Artists Danny and Reagan Geschardt practice what they preach. The couple live with their two children in an antique home with a bright-green front door, orange-lacquered bookshelves and a sunshine-yellow kitchen.
Their colorful new retail business, Broome Street Studios (916 Mt. Kemble Avenue, Morristown) is chockful of eye candy: patterned lampshades, punchy pillows, fabric, wallpaper, mixed-media artwork and home accessories. In the back room resides vintage furniture that has been prepped in pure white, ready to be customized with any paint color a customer desires.
For years, Reagan and Danny have been sketching designs, turning out abstract paintings, and selling their work online, in retail shops and galleries, and to interior designers.
“But, as artists, we always had the desire to have our own showroom to share our work with the public,” says self-taught artist Danny, who grew up in nearby New Vernon. “So when the stars aligned and retail space became available, we knew this was our chance.”
“This is everything to us, and it requires a lot of drive,” adds Reagan, a formally trained painter. “We’ve both worked in decorative arts for years, so we understand what it means to introduce a textile collection. Seven days a week, we are always doing something to grow our business,” she says.
Their idea to introduce a fabric and wallpaper line took root gradually over many years as they randomly sketched ideas and played with color palettes, tossing their doodles into file folders and desk drawers. Then, in 2017, they began to resurrect those sketches and recreate them as part of their Broome Street Studios venture.
But doesn’t it take guts to decorate in bright colors and bold, geometric patterns? “Sure,” says Reagan, “but you can definitely inject color, and lots of it, into your home. Some people start small with a foyer or powder room, or they add pops of color to a vacation home or Jersey Shore house.”
A bold, Kelly-green credenza? Of course. A faux-bamboo china cabinet lacquered in shiny lavender? Why not?
“More and more designers here in New Jersey are busy and successful with these preppy, Palm Beach looks,” Danny says. “We get excited when customers make the choice to infuse their homes with more color and life. It’s a happy way to decorate.”