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What I Love with Trudy Dujardin, FASID, LEED AP

Dining Through the Ages

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

The holidays have arrived, and we’ll all be spending time in dining rooms for the next several weeks. A well-appointed dining room is both functional and beautiful, encouraging relaxation and companionship, as well as the enjoyment of our food. The dining room is a relatively new idea, however. When people first began to inhabit built dwellings, they shared a common room for sleeping, cooking, and eating, and sometimes, invited their barnyard companions to share the space with them.

photo from istock

The idea of a separate dining room began, according to historians, with the ancient Greeks, who gathered on stone or wood couches (men only!) to eat honey cakes and chestnuts in seclusion. The ancient Romans had a separate room called the triclinium for their meals, but women were invited.

photo from istock

By the Middle Ages, wealthier people were eating in dining rooms, but comfort was still out of reach in the large, drafty halls. As the Industrial Revolution brought increased prosperity to the populace, more people could enjoy the benefits of a separate room for formal dining, along with silver cutlery, delicate china, and linen tablecloths. Author Bill Bryson, in his book At Home: A Short History of Private Life, says that when Thomas Jefferson put in a dining room at Monticello, it was quite a dashing thing to do. Elsewhere, meals were still being served at little tables in any convenient space.

So in honor of the holiday and the meals we’ll enjoy there, here’s to our dining rooms! And here are a few of my favorite Dujardin-designed dining rooms for you to enjoy.

The table is a 20th century reproduction of an 18th century Irish lacemaker’s worktable, surrounded by a rare set of American spindle back chairs with their original black paint.

A wrought iron and rock crystal chandelier brings elegant light to this comfortable space.

Hermes orange is this homeowner’s favorite color!

The farmhouse table is surrounded by black-painted Windsor chairs. The hanging light fixtures are contemporary versions of 19th century Colonial “smoke bells,” designed to keep the candles from blowing out and smoke from marking the ceiling.

The hand painted floor is striking and adds another layer of interest to this beautiful room.

The dining corner in this New York City apartment was created with curving walls and a dropped ceiling. The solid walnut table is by Hellman-Chang.

This is my dining room in Connecticut, where I’ll be serving Thanksgiving dinner to my family. Wherever you spend yours, I hope it’s a safe and happy one!

Design Futures Council: Senior Fellow

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

This has been an especially gratifying year for me. In the past twelve months, I’ve published my design book (Comfort Zone: Creating the Eco-Elegant Interior), I’ve been named to the College of Fellows for the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), and I have just received word that the Design Futures Council has named me a Senior Fellow.

The Design Futures Council (DFC) is an interdisciplinary network of leaders in design confronting global challenges. I’ve been a longtime member and contributor, happy to join with my friend and respected colleague James P. Cramer, who became the DFC’s primary founder and facilitator of information and inspiration throughout the organization.

To be named as a Senior Fellow by this highly esteemed group of professionals is recognition for “significant contributions toward the understanding of changing trends, new research, and applied knowledge that improve the built environment and the human condition.”

Jim Cramer says, “The leadership role of design is of critical importance toward the creation of a healthier and happier planet. The new Senior Fellows of the DFC have been selected for the tremendous impact they have had on our world.”

photo from stock

A happier, healthier planet is what I’ve worked for throughout my career. I’m proud to join the other Senior Fellows in that endeavor.

Make a Fresh Start!

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

From time to time, people ask me what it’s like to work with an interior designer. I can’t answer that for anyone but myself, although certainly there are industry standards that a properly credentialed interior designer adheres to. In January of this year I wrote about the inspiration for a house, and some of the design process in Every Room Has a Beginning.

That post was about a very specific house, and the kinds of decisions we made with the homeowners to redesign a beloved home after it was moved cross-island to save it from eroding bluffs. Here are a few more things you should know about the design process:

Clients often say that working with Dujardin makes the design process fun again. What can become quickly overwhelming–the details, schedules, plans, and coordination, with architects, contractors, craftsmen and landscapers–are handled seamlessly, resulting in elegant and sophisticated interiors that immediately feel like home. We can incorporate varying degrees of sustainability or design a completely holistic “deep green” residence, always honoring classic tradition while achieving 21st century style.

