The Studio North chicken coop, a contemporary structure of fiberglass and maple branches, is home to architect Keith Moskow’s growing flock.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

For a romantic take on America’s agricultural heritage, we featured Moskow Linn Architect’s Studio North creation Il Tempietto di Pollo, an architecturally forward approach to housing hens, in our May/June, 2012, issue. Its creators, Keith Moskow and Robert Linn, see it as a prototype for everyday backyard chicken coops, a concept gaining steam as the locavore movement picks up devotees. Certainly, the concept of farming on a small scale, at home, is an attractive idea. Enter design minds like Moskow Linn’s and the folks at Williams-Sonoma’s and it can be a stylish reality.

Rich Pomerantz

In Carol Gilligan’s garden, shade plants make for a magical landscape.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

Carol Gilligan’s garden (Growth & Discovery May/June 2012) captivates with its fanning ferns, elegant birch trees, hydrangea vines, and dappled sunlight. That it is a garden that flourishes mostly in the shade, however, is what astonishes. Shade gardens like Gilligan’s thrive when the limited sun is embraced and plants known to excel in low light are smartly given the freedom to grow and develop as nature intended. Many beautiful species flourish in shade or limited sunlight but they don’t get the attention afforded to showy full-sun blooms. Here are some to consider.

Scraplights from Graypants are crafted from recycled boxes, some with the labels still on, to create some seriously chic lighting.

By Danielle Ossher

The consensus: This year’s International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) is right on point. (The show runs through May 22.) Spread out across New York’s massive Jacob J. Javits Convention Center was booth after booth of refreshing designs made with aesthetic and function (and, in many cases, the environment) in mind. Materials, colors, and shapes created a common story along the aisles of wares. We could think of no better way to spend a rainy NYC day.

Integrating history into design was the topic of last night’s Design Salon with speakers (from left) Gregory Lombardi, Eliza Tan, Jerry Freeman, Stephen Payne, and Dan McAuliffe.

By Molly A. Campbell

It was a beautiful spring night for our final Design Salon at The Barn at 17 Antiques in Somerville, Massachusetts. Guests (of which there were record number) were greeted by the owner’s shop mascot — their dog, Sydney — and made their way into the 10,000-square-foot warehouse that, filled with antiques as it was, still felt quaint and cozy. The evening moved from mingling to a guided discussion of ways to incorporate history into today’s design.

The North Bennet Street School exhibit boasts of achievements by students and alumni. The work in the foreground is by Paula Garbarino.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

Outside 125 High Street is the fast-paced bustle of downtown Boston, but just inside the Pearl Street entrance of this high rise building in the heart of the Financial District, things take on a different tone. Here the North Bennet Street School, a private institution in the North End that educates students in traditional craftsmanship trades, has its student and alumni exhibit on view through Friday May 18. Displayed are impressive examples of wood furniture (tables, chairs, desks, dressers, even a few grandfather clocks), jewelry, books, and musical instruments, all stunningly and painstakingly handcrafted by the students who also designed them.

Signage like this let me know I was at the right place for vintage garden pieces.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

Come May, July, and September, the small New England town of Brimfield, Massachusetts, goes all out and transforms itself into an antiques playground for six days by hosting the aptly and simply named Brimfield Antique Show. It bursts at the seams with more than 5,000 dealers, attracting an assortment of designers, homeowners, merchandisers, serious and amateur collectors, and tourists and while this has been happening, rain or shine, for more than 50 years, every day in every show in every year is completely different. One-of-a-kind items are the show’s stock-in-trade, and nowhere else can the astute shopper spot the next big thing in vintage wares than at Brimfield. (An early edition of Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking tucked on a shelf for $250 tells me the foodies are soon to make their mark!). For this spring’s show, however, I was on a mission to find what Brimfield would portend for the season’s trends in garden accessories.

Design New England's Steve Twombly and I took a photograph with our speakers (from left) Todd LaBarge, Michael Coutu, Doreve Nicholaeff, and Cameron Snyder.

By Molly A. Campbell

Design New England’s Design Salon “Dream Spaces” at Roomscapes Luxury Design Center in Rockland last night rewarded its attendees for venturing out in the rain with a wonderful panel of speakers that tantalized all with their projects. The theme placed importance on paying attention to details when designing a client’s dream space, and the Roomscapes showroom provided the perfect backdrop with winding rooms packed with examples of the exceptional work produced for their clients.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

Choosing Pierre Frey’s fantastic Le Marché (above) for the “et al.” pages of our May/June 2012 issue (now online) was both an easy and a not-so-easy decision. Easy because it is fun and new, evocative of French countryside charm, and arouses appetites for fresh vegetables. Not so easy because there are so many sumptuous fabrics and items in the 7,000 plus Frey collection from which to choose. Every time a new sample lands on our desk, we wonder how could we have loved another. The range is so intoxicatingly extensive because the French fabric house not only introduces new textiles regularly under the Pierre Frey name, it also offers collections for its three secondary brands acquired as the company grew.

Restored and recently reinstalled, magnificent wrought-iron gates mark the northern entry to The Breakers, in Newport, Rhode Island.

By Jill Connors

On a recent Friday evening, as the sun was casting an orange glow over the ocean waters a few feet away, two tradesmen, working from a cherry picker and their Lodi Welding pickup truck, hoisted a large, intricately crafted piece of wrought iron into place. The piece dangled in mid-air, then settled into place. The men sighed, and then one said with a grin, “We’ve been working on these for two years.” And, at last, the splendid gates are back.

Advocates of keeping style high and environmental impact low were our speakers (from left) Owen Kantor, Stephanie Birchenough, John Day, and Sally Grant.

