Accent Magazine Blog

Meet the Designers - Update from Old York’s Decorator Show House

The Museums of Old York just announced their lineup of designers (both inside and outdoors) for their 2009 Decorator Show House. You’ll recognized some familiar faces and meet some new talent:

Back row, left to right: Debby Ronnquist, Valerie Jorgensen, Linda Hentschel, Patricia Finn, Chuck Hugo, Michael Jones, Janet Swanson, Margareta Claesson and Eric Anderson. Front row, left to right: Nicole Yee, Frank Hodge, Amy Thompson, Diane Hughes, Amanda Colosi, Sarah Duquette, Maya Travalgia, Michaele Boehm, Andrea Maher, Jen Spencer, Tom Dunn and Joyce Jordan. Not pictured: Anne Cowenhoven, Nichole Donovan, Annie Kiladjian, Jay Goldsmith, Georgie McGowan, Kacey Graham, and Christine McGill. Photo courtesy of Jay Goldsmith of Goldsmith Fine Portraiture.

Want to really meet the designers? Come to the annual preview gala on July 17 where you can meet the designers and enjoy food from the Green Monkey/Brazo, drinks, and live music! Accent will also be announcing our 2009 best of award winners so it should be an exciting and fun time. Tickets are $75 and can be purchased by calling the Museums of Old York at 207-363-4974.

In the six weeks leading up to the show house opening, you’ll also be hearing from the designers on Accent’s blog, where they will share updates on how their rooms are coming along, what inspires them, what challenges they face, and anything else that comes to mind. If you’ve ever visited a show house, I think you will enjoy hearing from the designers as they get ready for opening day on July 18. The list of designers and their rooms is below.

The Dooryard Garden
Maya Travalgia
Charles C. Hugo Landscape Design, LLC
P.O. Box 263
South Berwick, ME 03908
(207) 752-3046
www.charleshugo.com

Barn Patio
Tom Dunn/Jen Spencer
Stoney Brook Landscaping
138 Woodside Meadow Road
York, ME  03909
207-408-2705
stoneybrookllc@yahoo.com

Farmer’s Porch
Brian Howland and Margareta Claesson
Eldredge Lumber Company
627 U.S. Route One
York, ME 03909
(207) 363-2004
www.atlanticdesignctr.com

Powder Room
Nichole Donovan
Distinctive Tile and Design
1132 U.S. Route One
York, ME 03909
(207) 351-3300
www.distinctivetileanddesign.com

Annie Kiladjian
Annie K. Designs
www.anniekdesigns.com

Living Room
Sarah Duquette
Duquette & Company, Inc.
7 Lilac Lane
York, ME 03909
(207) 363-1827
www.duquetteandcompany.com

Reading Room
Diane Hughes
Diane Hughes Interiors
150 Lafayette Road
Rye, NH 03870
(603) 964-9543

Dining Room
Anne Cowenhoven
Accent & Design, Inc.
P.O. Box 352
York, ME 03909
(207) 363-7949
www.accentdesignmaine.com

Main Stairway
Jay Goldsmith
Goldsmith Photography
32 Cottage Street
Portsmouth, NH 03801
(603) 436-2343

Savannah’s Room
Joyce Jordan
Joyce Jordan Interiors
Shoppers Village, Unit 8
Hampton Falls, NH 03844
(603) 929-7700
www.joycejordaninteriors.com

Marjorie’s Room
Frank Hodge
F.D. Hodge Interiors
748 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 267-8103

Family Bath
Amy Thompson
Standard of New England, LLC
100 West Road
Portsmouth, NH 03801
(603) 436-1400
www.standardne.com

Jim Wood
Signature Builders, Inc.
173C Dover Point Road
Dover, NH 03820
(603) 749-2188
www.signaturebuilders.com

Charlotte Rose’s Nursery
Andrea Maher and Michael Jones
Andrea Maher Interior Design
111 Seamist Lane
Wells, ME 04090
(207) 216-0287

Frankie’s Room
Janet Swanson and Georgie McGowan
Fiona’s Porch
7 York Street
York, ME 03909
(207) 363-6270
www.fionasporch.com

Secret Hideaway
Linda Hentschel
Renaissance Interiors
P.O. Box 142
North Reading, MA 01864
(978) 664-0064
www.renaissanceinteriors.com

Master Bedroom and Balcony
Nicole Yee
NY Interiors
62 Whipple Road
Kittery, ME 03904
(510) 326-5390
www.nicholeyee.com

Sitting Room
Michaele Boehm and Kacey Graham
Boehm Graham
25 Darby Lane
Bedford, NH 03110
(603) 472-5830

Mudroom
Amanda Colosi
Diane Hughes Interiors
150 Lafayette Road
Rye, NH 03870
(603) 964-9543

Kitchen and Pantry
Frank Hodge
F.D. Hodge Interiors
748 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 267-8103