Whether you’re building a new home, renovating an existing building, or just designing interiors, it takes a village to create a house. You may need contractors, architects, carpenters, painters, artists, landscapers, energy system installers, plumbers, tilers, electricians and more.

Having the requisite training in a home’s structure, design and function is what makes me a full and welcome partner in team meetings that include any or all of those participants.

Architects and Designers Working in the Office

I’ve devoted my life to the study and practice of interior design. I’m a professional member of ASID, and a member of their very select College of Fellows. (That’s what FASID means when you see it after my name.) I’ve just been elected a Senior Fellow for the Design Futures Council, which recognizes my contributions to the sustainable design movement.

I am a LEED Accredited Professional, with a specialty in Interior Design and Construction. (That’s the LEED AP + ID + C after my name). I belong to a number of professional organizations, have spoken widely about interior design, am an adjunct professor at Fairfield University, and am a professionally trained artist myself. I have a published full-color book of my design work that outlines many of the design principles I believe in.

Once we’ve decided to work together, the planning begins. We start with measurements, and a study of your home’s traffic flow, light sources, assessment of what the room will be used for, and by whom. We talk to you about what you love, and how you envision your home. The goal is to make your home an elegant reflection of your very unique lifestyle and family. To help you “see” the finished product, we create a beautiful binder showing you what we suggest. Here’s an example of a page showing window treatment and lamp options.

Let’s look at one specific room together. First, we show you a layout with all the furniture we suggest, and where it will be placed.

Next, our in-house artist creates a watercolor rendering to give you a feeling for the colors and furniture we think will be perfect.

We present several different styles of breakfronts. You choose which you like best.

And then we look at different chair styles.

Other pieces to be included in the room are next.

Finally, it’s time to look at fabrics.

There are thousands of choices to be made in designing a home, and mistakes can be expensive. By breaking every decision down to carefully selected options, our clients quickly feel in control of the process. They have a partner who cares as much about their home as they do, and we have a great time shopping together, talking together, and making decisions together. After several discussions about what our client likes and prefers, orders are placed. Here’s a look at the finished dining room following this process.

My education, training and credentials, as well as my professional team members, are all important in creating the home of your dreams. But I also believe that creating a beautiful, healthy, comfortable home should be FUN! My clients often refer to me as the “funmaker,” because I love designing homes, and we want the entire project, start to finish, to be something you enjoy. We take care of the hard work for you.

Believe it or not, we’re still having fun! We love our work.

Come See Me On Nantucket!

Posted on July 28, 2015 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

I’m excited to have two wonderful events coming up on Nantucket the first week in August. If you’re on the island, I hope you’ll come by and say hello. At both, I’ll be talking about my favorite topics: green design, healthy living, and being kind to planet earth. I welcome your questions and am looking forward to celebrating summer with all my island friends!

On Wednesday, August 5th,please come to the panel discussion on Eco-Friendly Building and Design, hosted by Audrey Sterk’s Nantucket Color & Design Studio at 18 Broad Street.

I’ll be appearing along with my good friend Tom Ayars, a renovation and restoration expert with 35 years of experience, from 5 to 6 p.m. Tom will talk about how restoration and renovation can be “green,” too. If it’s a nice day, we’ll be outside on the patio.

On Friday, August 7th, I’ll be helping to celebrate the Dane Gallery’s 20th Anniversary with a Comfort Zone book signing from 6 to 8 p.m. Please join us for refreshments and great conversations at 28 Center Street. I’ll be answering your questions about healthy homes and green design, and what I mean by “eco-elegant.” (You can have a beautiful, sophisticated home, and have it be “green,” too!)

Hope to see you all there!

Serendipity!

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

What does Serendipity mean to you? It’s most often the occurrence of events by chance in a happy or fortunate way. That certainly describes my pleasure in meeting the Home Editor of Serendipity Magazine, Stephanie Horton, and her wonderful feature on a home I designed not once but twice on Nantucket Island. It’s in the June 2015 issue!

If you can pick up a copy of the magazine, I encourage you to do so.

If not, I tell the story here of the house that was moved from its precarious location on a bluff three times to save it from the rapidly encroaching sea. Island erosion can be dangerous to homes, but this beautiful Edwardian-era house was successfully moved and brought back to new life.

