Home Means Nevada!

As a recent beneficiary of Nevada Housing Division’s Home is Possible grant assistance to firmly plant resident first-time homebuyers into Nevada soil, I found myself needing to take a fresh look at my old furniture in new rooms. To aid me in that endeavor, I looked up the new kid in town: Heather Leonard at Brown Bear Designs and Associates located at 1492 US-395, Suite 103, in Gardnerville. Delicious fall scents and soft music welcomed me through the door.

A chalkboard sign on the wall reads: “Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice.” Heather grinned, put down her paintbrush and invited me to curl up on the couch and hear her story. (Yes, the couch is for sale, but I bet it hangs around for a long time, as it seems to be a focal gathering point!)

“Being artistic in nature,” Heather began, “I realized my passion could not be expressed in a corporate setting. To fulfill my vision of sharing pretty things with people and helping them capture the essence of home, I needed to act upon my imagination.” Friends of Heather are no strangers to her unique talent to stage a room with their personal treasures, and she has been commissioned for specialty painted furniture via friend-to-friend recommendation for several years. I asked her how it all began and, much like her clientele, she was hooked the first time she saw a repurposed, up-cycled piece with a fresh coat of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. So, gifted creative spirit she is, Heather picked up a brush and began her journey. Many picture frames, hutches, tables, and dressers later, a store was born. Annie Sloan Chalk Paint matte finish and gently waxed surface is trademarked and not found in any other paint.

As a customer needed definition to the words “up-cycle” and “repurposed,” so Heather explained: “To ‘up-cycle’ is to give the well-worn piece a fresh finish. To ‘repurpose’ is to redirect the piece’s future; say, from dresser to kitchen island. The aim is to honor the tradition of the piece.” What makes the Brown Bear Designs store unique is that Heather’s pieces are displayed in vignettes which allow the “years of life” of the furniture to speak to one’s personal feelings of “home.” Kind of like mending a broken heart, a repurposed or up-cycled piece of furniture is a comfort piece for the soul of a home.

When I asked Heather where she found the courage to bring her dream to life, the reason behind the “and Associates” part of her company name was immediately clear. Listing off resources such as other Annie Sloan stockists helping her through troublesome pieces and local retailers like Karen Campbell at Cheshire Antiques (where Heather held a booth for 3 years) and Meredith Fischer at Eddie Street Vintage Market (where Heather continues to collaborate), Heather credits over 20 people with being the resource network who believed in her talent and helped her to launch. “Start-ups don’t happen in a vacuum,” Heather stated, “and it truly takes all talents and strengths to make a dream come true.”

Heather credits Scott, her husband with the magical knack for first putting the edges of a piece which “may have a little too much life on it” back together (also an expert painter and he has been working shoulder-to-shoulder with Heather in their ‘repurposed’ garage for the last 5 years) with giving her the foundation to build the business. Of course, the support of family and friends and the local business community is key to Brown Bear Designs becoming a storefront.

‘Home’ can be defined as “a place of residence” or “a congenial environment.” When asked about her source of inspiration, Heather brought her innate hospitality to a very personal level. Heather’s first estate sale inventory collection began with homegrown venture capital. Heather shared with me the story behind her mom’s 1920s antique canister set with German labels currently displayed on the perfectly painted hutch in the front of the store. “As a military brat, my mom,” Heather began as her eyes welled up with poignant childhood memories, “would make each new place we were stationed into a “home.” The joy in bringing that sense of familiarity, a relaxed and comfortable place to just be, is exactly what Heather wants to share with her customer base.

I inquired about where Brown Bear Designs is headed in the coming months. “It is an incredible honor for Brown Bear Designs to have been selected by Unfolded, the distributor of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, as a stockist.”

A ‘stockist,’ I learned, means Heather will be licensed to teach us how to do what she does. Like all other stockists she has met, Heather wants “to give it away.” She can stock and sell the paint, and she plans to hold classes in her shop, hopefully as early as Spring 2018. So bring in that end-table or dresser which needs a facelift and pick up a paintbrush if you dare. Painting not “your thing?”

You can bring the piece by the store and Heather will bring out her fencepost covered in paintbrushes with actual paint samples (not paper color cards!) and wax finishes to help you select your perfect match and then expertly paint it for you. Heather is also available for personal consultation in your home where she artistically brings your home’s textures, colors, and key pieces of cherished furniture together “in harmony with the surroundings” (another definition of ‘home’).

Heather’s huge heart has ensured her doors are open to other artists as well. Stop by and see the award-winning photography by TLS Photography, Silver Thistle Photography, and Sophie Lou Photography. Diane Stirling’s handmade aprons, Whimsy’s birdhouses made with reclaimed materials, and Robert Cota’s walking sticks and puzzle boxes are, just like everything Heather paints, one-of-a-kinds in their own right. This is the Season most dedicated to the essence of home and a great time to stop by for some cherished gifting.

The store is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays as Heather goes treasure hunting.

Heather can be reached by email at Heather@brownbeardesignsandassociates.com and you can see her pieces on Facebook and Instagram https://www.facebook.com/Brownbeardesignsnv/.