Trophy Room
Patricia Finn
Finn-Martens Design
1 Bridle Path Lane
Beverly Farms, MA 01915
(978) 927-9959
www.finn-martensdesign.com

Family Room
Valerie Jorgensen
V. Jorgensen Design, LLC
241 Preble Street
Wells, ME 04090
(207) 251-0447
www.vjorgensendesign.com

In addition to the wonderful items brought in by the interior and landscape designers, items will be available to purchase through a boutique and at a juried art exhibit in the barn:

Boutique
Christine McGill
Christine’s Crossing
1000 Washington Road
Rye, NH 03870
(603) 964-6063
www.christinescrossing.com

Barn Art Exhibit
Debby Ronnquist
611 Haley Road
Kittery Point, ME 03905
(207) 439-3981

Add comment June 3rd, 2009

Art In Bloom

Inspired by the rich colors and iconic imagery, garden clubs and specialists contributed to the Boston Museum of Fine Art’s thirty-second annual Art In Bloom show. A limited engagement for obvious reasons, the show only ran for a few days. We can’t wait until no. 33 to see what they dream up next. Thanks Debbie N for sending in the photo!

Add comment May 1st, 2008

Boston Flower Show

I try to get down to the Boston Flower Show every March but since I wasn’t able to this year I asked a friend and Portsmouth resident Debbie N. to show me some of the shots from her trip. She said she was ‘blown away’ but the creativity, color and variety and from what she showed me I have to agree. I thought they were amazing enough to share so I asked her for her to jot down her impressions:

Boston Cityscape (sorry, not its real name. . .my code for it) was one of four miniature floral arrangements in small glass cases. Every year I flip over these. Within the space of 2-3 feet are whole universes made of tiny leaves and flower/tree elements. This case incorporates the new Zakim Bridge, a stunning, simple architectural addition to the skyline with some significant Boston landmarks done primarily in lush greens. It is from the point of view of Dorothy (and her scarecrow and lion pals) in the Boston Public garden looking out to the "emerald city." I love Boston and this captured a really good, warm feeling for the city.

Floral Form (also not it’s real name) was one of several dress forms adorned with flowers. I loved the colors, shapes and whimsy of them all. It’s also a great home decor idea as a work of art! I could easily see this in our house or on the porch and it could provide endless opportunities for changing floral fashions.

Fan Dance (again not it’s real name) was one of many gorgeous arrangements meant to interpret a concept. Sorry I don’t recall the concept, but do remember how vibrant and clever they were. This one just got me! I loved its playfulness and who knew leaves could do that?!

Thanks for sharing Debbie!
If any of you have caught the flower show fever, let us know and send along your favorite pix!

Add comment April 5th, 2008

Seacoast Home & Garden Show 2008

Starting today the Seacoast Home & Garden Show 2008 opens its doors and ACCENT will be there to join the festivities.  For three days over 100 vendors will be showcasing their latest products and services and the big theme this year is GREEN.

With so many homeowners concerned about the environment, manufacturers and services are stepping up to the demand like never before and the Seacoast home show promises to be good way to see a variety of offerings — from wind generators to solar panels and geothermal heating systems.

Additionally there will be seminars included in the price of admission as well as gardens and landscapes designed just for the show.

Show hours are Friday, March 28th from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m, Saturday, March 29th from 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 30th from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. General admission is $8, Seniors 65+ is $6, Youth 6-16 are $4 and Children under 6 are free.

Hot tip? Click here for a link to a $2 admission coupon. Coupon

Add comment March 28th, 2008

For the birds…

There’s a buzz around the office, or should I say a twittering? We have all fallen in love with a recent story that’s come to us from Iain MacLeod, executive director at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center. When I was searching for a voice of authority to write a bird story for us I knew that Iain with his 18 years plus experience with the Audubon Society was the man for the job. But I had no idea the article would strike such a cord with all of us in the office. It seems we all have an inner bird watcher. And we aren’t alone. You may have seen one of our latest e-newsletter featuring a recipe for suet submitted to us by the folks at Backyard Birds and Garden Thrills – the response to which has been positive, like this note from local resident and contractor, JB Byrne with whom the story resonated: “I was just looking through the latest e-mail from Accent with the home made bird suet. My children and I made suet feeder out of small logs to give away for Christmas. They were a big hit. I’ve attached a photo of the one on our back deck. It’s pair Downey woodpeckers. My son was eight when we built the house and was very concerned about the impact would on the wildlife by clearing all the trees for our house. So, this year I had our yard certified as wildlife habitat through the National Wildlife Federation. Preparing our yard to meet their requirements was great for kids and now we enjoy our wildlife visitors daily. –JB” Thanks for keeping in touch JB! As for the story from Iain MacLeod, look for it in the upcoming March/April 08 issue. We hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we have. -Kim

Add comment January 11th, 2008