Upload: June 22, 2010

Fresh white peonies and some fireplace renderrings in my studio

Well its been 3 weeks since my last Upload here.....which coincided with the peak of peony season around my house,,,,,and that lasted all of about 1 week this year.   They bloomed faster than I could cut them and then a few days of hard rain destroyed anything that was left on the bushes.  Such a shame I just wanted to cry,,,,,,um, actually I think I did.  So then, picking up here where I left off you'll see the last of my peony photos for this year! : (  

I was stacking the peonies wherever I could find a spot.  

I was like the Peony Express,,,I was taking them to friends and clients!

If you remember my last upload post you'll remember a vintage dresser I found at the Aberfoyle antique market, I delivered it to my clients and had her handyman hang the mirror above.

The mirror was purchased a couple of months ago and was waiting for the dresser, it was nice to finally get these pieces in place.  The dresser was perfect for this spot,,it was only 18" deep and had 5 drawers.

Mirror is from HomeDepot, flowers are from Chapters. All it needs is a couple more accessories  (Doors, floor and wall colour were all pre-existing when I came on board, and all had to stay as is).

It is possible to find some really cool fixtures for not a lot of money.

I can't help it, there are usually about 2 or 3 shots like this a day - Iphone is so touchy!

Now off to source some items for a rooftop deck...

Making fabric selections for new outdoor furniture

We're thinking about these for the rooftop deck too,,,,the large size

A lighting option for end tables..

A modern outdoor light fixture option....

This one isn't the one for this project but I love the pattern this fixture throws off, dramatic!

I sat down last week for a long chat with one of the owners of a new furniture store coming to the Caledonia & Castlefield design district.  He sketched out the floor plan floor for the new showroom and has shown me tons of photos of the product they'll be selling.  I've been hearing all about the progress of this new store for months now so it'll be intersting to see it evolve.  It's called Shelter Furniture, you can check out their facebook page here for a sneak peek of what's to come.

One of my favorite pieces soon to be available at Shelter Furniture

  

Before photo: I'm currently designing a new island for this client's kitchen, but were not stopping there, the entire kitchen is going to get a complete modern facelift.  Oh and the floor,,,that's going too!

And in my spare time (!?),,,,,I'm helping a family member finish his kitchen reno.  He needs cabinets stat, so I helped him get that all sorted out.  See drawings taped to hood!

I've been searching for a certain pair of night tables for about 5 months now,,,the search continues.

At first i like these lamps (almost love them) but I hesitate, I know if I start to see them en masse, I'll hate them.  But oh how I love a black shade!

Entrance to Gail's Kitchen, in the midst of construction as I arrived for a site meeting last week.

Things are moving along, framing, electrical and plumbing inspections have been passed and the drywall went up last week.  This is the view from the family room up into the kitchen.

I tweeted last week that if no one bought this chair, I would.  But it wouldn't fit in my car and I don't currently have my own mod patio for it, or a client for it.  My basement is already full of chairs.  I envision it spray painted with a new fabulous cushion and a funky side table.  C'mon,,,its only $95, I can't believe no one's bought it yet!!!

  

I may need to rent a storage locker soon.  I spotted this set of nesting tables outside an antique store in Oakville and I can't stop thinking about them.  I wish I had a client for these, I'm crazy for them.  This is the type of thing that takes a room to the next level.  When you have a room full of new furniture, you need to add something like this.  Its the unexpected thing you can't ever plan on finding or imagine you'd ever buy but once you see it in place it makes the room.  I can envision this even though its on the sidewalk and believe me, it would be stunning!  Look at the tourquoise detail......

And this chair,,,,,yes it needs some new fabric but this,,is the quintessential accent chair and it would make quite a statement in any space.  Love it.

I'm so influenced by the weather, my moods and my appetite.  I love the rain, I always have.  We've had a lot of it lately and the other day it was the strangest of days, it was a mix of both brilliant sunshine and torrential downpours.  Rubber boots and Ray-bans, I think those are the best kind of rainy days....

All Photos:  Carol's Iphone

My Father's Daughter

Snow globe of me and my dad

On father’s day I always think about how I was never a Daddy’s girl.  I was the 5th born of 6th kids ........and the first and only girl, the only girl of 6 kids!   Obviously everyone thinks my parents were trying for a girl and the 6th child was,,well, he was just an accident.  But I don’t think my father was trying for a girl at all I think he was trying for the ultimate hockey line.  Its true, the 6th child really was an accident ; ) but conveniently he made an excellent goalie!!  Until he came along I was the ‘stand in’ goalie,,,from the moment I could stand my brothers strapped boys skates on my feet and planted me in front of the net while they took shots at me (on our ice rink in the backyard).  That’s kinda like what the rest of my childhood was like!  Instead of coming to my rescue my dad always thought it was amusing and took photos instead of asking the boys to stop.