By Molly A. Campbell

There’s no doubt that “Green” is no longer a movement — it’s an unavoidable factor in all things, and design is no exception. That much was evident at last night’s Design New England Design Salon at the new Circle Furniture showroom, 31 St. James Avenue, Boston, where designers, trade professionals, and homeowners gathered to hear what authorities in the field had to say about incorporating green elements into great design.

Media, social and otherwise, to promote your brand was the topic at a forum at K. Powers & Company. From left: Leslie Fine, Katherine Powers, Kristin Bedard, and Gail Ravgiala.

A roomful of designers asked that question last week at a workshop on social media as a marketing tool. Some 40 guests gathered at the Needham showroom of K. Powers & Company, Decorative Carpets and Rugs, which generously sponsored the event, and found answers from two social networking pros: Kristin Bedard, formerly of The Boston Globe and boston.com and now with Forrester Research, and Leslie Fine of Leslie Fine Interiors of Boston and astute blogger.

The Command Central Design Salon speakers (from left to right): Jan Gleysteen, Nancy Goldstein, Alison Weidner, and Greg Bilowz

By Molly A. Campbell

One of our speakers from last night’s Design Salon at SieMatic Boston, Greg Bilowz (landscape architect, Bilowz Associates), provided the audience with a quote from chef Jamie Oliver that I cannot resist repeating: “The easiest way to improve the quality of your life is a good meal.” And what better way to create such a meal than in a perfectly designed kitchen with fresh herbs from your own garden? That’s just what was explored at last night’s event: “Command Central: The multifunctional heart of the home.”

By Gail Ravgiala

We normally reserve this space for items about design events, building trends, real estate news, etc., but today we are going to veer off course to let our readers know about one great musical show. We had the good fortune of attending a performance by the terrific crew of The UMass Boston Performing Arts Department of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee last night — and we are still smiling. It is the first musical produced at UMass Boston in more than a decade, but we sure hope it won’t be 10 years until there is another.

By Estelle Bond Guralnick

Collectively, the local design community recently got a long-awaited shot in the arm. After six barren years, the erstwhile annual Designers’ Show House sponsored by the Junior League of Boston — undisputed royalty in the show-and-tell house genre — is back in the game.

Details are still sketchy, but this much we know: Anita MacKinnon has once again been hired as on-site coordinator, a move that, thanks to her experience and talent, instantly guarantees a well-run, cohesive venture.

Difficulty in finding the right property with parking and public transport accessibility has been the league's salient obstacle in recent years. At last, they seem to have struck gold in the Potter Estate (above), a grand, circa 1860s Second Empire/Victorian-style house on the grounds of the Jackson Walnut Park School in Newton, Massachusetts.

The wonderful speakers after presenting (from left to right: Rob Henry, Rosemary Porto, Andreana Bakert-Miceli, and Allison Iantosca)

By Molly Campbell

Neither rain nor parking challenges nor Cambridge traffic could keep away the faithful attendees of last night’s Design Salon at the BoConcept showroom, who, from the extreme comfort of fabulous Danish furniture, learned about the finer points of modern accents in today’s design world.

Tristan Govignon

By Gail Ravgiala

No doubt, Eric Roseff is the right man for the job. The interior designer was selected by the team at Showtime to create Boston’s entry in The Borgias Unveiled, a 10-city designer challenge to hype the second season of “The Borgias,” one dark and edgy series about a Renaissance family and its sordid climb to fame and fortune. The show premieres Sunday at 10 p.m.

Dancing the Charleston to entertain the crowd at Clarke’s Designer Appreciation Night.

By Courtney Kasianowicz

A Roaring ‘20s speakeasy was the theme of Thursday night’s 5th annual Clarke Designer Appreciation Night at its expansive showroom in Milford, Massachusetts. People came dressed in fringed dresses and fedora hats ready for a flapper-inspired night of fun. The mega-distributer, the region’s Number One resource for Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances, put on the extravaganza to thank the attending architects and kitchen designers who regularly call on Clarke to outfit their projects.

The restored country house looks straight from the pages of a fairytale.

By Gail Ravgiala

With the ease of a host pouring the port after a relaxed dinner party with friends, Charles Spada told the bittersweet tale of his house fantasy come to life. Sweet because, the usual pitfalls of a major renovation notwithstanding, this was his dream come true writ large. Bitter because with the realities of life, i.e. an aging parent and a caretaker taken ill, morning came. There was a collective sigh from his audience, Historic New England’s Ogden Codman Design Group, when he revealed he sold the Manior du Berthouville, the 1652 one-time relais de chasse, or hunting lodge in the French Norman countryside, he bought in the mid 1990s and then devotedly restored over a three-year period.

By Danielle Ossher

I spent a wonderful (and long) two days at the Architectural Digest Home Show, wandering the rows, eyes wide, notebook and camera ready, while excitement buzzed in the air. Bigwigs and up-and-comers alike flock to Pier 94, filling the massive space with all things home — and a whole lot of inspiration. It has an unmistakable kid-in-a-candy-store feel that I just can't get enough of. And while there was a plethora to explore and adore, I'm sharing a select few of my favorite finds (some with NE roots), like this vignette from the BDDW booth (above) showcasing their signature style.

By Alyssa Lusky

For aficionados of fine crafts, taking a stroll through Craftboston at the Seaport World Trade Center is akin to walking into a candy store as a child — only instead of edible candy, there is eye candy galore. Back for it’s 11th anniversary, the show, which is open through Sunday, March 25, features more than 200 artists and artisans. Many are exhibiting wearable art such as clothing, hats, jewelry, and even shoes, but, no surprise, it was the furnishings, accessories, and art for the home that had us mesmerized. Here we highlight just a few of our favorites.