thanksgiving – Design Your Lifestyle.

Thanksgiving | Using Gratitude as Design Inspiration

November 2019November 2019Peter Salerno Inc.

Thanksgiving | Using Gratitude as Design Inspiration

There’s nothing more beautiful than gratitude.

The spirit generated by Thanksgiving is such an inspiration for us at Design Your Lifestyle. It’s a design outlook fostered by our parent company, Peter Salerno Inc, – their focus on “personalized luxury” is rooted in gratitude in two ways.

The first is peter’s gratitude to his clients – for their trust, their business & their openness. “the creative process starts and ends with the client,” Peter explains. “Our design has to reflect their lives and what is important to them.”

Thanksgiving photos with Peter Salerno and Peter Salerno Inc.

It’s that attitude which informs Peter’s second commitment to gratitude in design – personalization through passion. It’s that way of thinking that motivates Peter to take “the deep dives” into clients’ lives & turn individual details into one-of-a-kind design elements. From birthday month flowers painted & carved into custom cabinetry to family emblems and monograms incorporated into design elements, it’s personalized luxury that turns ordinary into extraordinary design,

Gratitude extends outward from clients to community. Honor for the great architecture, culture & history only serves to strengthen Peter Salerno’s commitment to gratitude as a design inspiration. Reverence for classic American construction leads Peter to salvage tin from Route 66. Honor for his father’s Sicilian craftsmanship informs the Maestro Rosolino line of cabinetry. the desire to keep elements of classic architecture alive brought wooden beams from NYC’s St. Patrick’s Orphanage into a stellar transitional kitchen design earlier this year.

Peter Salerno and reclaimed wood beams from St. Patrick's Orphanage, NYC. — Peter Salerno and reclaimed wood beams from St. Patrick’s Orphanage, NYC.

Peter Salerno Inc.'s reclaimed wood beams in transitional kitchen design, 2019. — Peter Salerno Inc.’s reclaimed wood beams in transitional kitchen design, 2019.

This Thanksgiving, how will YOU turn gratitude into inspiration? What are you thankful for, and how will those things inform your design choices in the future? We would love to hear from you in the comments section below. Happy Thanksgiving!

The BEST Thanksgiving Guide You Will Find: Right Here!

November 2019November 2019Peter Salerno Inc.

The BEST Thanksgiving Guide You Will Find: Right Here!

We found the greatest Thanksgiving recipe guide we’ve ever seen. Now, we’re sharing it. And wouldn’t you know it; it’s all thanks to Epicurious.

“Epi’s 2019 Thanksgiving Recipe Finder” is a brilliant interactive flow chart of Thanksgiving recipes and ingredients. It couldn’t be simpler to use. Pick up to 3 base ingredients on the interactive chart, and Epicurious automatically narrows down its 509 Thanksgiving recipes to the select few that meet your needs.

From sweet potato to fennel, cider to sausage, Epi’s 2019 Thanksgiving Recipe Finder has it all. Are you or your Thanksgiving guests gluten free, vegan or lactose intolerant? No problem; you’re still covered.

You can also filter the Thanksgiving flow chart by dish type. Narrow the recipes by one of 7 categories (main, side, stuffing, etc.) before selecting ingredients to focus your search. The possibilities are so fun to explore!

Here are just a few great combinations we uncovered:

Cranberry + Apple + Thyme = Skillet Stuffing with Apples, Shallots, and Cranberries

Green Beans + Cauliflower + Citrus = Herb-Crusted Cauliflower Steaks with Beans and Tomatoes

Seafood + Potato + Mushroom = Crudités With Bacon XO Sauce

If these 3 recipes don’t strike your Thanksgiving fancy, don’t fret – there are 506 more where those came from!

This Epicurious Thanksgiving interactive flow chart is a passionate home cook’s dream. It’s perfect for a creative food lover who has the ingredients in mind and simply needs a little direction. If you’re hosting Thanksgiving this year, the 2019 Thanksgiving Recipe Finder from Epicurious is as close to a ‘must have’ tool as we’ve found.

