2019 AWARDS FOR INTERIOR DESIGN CLIENTS

2019 was a big year for many of my interior design clients for awards! I’m so happy when a client calls to tell me their place has won an award. I have to say… it ‘s a BIG THRILL to be a part of it!

BEST HOTEL VERMONT: MAIN and MOUNTAIN

FULL RENOVATION OF MOTEL — TURNED OLD TINY LOBBY INTO A BAR AND UPDATED ALL ROOMS AND FRONT AREA FOR AN OUTSIDE PATIO. Design by Joanne Palmisano Photo by Lindsay Selin

Main and Mountain Barn and Motel Renovation Project. Photo by Lindsay Selin

Main and Mountain Bar and Motel

Best of New England | 2019 Editors’ Choice Awards

Our 2019 editors’ picks for the best dining, lodging, and things to do in New England. Vermont’s pick…

NEW HOTEL
Main & Mountain, Ludlow

Old-school accommodations take on a polished sheen at Ludlow’s hip boutique motel. Wood-slab headboards lend rustic charm to standard queen rooms, while family accommodations include bunk beds for kiddos and suites that sleep up to seven. There’s no restaurant, but food trucks frequent the patio year-round, and weekend patio parties put a cool spin on the campfire jams of yore, with live music and seating around a masonry fire pit. 802-242-1608

COUPLE’S CHOICE AWARD: BEAR MOUNTAIN INN

TOTAL REFRESH OF BEAR MOUNTAIN INN, MAINE. Interior Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Molly & Victoria Co.

Photo by Molly & Victoria Co.

Bear Mountain Inn, Maine

Wedding Wire’s Couple Choice Award

BEST OF THE BEST VERMONT: PRIVATE RESIDENCE

TOTAL RENOVATION OF BARN CAMP INTO VACATION HOME. Interior Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lindsay Selin

Photo by Lindsay Selin

Build Helm, Project Management

BEST OF THE BEST AWARD: Efficiency Vermont for one of our recent projects in Southern, VT with a Best of the Best Award for Innovation in Residential New Construction.

BEST VERMONT BREWERY

NEW BUILD OF TAPROOM AND RETAIL STORE FOR LAWSON’S FINEST LIQUIDS. Interior Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lawson’s Finest, Alana Cushman

Photo by Lawson’s Finest, Alana Cushman

Lawson’s Finest Liquids

Vermont Sport’s: Best Places to Eat, Drink & Sleep: 2019 Black Diamond Awards

Interior Designer, Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lawson’s Finest, Alana Cushman

CHEERS to ALL WHO MADE THESE AWARDS A REALITY!

XOXO JOANNE

2020 is the Year of Sustainable Design, 5 Easy Ways to Add it to Your Design

5 EASY WAYS TO BE ECO-CONSCIOUS IN DESIGN

Beyond thrilled to see articles and posts from Lonny and Forbes for 2020 design trends to Los Angeles Times’ article about second-hand gifts for the holidays. Many other popular sites, including Apartment Therapy, believe eco-friendly and conscious design are here to stay. I’m thrilled to see the industry making changes and moving in the right direction. Even a little bit of change, can make a huge impact. Here are five easy ways to incorporate sustainable design ideas into your renovations, new builds and design decisions.

Happy New Year to You All! xoxo Joanne

Examples of Sustainable Design in this Inn’s renovation include a light fixture made from old parts, a custom pillow made from a vintage wool blanket, a new bed throw made from recycled materials, a wood wall made from reclaimed wood and a side table made locally with reclaimed lumber and a scrap piece of stone from a local stone yard. Mad River Barn Inn, Restaurant and Pub. Design by Joanne Palmisano, Photo by Susan Teare.

REPURPOSE WHAT YOU HAVE

Rather than buying something new, is there a way you can reuse what you already have — or at least some of it? Dark wood cabinets can be sanded and painted, or moved to the laundry room or craft areas. Can you paint that shiny brass fixture black… can you reuse that chair but have it reupholstered? Think about ways you can reuse what you have or repurpose it into something else.

