It’s a busy night for the CHS Calendar. CHS sponsor Vino Verite is having a tasting featuring California wines. There’s flamenco guitar at CHS Sponsor Tidbit Bistro. And the Capitol Hill Community Council is holding a candidates’ night in advance of June elections.

There is also a party at one of the Hill’s more unique new businesses. We first told you about interior design shop Hermitage in this post: 2 new Cap Hill businesses open beyond Broadway. We circled back with owner Jennifer June to ask her about tonight’s party and to find out more about her freshly transplanted business.

First, tell us about tonight’s Semaphore Launch Party. What are you planning, who on Capitol Hill should come?
Semaphore is the debuting furniture collection from local design studio Piano Nobile.  As friends of ours, Dawn (owner of LiT) and I offered to open our shop to them for their launch party.  It’s actually a nice fit for the shop as the furniture (named after the method of communication by flags) bends and folds in graceful origami shapes, often looking like paper.

There will be wine and snacks. Also the Hermitage will have new wallpaper panels on display, including one people can color in themselves!  It should be a lovely evening for anyone interested in beautiful design.

How do the businesses Hermitage and LiT fit together?
We’re both young businesses trying to take an old tradition and shape it into something more modern. When people hear the word wallpaper they often associate it with suffocating floral patterns in their grandmother’s home.  The same goes for lampshades. This isn’t the case anymore. There are now a myriad of patterns available and they are not all flowery.  We are also very interested in working directly with the public because traditionally our services have only been available to the trade.

What’s it like having a shop in Capitol Hill’s Fancy Pants neighborhood? It’s leafy and there are giant homes. Do you own a mansion? A leaf blower?I commute from Phinney Ridge where I live in a rented duplex and have no aspirations to own a leaf blower.  But I do like trees and beautiful homes.  It’s nice walking through the neighborhoods on my way to work.

Any decorating advice for budget minded style in these challenging times?
Thinking about your home environment is not just an occupation for the wealthy.  With all these design resources now available in print and on the web, it’s easier for people to get ideas about making their home a more comfortable place to be. I’m a huge advocate of DIY and have a ton of single roll projects I suggest to people on a budget.  The idea is to bring more pattern & color into your home. It’s far more telling of your taste and distinction while activating the senses in a way paint fails to do.

Louise Body wallpaper

Will Hermitage be part of the new Blitz Capitol Hill Arts Walk?
Maybe. I haven’t been approached by anyone to participate.  I guess I need to look into this.

All of our friends leave Capitol Hill for Portland. You went the other way. Why Capitol Hill?
Everyone asks me that.  Portland is a fantastic place to start a business. You have tons of community support, affordable rent, and creative energy that allow you to get on your feet.  But once you get going it’s hard to sustain the business because, after all, Portland is a small town in many ways.  So I guess I came to Seattle for the opportunity, to be in a new and more diverse design community.  I do miss Portland, though. It really is a nice place to live.