Happy browsing and Happy Thanksgiving!

Peter Salerno's favorite pumpkin ravioli recipe from Williams-Sonoma.

Will YOU Accept Our 2019 Thanksgiving Food Bank Challenge?

November 2019November 2019Peter Salerno Inc.

Will YOU Accept Our 2019 Thanksgiving Food Bank Challenge?

One look at the hashtag #FoodBankChallenge on Twitter, and you’ll see how dire the situation has gotten for many of our food banks. Around the world, food banks are woefully depleted of basic and necessary supplies. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, this is a food shortage that we need to try and correct!

The task seems daunting – but if each of us focuses on our local food banks and pantries, the mission becomes easier to manage. It all starts with finding your local food bank – our favorite resource is the Feeding America locator.

Will you take Peter Salerno Inc.'s #FoodBankChallenge? — Will you take Peter Salerno Inc.’s #FoodBankChallenge?

For years, our parent company Peter Salerno Inc. has pledged to donate no less than 75 turkeys every Thanksgiving season to its local food bank – the St. Andrew’s Parish Food Pantry in Westwood, NJ. St. Andrew’s is a spiritual home for Peter Salerno and his family, where Peter’s children Anthony and Gabrielle were both married.

This isn’t a statement to ‘prop ourselves up’. When broken down amongst several members of a work team, the cost of 75 turkeys isn’t that massive – and the ability to provide enough Thanksgiving main courses for over 1,000 people (1 person fed per pound of turkey) is a number that will change an entire community for the better.

Peter Salerno's staff delivering Thanksgiving turkeys to St. Andrew's Church. — Will you take Peter Salerno Inc.’s #FoodBankChallenge?

If you’re focusing on turkey, remember that simple calculation – 1 pound of turkey feeds 1 person. If you donate a 16 lb. turkey, a food pantry can feed roughly 16 people.

If your focus extends past Thanksgiving, non-perishable and shelf-stable items are your target.What food items are pantries and food banks most in need of this Thanksgiving season? According to Feeding America, these are the six most requested shelf-stable items by food banks during the fall months:

•   Boxed stuffing
•   Instant mashed potatoes
•   Canned vegetables
•   Dry macaroni
•   Cranberry sauce
•   Canned Pumpkin

What can YOU do to take steps to assist those in need and give back this Thanksgiving season? According to Peter Salerno, it’s all about targeted giving.

“Instead of helping dozens of charities, choose two or three that resonate with you to maximize your effectiveness,” Peter encourages. “Imagine how much better a world (we’d have) if everyone who could, would take action.”

Keep in touch with us – and the movement – using #FoodBankChallenge on Twitter. Let us know how you’re helping give back this Thanksgiving season!

Design Your 2018 Thanksgiving With These 5 Pantone Colors

September 2018September 2018Peter Salerno Inc.

Design Your 2018 Thanksgiving With These 5 Pantone Colors

The Pantone Fall/Winter 2018 Color Palette was released to much celebration and intrigue, but now it’s time to take the 10 colors (and 5 classic colors) selected and find them some practical applications.

Thanksgiving is a holiday not just associated with food, family and fellowship, but with design as well. Thanksgiving 2018 gives home designers (both professional and amateur) a chance to strut their stuff and utilize the fine color options in the Fall/Winter 2018 Pantone color collection. But which colors should one choose?

We’ve pared down the list of 10 Pantone Fall/Winter color choices (and 5 Classic Colors) to just 5 smart selections for your Thanksgiving 2018 home design, room design, decor and Thanksgiving table accessories. You’ll notice hues that suggest specific food and drink pairings, reflect the typical colors of the autumn season, and promote warmth and comfort for your guests.

Do you agree or disagree with our selections? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

1. Red Pear

One of our favorite colors in the Pantone Fall/Winter 2018 collection, Red Pear is demure and luxurious, while providing an air of warmth. Like a fine glass of red wine or the cranberries on your Thanksgiving table, Red Pear is a perfect balance of sweet and sophisticated. Use Red Pear in your Thanksgiving design to reflect falling leaves, glasses of wine, and an overall crispness.

