HFG Design's blog

I first became interested in healthier ways of living when I was pregnant with my first child. It suddenly seemed essential to change my habits to counteract the negative effects modern day lifestyles have on our health. At the same time, I was suddenly obsessed with protecting the environment for my future children and grandchildren. So began a 20 year journey to leading a healthier, less toxic, less wasteful life. Some days I am good and some days not so much.

Valerie Kellogg of Newsday video interviews Helena Flecker of HFG Design.

In 2006, Helena Flecker and her husband, Jason Grossman, were renovating their dream home — a Lloyd Harbor midcentury they dubbed “The Tree House” — and were told the two beloved 100-year-old oaks framing it had deteriorated to the point they had to come down.

Recently featured in Newsday, HFG Deisgn is proud to be one of the Long Island designers chosen to create a table setting raising money for the Junior Welfare League summer camp charity and to talk about creating your own ornamenetal table dressings for special occasions.

Imagine a perfect summers day on the East End of long island and you will experience a lot that you wish you could capture and take home with you. First thing in the morning, with a delicious café-au-lait in hand, enjoying the sound of the rhythmic ocean crashing onto a beach of perfectly soft sand beneath your feet, a myriad of undistinguishable shades of grey, taupe, beige and white mixing with every shade of green and blue.

I often find myself wondering what the world was like before humans and capitalism came along and messed it all up. I’ll be walking down a street, imagining what it looked like before the pavement went down, and the buildings and manipulated landscaping were put onto it. Its all so calculated and formulaic and clichéd. What’s more unnatural then a perfectly manicured lawn? That is what nature has become, pre-planned generally uninspired bits of greenery, surrounding unoriginal buildings.

With my love of modern design and respect for historical styles, nothing can be more satisfying then giving a fresh look and contemporary update to a traditional historical home. I recently had the opportunity when long time clients bought a newly renovated traditional home dating from the early 20th century. Being that the home had recently been renovated anyone would be surprised that the new owners planned to spend the money to gut and re-do most of it. However, designing your forever home is as much an emotional investment as a financial one.