Repurposed cabinet doors from the bathroom were painted and turned into a headboard. Short Term Vacation Rental Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lindsay Selin.

During the renovations at Bear Mountain Inn in Maine, much of the furniture was reused. We placed items in different rooms and many times painted or repurposed some of the pieces. Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Molly and Victoria Photography.

REUSE STUFF

This has been my mantra for as long as I can remember. (Heck, I was picking up old bottles near my families home as a kid.) But more recently… I’ve written a few books on Salvage Design and how to get great design looks with reusing, salvaging and recycling. There are so many salvage stores, rebuild centers and second-hand shops (not to mention online sites (and many local ones that share stuff folks are selling). Flooring, fixtures, doors , applications, tile, furniture and much more can be reused. This Old House Online has a list of Architectural Salvage Shops across the nation. They are really fun to check out! Chairish and other second-hand furniture shops are great to look at — as well as local online sites such as Craigslist. Reclaimed wood is a big part of this reuse section — one our largest recycling opportunities. Companies such as Salvage Works ,are all around the country and can help you pick out the best reclaimed materials for your project. The great thing about reclaimed wood is it can look anyway you want — for any style.

From reclaimed porch posts, doors, vintage bar-ware and more… this new bar at Main and Mountain Bar & Motel shows off easy ways to incorporate used stuff. Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lindsay Selin.

SOMETHING NEW OUT OF RECYCLED MATERIALS

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of products out there made with recycled content. Interface, FLOR and other carpeting companies does a fabulous job of making carpeting, area rugs, carpet tile out of recycled content. Then there are recycled content tiles, glass or porcelain, such as companies Fireclay and Bedrock Industries. Insulation, countertops, light fixtures, glassware, hardware and more can be found with recycled materials — it is not just about the recycled contect but also, most of the time, these recycled “new” products use less energy to create.

The headboards were reused, just reupholstered with faux leather. The carpeting is a green product from Interface, a leader in sustainable business practices. Mountain Modern Motel, renovation design by TruexCullins Architecture and Interiors. ( Joanne was hired as part of the design team.)

These brand new, gorgeous subway Fireclay tiles are made from recycled porcelain toilets and the counter top is a left-over piece of granite from a local stone company. Something new made from recycled material. Vacation Rental Renovation. Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Susan Teare.

GREEN PRODUCTS

From H & M Home to West Elm, Pottery Barn, and other furniture lines, (see the Good Trade website for a list of them), companies we know and love that have sustainable lines, you just need look for them on their sites and at their stores. The more you demand eco-friendly FSC furniture and sustainable practices in businesses, the more they will supply! :) It is basic economics.

Green products and materials are easily found. Local wood products, eco carpeting, paints, lighting and more. A little research into the companies practices, materials, manufacturing will give you a good idea of how they choose to do business. Vacation rental renovation. Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lindsay Selin.

LOCAL PRODUCERS AND ARTISANS

When you can work with local folks for materials, products and fixtures. This keeps travel and shipping to a minimum and you are supporting artisans and businesses in your own community. It doesn’t get any better than that! Cheers!

Here in Lawson’s Finest Liquids new taproom ,many local artisans and companies were used. The custom light fixture was made with Simon Pearce Glass and place on a locally made Conant Metal & Light fixture. The tables were all locally made by Warren Pieces. Taproom and Retail Store Interior Design by Joanne Palmisano. Photo by Lawson’s Finest Liquids.