2. Martini Olive

One smart, sophisticated color deserves another with which to pair it. Martini Olive and Red Pear serve nicely as trendy, ‘upscale’ notes of color in the Fall/Winter 2018 collection. With such a focus on natural, earthy tones in both the 2017 and 2018 Pantone collections, Martini Olive has a mossy tone that is both comfortable and inviting.

3. Russet Orange

The boldest choice among these 5 (and second only to Limelight in pure ‘pop value’ in the Pantone Fall/Winter 2018 color palette), Russet Orange is a perfect shade for Thanksgiving design in 2018. Russet Orange is a wonderful choice for that burst of warm color you want in your Thanksgiving design, especially on your Thanksgiving table.

4. Ceylon Yellow

Ceylon Yellow gets the other ‘warm tone’ nod over Limelight and Valiant Poppy due to its ability to pair with the other selections on this list. Far more subdued than other bright tones in the Fall/Winter 2018 Pantone collection, this mustard yellow provides warmth without dominating the other colors in your design.

5. Almond Buff

Now that we have four strong Pantone color choices from the ‘core’ 10 colors in the Fall/Winter 2018 palette, it’s time to tie them together with a smart neutral from this season’s Classic Colors collection. Almond Buff isn’t as bold as Meerkat, and isn’t as shy and shrinking as Tofu. Pairing this light taupe/tan neutral with the other natural colors in this collection is a simple decision for a Pantone Thanksgiving 2018 design palette.

From the deep wine red of Red Pear to the sumptuous pumpkin of Russet Orange, the understated and elegant Martini Olive to Ceylon Yellow’s ‘squash’-like appeal – adding Almond Buff to the design mix seems like the perfect way to cap off this colorful Thanksgiving feast!

A Kitchen Designer Shares His 2017 Home Thanksgiving Photos

November 2017November 2017Peter Salerno Inc.

A Kitchen Designer Shares His 2017 Home Thanksgiving Photos

Peter Salerno Inc. is the most award-winning North American kitchen and bath design firm of the 21st century. So it stands to reason that in the Salerno family home, Thanksgiving is a pretty big deal.

“[F]amily dinners are all about food, love and more food,” Peter Salerno quipped on social media during Thanksgiving 2017, posting a series of photos of his immediate and extended family sharing a sumptuous Thanksgiving dinner in their stunning Bergen County, New Jersey home.

Thanksgiving 2017 photos with Peter Salerno and Peter Salerno Inc.

Peter Salerno was joined for Thanksgiving by his wife Tracy, his father Rosolino and his mother-in-law Jo. Peter’s son Anthony was accompanied by his wife Eve and daughter Jesse, and Peter’s daughter Gabrielle came with her husband Brian and their daughter Brielle.

Peter was sure to thank the renowned Goffle Farms for the family’s delicious 18 pound turkey. The main course was accompanied by some outstanding side dishes, from the traditional (mashed and roasted potatoes, string beans) to the unconventional (a delicious lime and pineapple mold).

The meal also featured a beautiful and delicious pasta course – homemade pumpkin fettucine with a creamy sausage sauce. The fettucine was a huge hit with the family!

As the 2017 holiday season swings into full force, it’s important to take these moments to cherish those around you – both in your professional and personal lives. Peter Salerno takes great care to maintain a good work-life balance, and takes the time to nurture his work family alongside his own.

Thanksgiving 2017 was a pretty beautiful day for Peter Salerno and his family, but nothing compares to the warmth he felt in his own home. Peter sincerely hopes you had a blessed, safe and satisfying Thanksgiving full of love this year.

Enjoy these exclusive photos from Peter Salerno (of Peter Salerno Inc.)’s 2017 home Thanksgiving!

Peter Salerno's pumpkin fettucine with creamy sausage sauce. — Peter Salerno’s pumpkin fettucine with creamy sausage sauce.