Take a closer look!

Bring the Look Home with Coastal Living!

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

Used with permission by Coastal Living Magazine; Photo by Ozerov Alexander

We’re in the Summer Issue of Coastal Living Magazine!

According to the July/August 2014 issue of Coastal Living Magazine, the Union Street Inn on Nantucket is one of the most friendly and refined of all the B&B’s on the island. I would wholeheartedly agree, as Dujardin Design had the privilege of working with innkeepers Ken and Deborah Withrow to create an updated and elegant look that is still quintessential Nantucket. Our five-phase design of the inn began more than 12 years ago, and was completed by redoing every room and common area in time for guests arriving in Spring 2013.

As Coastal Living says: “Housed in a 1770s whaling captain’s home minutes from Nantucket’s humming wharves, this intimate inn embraces a crisp, modern look created by Dujardin Design Associates–there are no doilies here.”

“Its gently sloping hallways and narrow doorways lead to 12 guest rooms dressed in broad-striped wallpapers and richly patterned fabrics in a quartet of colors–pale yellow, nautical blue, sea glass green, and deep crimson. The shell white Frette linens and Matouk duvets on the beds make the rooms at Union Street feel like especially comfy havens.”

“Guests linger over the library nook’s seafaring titles.”

“In the sunny common rooms, oak pedestal breakfast tables are set for cooked-to-order breakfasts…”

“…while a sleek settee and chairs are clustered around an antique chest in a corner made for coffee and easy conversation.”

You won’t regret a stay in an inn named “one of the ten most romantic hotels in the U.S.” by Fodor’s. In the meantime, check out the The Summer Issue of Coastal Living!

All Union Street Inn Photography by Jeffrey Allen

My Seaside Inspiration

Posted on February 18, 2014 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

My life on two coastlines (Long Island Sound in Connecticut, and Nantucket Island) inspires my design work in a very personal way. I have always been drawn to the colors of sand, sea, sky and sails. As I walk the beaches near my homes, I see exquisitely colored shells, small sea animals and picturesque harbors, all of which find their way into the interiors I create . Let me show you my seaside inspiration.

“I felt the full breadth and depth of the ocean around the sphere of the earth, back billions of years to the beginning of life, across all the passing lives and deaths, the endless waves of swimming joy and quiet losses of exquisite creatures with fins and fronds, tentacles and wings, colorful and transparent, tiny and huge, coming and going. There is nothing the ocean has not seen.”–Sally Andrew

Naturally Romantic Bedrooms

Posted on January 15, 2014 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

Union Street Inn Nantucket; Photo Credit Jeff Allen

If you’re half of a couple, your bedroom is more than just your sanctuary. It’s an intimate, shared space where romance takes center stage. Your bedroom should be not only your passionate playground, but also the healthiest room in your house. That’s why recreating bedrooms is one of my favorite design projects.

A Dujardin-designed bedroom includes custom bedding and headboard. Photo credit Michael Partenio

Why is a healthy room important? As you sleep, your liver works to detox the body from all the pollutants and toxins you were exposed to during the day. A clean night’s rest helps to promote health, energy and happiness, and that may be the most loving thing you can do for your life partner. I’ve studied to become a LEED Accredited Professional with a specialty in Interior Design and Construction (LEED AP + ID + C) so that I can create healthy sanctuaries for my clients.

Here’s how I design a pristine retreat:

Choose No VOC paints for walls and wood trim

Paints can emit VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) over a long period of time, so just airing out the room may not be sufficient. That “just-painted” smell is actually the off-gassing of chemicals. The VOCs last far longer than the odor, however. The air you breathe while you rest is so important.

Another custom Dujardin Design Associates bedroom, with one-of-a-kind bedding and headboard especially created for this client. Photo credit Marco Ricco

Low or No-VOC products use water as a carrier instead of petroleum-based solvents, reducing the levels of heavy metals and formaldehyde. Even low VOC paints can contain fungicides and biocides, used to prevent mildew growth and extend shelf life. Working with a LEED-accredited interior designer can make choosing paints and finishes easier–there’s so much to learn!

Choose the natural beauty of hardwood, tile or stone floors.

