Leeann

I know how very fortunate I am to have lived my life teeming with good art and sensational design, delicious, tempting food and exhilarating cocktails and oh-the wine, adventurous and luxurious travel, my constant companion: books, and love… I enjoy these luxuries the most when shared with family, friends, and community. 

I  remain smitten with all things garden and nature since I was a tot helping my grandfather search and dig up his garden potatoes and the long hikes I took with my father in the woods and on the beach. 

My father gave me the nickname Duchess when I was a little girl, and I have continued to delight in the moniker for my garden design business, using the name  with great love and reverence. It also links serendipitously with my English ancestors who were gardeners in Lambeth, London.  In fact, my Duchess Designs logo is borrowed from my elders’ wedding certificate. It’s a privilege to work at something you love ~ and I do. For more than twenty years, as an award-winning garden designer: Duchess Designs, LLC.  

I started writing this blog in 2009.  I have so enjoyed sharing my world of gardens, food and drink, tablescapes, books, events, and lectures, especially.  And as an author, sharing the joys ~ and nightmares, literally (!) of writing the books, getting them edited, and to print.  Whew…

I am proud to consider myself a thoughtful Philomath ~ that is, a lover of learning. Every day I find things that captivate and intrigue me. I love to research and learn about new things. Or things I’ve seen so often I might take for granted but then, I see it in a new way and realize I want to know more about its origin; its purpose ~ or its original one! Curiosity drives my pursuit of adventure and the pursuit of peace and happiness.  For me, that is fulfilled best when I harmonize with nature and the arts. 

I share my love of garden art and garden design.  (My love of gardens is such that even our country house is located in the Garden State!)  Through my elegant designs for our own gardens that my husband Bill and I work on together,  and my sustainable ornamental and edible garden designs for clients, or through the many lectures and symposia and shows I have the privilege to attend and report on. As a certified landscape designer and horticulturist, I also share tips and best practices for the care and cultivation for gardens and the plants.

Plants are my muse!  My love of plants is what inspired me to write two successful books. The Hamptons and Long Island Homegrown Cookbook that takes you on a tour of the best of Long Island’s chefs and the makers who inspire them most. The Art of the Garnish book takes its inspiration from the plants that are all our spirits are made from ~ botanical gin, mezcal, rye, even wine!  Further, I offer a glamorous garden-to-glass garniture to elevate the art of the cocktail and make your happy hours ever more special… 

I have contributed to several other books.  Because of my work experience in communications at The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) and writing instructor for The School of Professional Horticulture; I was Vice President and Director of Communications, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, I was asked to write the marketing communications chapter for Public Garden Management: How to Establish and Maintain a Public Garden.

I had oodles of fun researching and writing three chapters on subjects dear to me for the seminal book, Savoring Gotham – A Food Lover’s Companion to New York City – covering the history of New York’s “Greenmarkets,” the “Farm to Table” cultural food movement, and “Ladies Who Lunch.” 

The folks at Women’s Wear Daily, told me they granted me exclusive research privileges into their files for the Ladies Who Lunch chapter. A period of Capote vs. The Swans, the Gotham history is a tantalizing tale of a time when lunch reigned, and so did the ladies.   In fact, it in turn, inspired me to launch and produce my monthly videcast, Ladies Who Lunch Conversations where I have the honor to talk to women who inspire us with their work ~ overcoming challenges to pursue their passions and achieve their dreams.  I am in awe of these ladies… Please do Follow and be inspired too. 

The Ladies have also inspired and enriched my art of the Tablescape. In addition to theming the table decor for a season or holiday, I can create table settings that honor the Ladies.  For example, a recent guest is an animal biologist/anthropologist specializing in jaguars and turtles. So, I was inspired to design a glamorous table look with lots of green ~ sparkly table “cloths” too, ~ with green tableware, gold cutlery, and accessorized with miniature jaguars, turtles, and lots of green, jungle-like plants.  Or there was the fog emanating from a centerpiece bowl, and table accessories of barometers and *chronometers and marine plants to honor a climate scientist.  Another favorite was the table setting for a fragrance designer that was laden with exquisite perfume bottles, butterflies, and fragrant flowers…   

See how we can be inspired to elevate our home entertaining?  When we gather, my guests appreciate and delight in these table fantasies…

I believe in the power of beauty to inspire and transform. The pursuit of an artful lifestyle offers endless, beautiful, enriching, transporting possibilities and adventure.  And fun! 

For collaborations, inquiries, advertising or sponsorship, or just to share your garden glamour stories with me, I invite you to reach out to me: leeann@duchess-designs.com. 

I sincerely hope you discover, explore, and seek inspiration from the Garden Glamour garden designs, garden-to-glass cocktails, and arcadian, garden oasis tablescapes. We’’d love to learn from you.

Join me to celebrate a romantic, garden-infused, entertaining lifestyle filled with artful design, sparkling dinner parties, peerless martinis, and copious magnums of champagne!