Kathy, these hardcore alternatives are available for purchase at KAZA.  

Caffenio:  Funky garland made of coffee filters and coffee mugs.  A “tea” shirt is also shown hanging in the center.

Concord Camera:  Jumbo clothespins hold slides, fantastic black and white photos (of clotheslines of course), and rolls of negatives to drying racks.  Slides were also attached to a string of mini paper lanterns.

Gibson’s Bookstore:  Folding the pages of a book goes against everything I was ever taught.  I hate to even dog-ear a page to save my place!  The end result, however, can be beautiful  : )

Gondwana:  Students from Rundlett Middle School gave us a hand with clothes cut from paper bags.  Pictures and flags are also hung to represent the countries Gondwana practices Fair Trade with. 

As a side note, holy window glare Batman!   

Project Laundry List’s founder Alex Lee has been traveling to promote similar events in cities across America.  For more information, visit www.laundrylist.org.

After what has been nearly a lifetime (I’ve been known to exaggerate), I am finally graduating!  The past 4-years studying Interior Design at NH Institute of Art has been nothing less than sensational.  My path to higher education took a slight detour before I realized the artistic direction I wanted to take in life.  NHIA provided a challenging opportunity to study Interior Design in New Hampshire while continuing to work full-time.  I encourage anyone and everyone to consider NHIA for pursuing their own creative interests.

For the “senior” project, we were given a general footprint of a house and required to either use Universal (handicap accessible) or Green design principles.  Being the green enthusiast that I am, you can guess which option I went for. 

My concept for the project was “A Walk In Nature”.  Elements of nature and New England landscape served as inspiration for each room of the house.  In other words, the living room used colors, textures, and patterns found in the forest.  The kitchen, a field of tall grasses.  The bathroom, a flowing stream.  The bedroom, sunset in the mountains…

Visit www.nhia.edu for more information.  (ID is available through the Continuing Education Dept).

There are numerous facets to working with green design – creating a healthy environment, reusing furniture and accessories to extend their lifecycle, and designing for longevity, to name a few.  These techniques are also inherent qualities to my approach with interior design.  

As I have mentioned before, it’s impossible to be 100% green.  Each product has it’s green advantages and disadvantages.  The trick is to find the best balance for each individual client.  To complicate matters, rising awareness and preference for using green products has lead to “Green Washing”.  This term describes false or exaggerated claims of environmental friendliness.  So how do you make the best choices?  Aside from hiring your’s truly, organizations such as USGBC (US Green Building Council) help by certifying fact from fiction.  To learn more, I recommend GreenHomeGuide.com.  Their article “Navigating the Flooring Thicket: Finding the Greenest Way to Meet Your Needs” is excellent.

Go Green!

The sun is shining, birds chirp outside my window, and the curtains float up on a gentle breeze.  The smell of lilacs and apple blossoms fill the room.  Green explodes outside.  Spring is a time to celebrate the joy of a new year, starting over, a time for growth.  It’s time for change and your home is a great place to start.

“Home is not just a place to sleep, home is where we house our souls.”                 Alexandra Stoddard

Aimee Leduc of Lavender & Lotus Interior Design is available for projects big and small:  paint color, window treatments, furniture placement, personal organizing, and rennovations including kitchens, bathrooms, and basements, to name a few.  Call or write for a free consultation today!