Leeann Lavin

“Love of beauty is taste. The creation of beauty is Art,” Ralph Waldo Emerson. That quote sits prominently on my writing desk. I adore plants. Plants are my muse ... I'm a garden artist; a nature lover, & horticulturist. I'm an author & writer. My passion for culture & beauty, along with my trait curiosity, brings you an authentic celebration of life. I'm a storyteller ~ weaving the artful gifts of horticulture, garden design, tablescape decor, floral design, cocktail culture, garden-to-glass recipes & their glamorous garnishes, homegrown edibles, food & drink; & cooking, to bring you my flair & what I've been told is an avid elan ~ as well as the stories from those who inspire me ~ to pursue an elegant, enduring, & joyful, entertaining lifestyle. It’s an honor & a privilege to do what you love… My first book is: "The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook." My second book is "Art of the Garnish." I've worked in restaurants and food catering and cook with passion, using food ingredients from local NYC Greenmarkets and our herb and farm-ette in the Garden State. For nearly ten years I wrote a Food & Drink column for Examiner and She-Knows, curating the food spectrum that dazzles and elevates the radical New York food world. I contributed the chapter Public Relations and Marketing Communications to the successful "Public Garden Management: A Complete Guide to the Planning and Administration of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta." and three chapters to "Savoring Gotham: A Food Lover's Companion to New York City." I've written garden book reviews for The Two River Times and the Wall Street Journal. In 2008, I launched two blogs. Yes, I was that crazy and that passionate about the artful, exciting experiences I lived and wanted to share my adventures and challenges. "Master Chefs and their Gardens" chronicled the making of the book, "The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook," as well as the nexus of garden art and culinary art, food events, lectures, Greenmarkets, growers, cookbook reviews, and food stories. I concluded this blog's storytelling sometime around 2014 or so.. "Garden Glamour by Duchess Designs' ' is the enduring blog that I refer to as "The "little black dress" for an entertaining lifestyle. Just as Chanel's design became a bold statement & symbol of women's freedom and independence, Garden Glamour offers bold, transporting stories about an artful lifestyle that are meant to inspire and delight. My passion for beauty, art, nature, & culture celebrates exterior designs, tablescape decor, book reviews, homegrown food & drink, garden-to-glass cocktails; and the insouciant anecdotes about the humbling, glorious & glamorous world of garden art and inspiring creators and innovators. Believing that ideas have agency; and the pandemic prevented that natural networking, I launched a successful videocast, "Ladies Who Lunch Conversations." Inspired by the research I did for one of the chapters I wrote for "Savoring Gotham," I named the show after these dames who helped change artful, cultural Gotham! Today, after the world got back to "normal" I continued to hold intimate Conversations with incredible ladies ~ who share their stories of challenge, triumph, and hard knocks. Seen on Facebook and YouTube, I am grateful to be able to share the extraordinary lives of THE most inspiring women. I am a Garden Specialist and principal of Duchess Designs, LLC, designing artful, sustainable gardens that tell stories & are endlessly beguiling--in every season. I earned a Certificate in Landscape Design from The New York Botanical Garden. After decades in corporate public relations, I then pivoted and worked at NYBG as Associate Director, Public Relations and later, writing instructor for The School of Professional Horticulture; I was Vice President & Director of Communications, Brooklyn Botanic Garden. I am an award-winning landscape designer; Two Duchess Designs gardens are featured in "Cottages and Mansions of the Jersey Shore '' by author Caroline Seebohm. Several garden designs are highlighted in NJ Design magazine. I am a proud member of Les Dames d'Escoffier, International Association of Culinary Professionals, Association of Food Journalists, Professional Reader NetGalley, MetroHort Group, The Garden Writers Association, The Horticultural Society of NY, and The Garden Conservancy. Leeann nurtures a small rooftop garden at her home in Gotham, and herb, edible and display gardens at her Garden State home.