Feng Shui is the ancient Chinese practice of organizing a space to create a harmonious living environment.  To be quite honest with you, it is not a service I often mention.  Reason being:  of those who have shown interest in the practice, I have met an equal number of skeptics. 

Regardless of whether or not you are a believer, principles such as harmony, variety, balance, and awareness to the flow of energy thread Feng Shui into what I consider simply good design.   

Potential candidates for Feng Shui include those who:

• have read/watched “The Secret”;
• enjoy authors such as Napoleon Hill or Paulo Coelho;
• believe in abundance, recognize energy, or have studied Tai Chi; and
• are looking for a catalyst for change.

From the interested individual to the hard-core enthusiasts, Lavender & Lotus Interior Design would love to be part of your next project.

I need to tell you about a serious problem – a problem that has plagued homes and offices across the State.  Side effects may include nausea, indigestion, anxiety, depression, loss of appetite, insomnia, or increase in blood pressure.  Similar to the symptoms of ugly wallpaper, I’m referring to…

UGLY WINDOW TREATMENTS!

Aside from the obvious fact that they are ugly, window treatments in need of replacing may have been damaged from a climbing cat, faded from direct sunlight, or reflect the style of decades past.  I can help homeowners with custom designed window treatments, as well as with selection of ready-made alternatives.  What do YOUR windows look like?

While innocently perusing pages of Facebook, I was quickly distracted by an advertisement for DecorDreamHome.com.  Since I’m such a sucker for beautiful things, I couldn’t help but investigate further.  The pillows!  The accessories!  Very exciting…

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.

Last night Lavender & Lotus Interior Design participated in “Ladies Night Out”, an event sponsored by the Hooksett Public Library.  This was a delightful evening featuring numerous businesses local to central and southern New Hampshire. 

Sincere thanks to those who showed an interest in Lavender & Lotus.  I look forward to working with you!