In the Kitchen with Family

As Thanksgiving approaches, I think about all the memories of all the places and people we have had the honor of sharing this special day with from large family gatherings at my parents’ house when we were all young, to small gatherings with friends at their homes, and everything in between. What I remember most is the beautiful chaos in the kitchen while the meal was being prepared. Here are a few kitchens I’ve had the honor of designing and/or renovating and feel so grateful to be a part of their families lives, if only for a little while, and can just imagine them all enjoying their special places with their family and friends. Embrace the chaos, the craziness, the piles of dishes — but most of all, embrace your family and friends.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! xoxo Joanne

Fall is in the Air

It’s no surprise to anyone who knows me that my favorite season is fall. I love the cooler weather but not so cold that I’m scrapping ice off my car. The spellbinding colors, the smells of wet leaves on a hiking trail, crisp apples, apple cider, apple cider donuts :) … pumpkins, pumpkin patches, Halloween and my birthday (and my twin sister’s) happens to be in October as well — a happy coincidence. So I thought I’d do a blog post that celebrated the season with some pictures from my books, some DIY NETWORK DIY’s , and some fun fall pics. Enjoy the season! Cheers. Joanne

This DIY is featured in my book, Salvage Secrets Design and Decor (photo by Susan Teare). This easy to make used paintbrush vase has fabulous colors. Just wrap them around a recycled jar and add some twine. The perfect fall gift.

DIY… using recycled vases I picked up at Goodwill and I covered all my pillows with a coverlet my mom found at a garage sale :) Photo: Susan Teare From the book, Salvage Secrets Design & Decor

I painted an old outdated dresser giving it an orange retro look. A DIY NETWORK project.

Crazy fun project for DIY NETWORK. The faux pumpkin, fake fire,fire-pit—say that five times fast!

Till Gabrielle was about 16 years old we took a picture of her in a pumpkin patch. Here is her first one.

Then there is the DIY Halloween Hotel Sign… LOVED MAKING THIS CRAFT!

Cozy up to the fire at Lawson’s Finest Liquids.

Styling for my book Styling with Salvage in Portland, Oregon, at Salvage Works… Seriously how cool are these.

Tourist are not the only ones who love Sunday drives in the fall in Vermont. We do them all the time. Gabrielle took this photo during one.

One of my favorite pictures in Salvage Secrets Design & Decor… a farmhouse that Susan and I shoot for the book in the fall. Loved styling this table.

A renovated storage space turned into a modern farmhouse kitchen. Fall decor was a must. This whole kitchen is in my latest book.

Carey Nershi took this amazing picture of my latest Styling with Salvage book. Seriously… I just want to sit there and eat and read. Thanks Carey — awesome shot!

One of my absolute favorite places in the world is just around the corner from my house. Shelburne Farms… is a property like none other. I highly recommend you check it out. The inn and dining room closes in the late fall but the trails are always open and I spend many hours on them. Lindsay Raymondjack took this professional picture of me a few years back.

Once this design project was completed, I was lucky enough to spend the night there and the next day the photographer, Lindsay Selin and I styled the kitchen. The fall shoots always includes apples. Always.

OUR NEW BOOK!! COMING OUT SOON!

The cover of our next book…

Well... here it is! The cover of the next book. The great thing about this book is I wrote it with Rosanne Palmisano. It is currently in the layout stage at the publishers (W.W. Norton/Countryman Press, New York. London) and will be available early in 2020. You can pre-order now on Amazon and Target websites. It does seem a bit early - but I couldn't help myself in sharing this project that took us a year to write and photograph.

Big thank you to Bear Mountain Inn Maine, Basin Harbor, Cari Cucksey, The Holly Vault, and the vacation rental owners who let us share their interior design renovation projects we did with them on the cover! Wahoo...!!! 😘 Photographers of these amazing shots are Molly & Victoria Co., Susan Teare, Lindsay Selin Photography, Orchard Cove Photography, Gabrielle Booth 😍

Rock Your Rental, #rockyourrental #boostyourbookings, #bookforvacationrentals #bookforboutiquehospitality, #boutiquehospitality, #inns, #motels, #boutiquehotels, #vacationrentals, #airbnbs, #vrbo, #bookings.com, #homeaway, #tipsandadvice