I choose non-toxic floor finishes for my clients’ bedrooms, so they can rest easy at night. All upholstery and bedding custom-designed and fabricated in DDA’s workroom. Photo credit Terry Pommett

Finish your floors with a water-based sealant, then add softness underfoot with organic cotton or wool rugs. As luxurious as it seems, carpet can harbor mold, dander and allergens. Chemicals used in the manufacturing process can be hazardous to both humans and pets.

Sleep on an organic mattress.

All bedding custom-designed and fabricated by DDA’s workroom. Photo credit Terry Pommett

Your healthiest option is an organic mattress, made with natural latex, wool or organic cotton. Be sure your pillows are all natural as well. Make your home a holistic house!

Mix old materials with new: antiques are the ultimate in renewing resources.

Dujardin-designed custom bedding and window treatments, fabricated and installed by DDA’s workroom. Photo credit Jeff Allen

Antique wooden furniture was created from old-growth forests long ago. No new resources are used in its construction, making its restoration and re-use a loving part of caring for the earth. Manufacturing plants, even the very greenest, distribute impurities into our air, waste systems and water.

At Dujardin Design Associates, creating custom looks with beautiful fabrics is only part of the wide array of services we offer. Photo credit Jeff Allen

Even in a contemporary home, the gentle lines of antique furniture can add eye-catching details to your bedroom. I love to find the perfect antique pieces that will become family heirlooms, and blend beautifully with a modern lifestyle.

Make Your Bed with Natural, Organic Textiles

Choosing Dujardin Design Associates for your custom bedding, throw pillows, and window treatments allows you to have a wider range of choices in colors, fabrics, and textures. Photo credit Terry Pommett

You can find organic cotton sheets, blankets, pillows, duvet covers, shams and more, all made with natural fibers and produced using a nontoxic process. Or ask Dujardin Design Associates to create them for you!

There’s nothing restful or romantic about clutter. If your bedroom is to be a true sanctuary, it needs to be a sacred space for you, where you find tranquility, not a stack of things you need to deal with. It should also be the cleanest room in your house, since you spend 1/3 of your life breathing its air.

A signature of my work is to include a pair of chairs where a couple can begin their day together with a cup of coffee or end it with a glass of wine. Photo credit Thibeaut Jensen

This is your private place where you go to get away from the world for awhile. A signature of my design work is to add the things that will help to recharge your soul by satisfying your senses. A comfortable chair where you can sit and read a well-loved book is a wonderful comfort-touch.

I love adding final touches! All custom-designed and installed by DDA. Photo credit Terry Pommett

Part of the mystery of keeping love alive is providing a space where you can truly spend time together.

Union Street Inn, Nantucket; Photo Credit Jeff Allen

Valentine’s Day is a great time to create the bedroom of your dreams together. Choosing new furnishings, bedding, colors, and textiles can be a challenge for a couple with dissimilar tastes, however. Over the course of my career, I’ve helped many couples reach agreement on the perfect bedroom for them.

I’d love to help you!

Call me for a consultation in Connecticut at 201-855-8100,

or on Nantucket at 508-228-1120.

A Comfortable Place to Sit

Posted on September 10, 2013 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

One of the most important considerations in designing a home is the comfort of those who live there. I believe that a home should be beautiful, as beauty lifts the spirits; it should be a sanctuary for health and well-being with clean air and non-toxic surroundings; and it should be be a place of comfort. A house is not a home without a space to curl up with a good book, put your feet up at the end of a long day, and enjoy a snuggle with pets or people you love.

When I designed my home in Madaket, one of my husband’s requests was that our living room be a place where he could truly relax. He wanted to be able to come in, put his feet on the cocktail table, and have a beer with friends. Nothing in this room is too precious. The sofas were slip covered in crisp navy and white so that they could be cleaned easily, and a comfortable wicker chair lets our guests know that this is a summer home, where relaxation is encouraged! (The white canvas is indoor/outdoor fabric, and completely washable!)

I love to read, and I find window seats to be irresistible for hiding away with a book. The light from the window, changing as the day goes by, the view into the garden, and the scent of a summer breeze takes reading in the middle of the day from a guilty pleasure to a perfect respite.

