Studio Bergeron

10/16/2026

I know Fridays are typically the day that we shout out about our own businesses, but today I’d like to thank two local business partners who service my own home and who I recommend to clients:

Vinnie at Aquaflow Plumbing, Inc. is not just a master plumber, he’s one of a rare breed of tradesmen who is a master of his craft. He can heat a fancy brass fitting to bend and work in your old idiosyncratic house, he can service your high end Veissman boiler and basement copper bling, he can work with you to build a Runtal randiator into a custom windowseat you’ve designed so your feet are toasty on cold mornings. And he’ll do all that and clean up neatly too, which is not to be underestimated among plumbers!

Recently the 23+ year old Toto toilet in our powder room started rocking (not something a toilet is supposed to do!) Amidst everything going on in my life right now, a broken toilet was just one more thing I did not need. I texted Vinnie on a Sunday, and after telling me he was starting a big job but would stop by sometime late the next day, he just showed up at 8 am Monday morning on my doorstep. Plans had changed. About 30 minutes later he called me in to explain that he’d replaced the seal and all was well, but that he’d also investigated the working parts in the tank unasked and discovered that the last plumber had put in an incompatible flapper and the toilet was slowly leaking water 😳, probably for quite some time. That got replaced in short order too. He likely paid for his visit right there in future water bills. The man is a gem. Thank you Vinnie.

Similarly, Mark Brady and his son Glen at Mark Brady Roofing (out of Malden) have come to my aid and a client’s several times. The first was when our 160 year old terracotta chimney pot fell over in a storm. Mark came out the day I called and had the roof repaired before anything leaked into the room below. This past week I called and Glen came out to look at two welded seam roofs that our painters had mistakenly decided to prep and paint. It’s true they were painted white before, but roofs guys! Painters paint, roofers roof! Anyway, Glen showed up right away and will be putting on a liquid silicone membrane roof on those two roofs. They are very low slope, the seams are intact thankfully, and these roofs just don’t show enough to justify replacing them in copper. The white silicone will be perfect with our white house. We conferred about unobtrusive drip edge options, water diverters and metal compatibilities, and had a plan in under 20 minutes. Glen has a design eye that impressed me—he is the self described supermodel of roofers! Thank you both Mark and Glen.

10/12/2026

Italy trip continued:
Cinque Terre magical visit. If you are afraid of heights, steep windy roads, or have vertigo, this is not the place for you. It was so worth the insane drive to get there and beyond. Three days of amazing hikes, food, scenery and sunsets. We stayed at Maduneta 5 in Corniglia, the highest and quietest of the towns and loved it. The boys shared a garden level apartment, while we were above with a terrace. Breakfasts in the garden with chickens and flowers were wonderful. Drinks on our terrace overlooking the city and ocean were even better! Kevin actually slept out on the terrace one night!

10/12/2026

Really wierd aesthetics on the structure (not my personal taste), but spatially very cool and clever reuse of crates as well. I love the plant “chandelier.” If I ever have a bar in my backyard, it likely would be used as a planting station at least as much as used for serving drinks. But given how my family rolls, there could definitely be both going on at the same time. I could definitely imagine sitting at something like this drinking a hot coffee and puttering around my yard in pjs—which definitely happens!

Pro tip: If you’re going to garden in your pj’s, then you better have nice pjs. I have very nice pjs to show off to my neighbors! And it does tend to encourage them to join in, which makes it all the nicer when you’re all up very early.

10/10/2026

Gardens don’t have to stop at night. They make lovely evening rooms. Lighting makes that magic happen. I’ve collaborated with Heidi and her company Garden Aglow on one project and have another in the works (to be clear—this is not my project in her post). Good landscape lighting can serve many purposes:
—to announce architectural presence
—to highlight features like a front door, a tree, a fountain, a sculpture, or architectural details on a house.
—to emphasize the design lines of a garden, including elevation changes and garden walls
—to demark a path and lead your eye and you to a destination. To promote wayfinding
—security and safety. To protect a mail box, or driveway retaining wall from damage. To lead you safely along a path, up stairs to a door to prevent possible falls at night.

Basically to highlight all the thought I’ve put into the design of the project! It isn’t all just pretty plants and it doesn’t have to be a luxury. Form and function can serve a purpose beautifully!

Look for photography of our joint project in Sherborn coming in spring 2027. I’ve been waiting for the garden to fill in and mature a little bit before photographing it.

Landscape lighting is like wrapping your home in a warm blanket. Cozy. Welcoming. Soft.

Let us bring out the best in your home after the sun sets.



Thank you Raj Das / ED Photography, LLC for capturing this special project.

CAST Lighting LLC - Landscape Lighting, Built To Last

10/10/2026

10/10/2026

More Italy trip: we thought we had arrived in heaven when we arrived at our agriturismo Lucignanello Bandini nearby Montalcino. Back in 1990 when I was a student in Italy I set out to educate myself about w**e. I know, I know, I was a foodie even then. Brunello is one of the great w**es of Italy, of the world, and Montalcino is where it is produced. My older son (who inherited my love for food, w**e and cooking) had one request for our trip—a good w**ery. My delivery exceeded my own expectations. And also got us into the heart of Toscana, into the hill towns, and into the countryside so beautiful it’s hard to believe still exists. Credits for many of these photos to my architect husband Kevin Bergeron, who took early morning runs to explore while we were still asleep.

10/02/2026

Siena was my favorite city as a student back in 1990. I took the train there for the day all by myself! This time we arrived in style by car and took the very convenient escalators from the parking lot up to the city, which is perched along a mountain ridge. There are hill towns all over this area of Tuscany but Siena was a strong wealthy rival of Firenze during the Renaissance and remains one today in terms of tourism! The Campidoglio (shell shaped main city hall plaza) has to be seen and walked to be experienced. It’s one of the great urban spaces in the world. Every architecture student studies it. Some day I hope to watch the Palio horse race held there. The cathedral rivals the Duomo in Florence and the drop offs and views of the surrounding countryside are dramatic and beautiful. We had one of our best lunches sitting in a little courtyard garden in Siena, but more on that in a foodie post to follow!

05/07/2026

Today is the day! Studio Bergeron will be at the Melrose Farmers Market & Garden Expo from 4-6:30 pm today. Bring your questions (with photographs), bring your interest in well-designed sustainable landscapes, and as always, bring your friendship. You’ll have my undivided attention at this terrific event.

I want to thank my partners from recent projects here in Melrose Garden Aglow and Tony Colella Landscaping. Plants sourced by The Monarch Gardener, Oakhaven Sanctuary, Wolf Hill-Ipswich, Northeast Nursery, Weston Nurseries Garden Centers and Native Plant Trust.

03/27/2026

This!

03/20/2026

Instead of a garden seminar this year, Studio Bergeron will be attending the Melrose Farmers Market Mother’s Day Garden Showcase! I’m happy to be supporting the market and also looking forward to meeting more native plant and healthy food lovers.

If you are disappointed to miss the annual spring seminar, let me know. I will have more time in September this year, and that is an excellent time to establish new plants and talk about different topics than I’ve covered in past years!

Please bring your questions and come visit on May 7th!