Launching of a Dream

I am so excited to be adding the first blog post of my new company, Grant Boulevard Staging + Style!

For many years I have had clients, family and friends ask me why I didn't have my own business. Well, probably because I was so busy working and building my client base and partnerships that I really didn't think too much about it.

However, when the notion started in my brain, it built very quickly. What would I call my company? What would my logo look like? How would I stand out from other staging companies? What services would I offer?

Most of the answers to those questions were already looming in my mind and my plan. I decided I would name my company after my maternal grandparents home. 561 Grant Bouelevard in Syracuse, NY, where my mother grew up and I spent many wonderful days as a baby and young child and until I was in my 20's before the house was sold.

When I explored the reason why I seemed to have the design gene, it really didn't dawn on me until very recently. It was literally staring at me in my own home. I, along with my Mom, Aunt, and all the cousins have pieces of my grandparent's furniture and furnishings in our homes today. Dining table, china cabinet, bedroom furniture, some amazingly beautiful and probably expensive lamps and art. Even my grandmother's vanity set which consisted of a hair brush and comb, powder box and pill box were made of beautiful amber and pearlized design. All of these things have stood up for over 60 years and are the constant reminders of where we came from.

My grandmother, Carmella Giulia Fannetti, or Carolyn Smith, as she became, was an Italian American with an 8th grade education who married a Syracuse University educated attorney and well known citizen of the community. My grandfather, Anthony Smith, also Italian American, was principled and fair and taught us all that everyone was created equal and should be treated fairly and with respect. My grandmother taught herself, in many ways, to be the wife of her prominent husband. She was elegant and crafted a beautiful home for her family and friends and we all loved to be there in that home. She entertained often and was a gracious host. All of us, in many ways, have the same attributes as both of my grandparents.

My logo represents a special memory that we all hold dear from childhood to adults. After my grandfather died, when my grandmother was only 61, she lived in the house on Grant Blvd all by herself and her grandchildren, including me, would visit her in the summer for a week or two each. We would have quality time and many adventures with her and we kept her company. She was a very busy volunteer at the hospital and always had social engagements or clubs she belonged to at that time. However, every Fall, she would gather the fallen maple leaves in her yard and press them in wax paper. She would then handwrite a poem called Come Little Leaves and place the pressed leaves and the poem in a manilla folder then sent one to each of her 5 grandchildren. Every year. Never failed. When she died in 1996, the maple leaf became our connection to her. We have all collected gold maple leaf ornaments, jewelry, scarves, and dishes and text each other sometimes when a leaf shows up in a strange place all by itself. That happens quite often and we know it's our Nana reminding us she is near.

So the journey begins with Grant Boulevard Staging + Style and I welcome you to come along for the ride!