Design Your Thanksgiving 2017 By the Pantone Color System

November 2017November 2017Peter Salerno Inc.

Perfect Pantone Colors For Your Thanksgiving Design

Thanksgiving is right around the corner (less than a week away!), and we know you’re hard at work preparing for the holiday. This is especially true if you’re hosting family, friends and loved ones for a day of food, fun, and perhaps a little football.

If you’re hosting, you already have enough on your plate – cooking, cleaning, the list is endless. You don’t want to throw dollar-store napkins on the table, but who can find the time to create a Thanksgiving design for your home or table from scratch?

Leave that to us! We’ve found the 5 very best colors for your Thanksgiving design this year, thanks to the handy Pantone Color System. Each color is beautiful, adaptable – and as an added bonus, directly ties to a food or drink you may already be putting on your Thanksgiving table this year!

So from sweet corn to cranberry sauce, here’s a list of 5 great Pantone colors to utilize in this year’s Thanksgiving design. Whether you like warm tones, earth tones or neutrals, we have the Thanksgiving colors you need!

A Thanksgiving Table Full of Pantone Colors

Cranberry (Pantone 17-1545)

This is a shade of red that really pops! One may expect Cranberry to have a darker hue (like the cranberry sauce or jam on your Thanksgiving table), but the Pantone Cranberry is a festive hue that will spruce up any Thanksgiving design or table setup.

Add a dash of Cranberry (Pantone 17-1545) to your Thanksgiving table this year, or to your home decor. It’s a great choice for accents, statement decor pieces, and table accessories. Try it in throws, pillows, tablecloths and napkins, or anywhere in your place settings for a nice, warm touch.

Chestnut (Pantone 19-1118)

An intriguing shade of brown or green in your home design can augment its inviting nature. And with a name that’s perfect for the Thanksgiving season, why not fall in love with Chestnut this season?

Chestnut is a beautiful shade of brown that arouses images of warmth – wood in a crackling fire, hot cocoa, and – of course – warm chestnuts. It’s a sturdy hue as well, working perfectly with the wood and wood-grain elements in your design. It can also be incorporated in a design that utilizes falling autumn leaves.

Sweet Corn (Pantone 11-0106)

For 2 straight years, neutrals have dominated the Pantone color design landscape. Custom kitchen, bath and interior designers (like Peter Salerno Inc.) love the idea of “flipping the script” and letting the neutrally-colored design elements take the lead.

At first glimpse, you almost can’t SEE Sweet Corn in the graphic below, can you? That’s what makes this shade of off-white so unique. A blush of light, light yellow adds a real sweetness to the color, giving it a “country kitchen” aesthetic. Sweet Corn and Chestnut are a beautiful pairing of “earth tone and neutral” for your Thanksgiving design in 2017. You can also try Sweet Corn with our next color, Vineyard Wine.

Vineyard Wine (Pantone 19-1623)

There is a cornucopia of “Wine” colors in the Pantone color system (yes, we had to get one Thanksgiving pun in there!). Our favorite is Vineyard Wine (Pantone 19-1623). Not too light to be a raspberry color and not so dark that it dulls your design, Vineyard Wine has a rich burgundy feel, evocative of dark red grapes hanging in a French vineyard.

It’s hard to design with purple without it appearing garish at times (or a little girl’s bedroom). Vineyard Wine has an air of class that pairs incredibly well with light and sage greens, earth tones, and light neutrals (like Sweet Corn above).

Harvest Pumpkin (Pantone 16-1260)

A carryover from our Halloween Pantone list that makes a ton of sense. After all, who doesn’t love a nice pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dessert? Harvest Pumpkin is a spunky, warm Pantone color that adds a bit of spicy brown into traditional orange to create an appetizing hue.

Harvest Pumpkin is more of an accent color than a core shade in your overall design. However, if you’re looking to create a real splash, why not try it on an accent wall to give that old room a little zest? harvest Pumpkin is a great choice for Thanksgiving table accents like napkins, place settings and centerpieces.