New Home Design Store Wants to Add Splash of Color to Your Living Room

Petaluma may be well known for its antique shops, but the latest home furnishing store is steeped in contemporary design.

“We’re strong believers that you can mix the two,” says Emma Gardner, principal of Emma Gardner Design. Three weeks ago she and her husband, Patrick McDarrah, opened their flagship store, Emma at Home, in Petlauma's theater district.

Since 2002 they’ve sold heirloom-quality, made-to-order hand tufted rugs, which McDarrah calls “art for the floor,” to interior designers and architects in the high-end market. Now they're excited to offer more affordable products, including linen pillows,  throw blankets and artwork, to a wider audience.

Originally hailing from New York City, the couple, both 44, lived in Litchfield, Connecticut for nine years before moving with their two young children to Petaluma in December. McDarrah cites several reasons for the move west: the aesthetic, the attitude and the lifestyle, which he calls optimistic and friendly.

“People’s outlooks here are more contemporary and open to new ideas,” Gardner agrees.

“Petaluma has a nice combination of urbanity without being overwhelming,” says McDarrah, who appreciates the town’s historic roots, anchored in its rural character.

They couldn’t have found a better location, situated across from the movie theater. Occupying the former Toys West location, the store has high ceilings, large windows and an open floor plan. The buffed and sealed concrete under the wall-to-wall carpet they ripped out is perfect for displaying their bold, colorful designs.

The retail business offers a direct connection with customers, something that didn’t happen in the trade showroom, they say. And it’s refreshing interacting with the local people, according to McDarrah, who enjoys imagining the places their items inhabit once they leave the studio.

“When you observe people, how they react to color and pattern, you can start to imagine what their lifestyles and needs might be,” says Gardner.

Born in Japan to an English father and American mother, Gardner says her work is informed by Asian, modern and pop art, and organic design. Her challenge, she says, is striking a balance between what’s going on aesthetically in the larger world and being receptive to her own unique inspiration—“to maintain a connection to that spark that allows me to produce something that doesn’t look like everything else.”

So far, McDarrah says, the response has been positive.

The couple is confident the quality of their handiwork is a good match for Petaluma residents who may prefer supporting local businesses rather than purchasing their pillows at a box store.

Moreover, the company’s construction practices reflect a more conscious way of shopping: ecological and socially responsible. All of their rugs, for example, are certified by GoodWeave, which ensures that they are child-labor-free. A percentage of each rug sale goes to the organization, which also rescues child laborers from mills and builds schools for them. Furniture, meanwhile is made in Los Angeles, and artwork printed locally.

Though much of the store's inventory is still arriving, doors are open for business 11-7 Monday-Saturday and 12-5 Sunday. Don’t miss them at the Chamber Ribbon Cutting June 22 at 4 pm and Second Saturday Art Walk on June 11.