Everyone thinks I must have been spoiled being the only girl, in fact I was anything but spoiled,,,,,,,I would say it was more like I was spared.  The boys would torment me to the edge then stop short of getting caught by mom or dad.  Maybe they resented me because I had my own room, I’m sure that was it.  Believe me, having a room of your own was a priviledge in a 1200sf 3 bedroom house.  Being the only girl made me an easy target for my brothers,,,,they have no mercy when it comes to sisters.  It was entertaining for them to see how quickly they could make me cry or how easily they could scare me or outrun me or out jump me or outshoot me or throw farther than me. So it became my goal in life to not let them see me cry and to try and keep up with them,,,not only did I want to do everything the boys did,,,I wanted to do it better.  Sure I could ice skate, slolem ski, drive a speed boat, dive off the big rock, swim across the bay, catch a line drive, and a 16 lb pike, drive a golf ball 300 yards, and that was all before..........I discovered power tools. : )

My dad never hired a repair man or a tradesman in his entire life.  If it was broken he fixed it,,,,if it was beyond repair he made a new one,,,as a rule he wouldn’t buy anything he could make himself.  And he would never ever,,,,ever throw anything out, especially a piece of wood - a child born of the depression era.  Old hockey sticks were prime lumber,,,,I’m sure he could have written a book on the things you could make with old hockey sticks.  Til this day my parents first colour tv cabinet still sits in my moms living room - the tv was encased in a wood cabinet so even when the tv tube was shot my dad continued to use the cabinet to house all his future tv’s - it was perfectly good wood afterall.  I even remember him re-painting his own car,,,,,,,with a brush!  I remember the endless home repair projects because I was often my dad’s helper,,,,,I would stand by watching him work on various projects and hand him the tools or ‘hold’ things that needed holding. He owned every tool and gadget you can imagine, our garage was like a rent-all store, if you needed a tool, Howard had it.  There was always a stream of neighbours and relatives showing up to borrow tools (he kept a log) and the phone was constantly ringing with requests for a helping hand for a repair project.  My dad was the go to guy if you needed help with fixing something.

My father was a master Mr. fixit, a genious DIY’er and the pioneer of reuse and recycle, he repurposed everything and not because it was the 'green' thing to do.  He was innovative.  Before there was picture in picture,,,he stacked multiple tv’s side by side and watched them at the same time.  He put wheels on furniture long before mobile furniture was trendy, he was as savvy with a sewing machine as he was with power tools. He sewed his own slipcovers not because he was trying to be shabby chic.  He used the sewing machine to repair holes in our camping tents and to make new covers for cots and mattresses, and new seat cushions for chairs, he even sewed our own life jackets (?), kinda scary.  To everyone who knew him he was the one who could figure out how to fix anything and everything - and he always did.....except for his cancer.  That was the one thing he couldn’t fix, and no one else could either.  Sadly he lost that brief battle 3 years ago and we all miss him terribly.

Never throw out a piece of wood, it might come in handy (example above)

Why buy a birdhouse when you can make one (example above)

Birdhouse made by Dad from salvaged scrap wood on display in my moms garden.

Thanks to my dad, I have a pretty good collection of power tools myself and I’ve used all of them personally for many home improvements over the years, when I got married years ago and moved into my first home, my dad would give me a new power tool for every birthday and christmas.  I think it was his way of saying,,,,,,your going to need these a lot so you should learn to use them yourself.  And I’m so grateful I did.  Nowadays, I dont’ have much time to do projects around my own home myself but its a good feeling to know that when I ask my ‘handyman’ to do these things for me or if I hire someone to do it, I know its not because I can’t do it myself.

I inherited a lot of my dad's traits and its served me well in this profession - I’m inherently resourceful, technically intrigued, and I have this unending desire to ‘fix things’ to solve problems, to reuse or repurpose things, to figure out to how make something work better, or create something for less than what it would cost to buy it.  I know I definitely inherited the ‘why buy it when I can make it’ gene from him but sometimes it works to my detriment.  A civil engineer by profession, my dad was a superb draftsman, his hand printed schematic drawings were like works of art, beyond that he didn't exude much artistic flair - I was fortunate enough to inherit that gift from my grandmother (his mother) who was a stained glass artist.

