Van Dusen ventures into home goods

Van Dusen ventures into home goods

Brooklyn-based textile designer Ellen Van Dusen cites a variety of influences in creating her clever, colorful prints. For her clothing label, Dusen Dusen, these custom prints are the unmistakable through-line. A recent expansion into home goods seemed only natural.

The first Dusen Dusen interiors collection features throw pillows, blankets, bedding, towels and poufs. Think: loopy black lines on a crisp white pillow; multicolor stripes on a knit throw; tiny uppercase letters scattered across a duvet like noodles in alphabet soup. New bedding and towels will be introduced in the spring, and the animal-loving designer also intends to add dog beds.

In a recent interview with the website Style Caster, Van Dusen said the roots of her design aesthetic run deep: “My parents are both architects, and I think I got my sense of geometry and balance from them. Growing up, my house was very colorful, and I have always been drawn to color.”

See more online at www.dusendusen.com.

Fall lawn care

Fall’s cooler temperatures and moderate rains create a time frame for getting cool-season fescue lawns back in shape. Here’s a tip on how to get your lawn green and growing again.

Seed selection: When selecting fescue grass seed for lawn renovation or over-seeding a mature lawn, read the label that gives the content of the bag. Look for a product that contains several different types of fescue to avoid a monoculture. This will help insure that a problem that may exist with a single cultivar won’t adversely impact the whole bag. Also, make sure seed makes good contact with soil or it won’t germinate.

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