A window seat in a bedroom is always a delight! A space devoted to intimate comforts should have a place to take a little nap in the middle of the day when your schedule allows.

Creating a comfortable home requires planning; there should be welcoming chairs everywhere, with lots of daylight streaming through the windows, and a sense of order so you can really rest. Ottomans let you put your feet up, and a little chairside table will hold both your book and a cool drink.

If you are fortunate enough to have a beautiful view, then a comfortable place to relax and watch the sea and sky is always appreciated. It’s the perfect place to enjoy your morning cup of coffee as you slowly wake to the day.

When you sit down with a good book or to watch a movie with your family, you may not realize that your upholstered furniture too often brings chemicals such as formaldehyde, brominated flame retardants (PBDE’s) and dioxin into your home through off-gassing. Fortunately, today we have the option of choosing soy-based versus foam cushions, recycled filling for pillows, and organic upholstery fabrics. Some of the world’s healthiest fabrics are also the most luxurious, including organic cotton, hemp, linen and wool.

Firelight and the smell of burning wood brings its own kind of relaxation, especially when you’re enveloped in a cozy chair close to its warm glow.

A porch, veranda or deck can be another living area, serving as a quiet library during sunlit hours, and the perfect spot to watch evening fall with candlelight and a glass of wine to toast the end of day.

Most of us live busy lives, sometimes too busy, and it’s good to take a moment to sit down occasionally, and enjoy what we’ve accomplished. As A.A. Milne said (as Winnie the Pooh), “Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”

On Safer Ground in Nantucket Today

Posted on August 6, 2013 by Trudy Dujardin, FASID, Leed AP

The August 2013 issue of Nantucket Today features a Dujardin-designed home with a unique story: this beautiful Edwardian-era residence was saved not once, but twice, from the perils of the sea. Built in 1908 on the sandy ground of Sconset Bluff on Nantucket, fierce storms and pounding waves in recent years have eroded the fragile shore, placing the house in danger of being swept out to sea.

The owners of this elegant home first shifted it farther inland in 2006, but it wasn’t far enough. The second move for the house was cross-island to Monomoy in 2010, where the house now watches the waves in the harbor from a safe distance. With the sea no longer a too-close neighbor, spectacular gardens have been planted outside with massive hedges, and organic vegetable and fruit gardens instead of sandy paths.

I first designed this home in 1996, so there’s an odd sense of deja vu for me as I walk through these rooms. An updated family room, breakfast room and kitchen replaced a maze of rooms that once was the servant’s wing.

The world of 1908 is still in evidence in the house, recalled by the back servants’ stairs and the original call box with bells for the library, the guest rooms, and the original owners of the house, Mr. and Mrs. Dustin.

As befits a home that has lasted for generations, there is a beguiling mix of ages throughout. In the entry, a 19th Century gilt mirror adds a touch of grandeur, arching over 21st Century whale art in handblown glass by Raven Skyriver.

An enfilade of rooms opens one upon the other, offering tantalizing glimpses of subtle blues and yellow, creams and whites, richly finished wood floors and plush rugs underfoot. Dignified antiques add a decorous note to airy spaces.

There’s a ribbon of soft color that runs through the house; shades of bluebells and buttercups wrap the rooms in tranquil tones that lit spirits on even the foggiest days.

The home’s original setting on Sconset Bluff is honored in an oil painting that hangs over the living room mantel, a reminder of those more precarious days.

Just as the house itself has had its second, and third, chance at life, many of the well-loved pieces throughout the home were reupholstered for their own second chance. The homeowners’ unique stories are told here, too. The 1840’s breakfront in the dining room is home to a collection of heirloom china teacups, given to the wife’s mother at her wedding shower. Each guest arrived with a different teacup, creating a charmingly mismatched set that has been treasured for years.

In the master bedroom, an elaborately carved 19th Century bed from the West Indies blends effortlessly with contemporary lamps and white lacquered night tables. There, seaglass colors soothe both body and mind.

Nantucket residents know our island is a fragile place. Climate change and stronger storms continue to buffet our shores, creating an uncertain future for seaside homes, wherever they face the waves. In this house by the harbor, the owners have surely done their duty by their home, lovingly preserving it for years to come.

All photography courtesy of Jeffrey Allen; visit his website here.