I’m also thankful to Microsoft.  Really.  Because up until a couple of years before my dad died, I never felt like anything I did could really impress my dad much,,,,,,until he decided to take some computer course and learn how to use a computer.   That’s when the proverbial tables changed and my 20+ years of computer use finally payed off.  The fact that I could easily navigate my way around an MS operating system with my eyes closed.... made me look like some kind of genius, I might as well of been Bill Gates in my father’s eyes.  He looked at me with pure awe and amazement as my fingers flew across the keyboard,,,with multiple windows open at a time, ‘fixing’ all of his problems, using shortcuts and showing him around the 'big wide web'.  He’d often call me with a computer question or problem,,,, talk about role reversal.  Something that was so easy to me,,so effortless and second nature was a mystery to him. Something my father didn’t know how to do that I did!  So if for nothing else but for my ability to use a PC he thought I was utterly brilliant. : )

I started this blog last year on the anniversary of my dad’s passing partly because I was always thinking about him and missed how he was always asking about what I was working on.  If my dad was still alive today I know without a doubt he would be the biggest fan of this blog,,,,,I guarantee he would faithfully log in every single day to see if there was a new posting, and if there was, I know he’d read it out loud to my mom,,,,,then he would email his siblings and tell them there was a new post,,, then he would call me and rehash all the details in amazement at the extravagant costs and efforts of this or that,,and then tell me what was on sale at Canadian Tire this week.  Of course first I’d have to walk him thru how to become a ‘follower’ and  how to leave comments.........because he would want to do that....   

Happy Father’s Day Dad,,,,I know you're following.

No.5

CREED: One Year Anniversary!

CREED: [ noun. = A summary of principles, beliefs or opinions]

BEAU-TY: [noun. = The quality that gives pleasure to the mind or senses and is associated with such properties as harmony of form or color, excellence of artistry, truthfulness, and originality.]

A year of blogging.  Last week marked the one year anniversary of this blog and I have to say, I can’t believe its been a year already??  You can click here to read my very first post and introduction to blog land just 12 months ago.

Keep’n it Real.....

I will admit I’m not one who follows any of the ‘rules of blogging’,,,,,,I’m sure there are rules but I’ve never read them, I just dove right in and started blogging.  I’m just doing my own thing here and if others want to read, or share my posts or even leave a comment - I’m thrilled, I love receiving comments from readers and look forward to the feedback. My goal on this design blog has simply been to post original content and to be authentic, a blog about interior design written by an interior designer.  For me the best way to achieve that is to simply express my point of view by writing about and photographing my own projects and my own experiences, as honestly as I can. Afterall,,no one else can do this, except me!

My living room.

Thanks....
Clearly, my goal was never to set out to achieve as many followers as I could, cause that would require a strategy of sorts requiring much more participation in blogland than I can possibly manage right now.   I’m so appreciative of the 24 readers who have been followers on this blog and I’ve enjoyed reading all your comments here and I’ve enjoyed visiting your blogs too!   I’m still amazed I have any followers at all, but as my stats counter tells me there are actually several hundred visitors a day to this site which kinda freaks me out, honestly!  I’d like to share a special thanks to my very first two followers,,,who signed up within hours of this blogs launch, they are my most faithful and loyal readers and the only 2 followers I actually know.  Its no coincidence they also happen to be two of the most important people in my life - Anita being not only my mentor for many years but also one of my closest and dearest friends,,,and my younger brother Tom who was my very first best friend and will continue to be my bff,,,he’s also the only family member who is computer savvy enough to figure out how to become a follower on a blog (I’m not kidding!). I come from a pretty large family and honestly, my family readers alone would total 40+,,,,if only they knew how. 

This is Anita...isn’t she beautiful!  This photo was taken about 2 weeks ago while having lunch together.  She’s also a designer and runs her own design firm, I learned everything about the design industry (and business, and relationships, and cooking, and life in general) from her.  We worked together for 10 years, but it never seemed like work.  I miss seeing her everyday.....   

This is Tom aka 'Six' .......aka the rock star!  He’s an avid curler and last year he made it to the provincial’s (a once in a lifetime opportunity for a rare few), it was a 7 day televised tournament and I couldn’t have been more proud and excited for him.  I quickly elected myself president of his fan club and created a blog that chronicled his trip to the provincials, it was called ‘Six Rocks’,,,it was only online for 2 months and accessible only to our family and friends but it was hugely popular.  It was 2 months after that little experiment with blogging that I launched this design blog.  

Most popular Post....

Why I love Ikea kitchens.  This post definitely generated the most comments and emails of any other post.....over the years I’ve designed a LOT of ikea kitchens and what makes them successful in my eyes is when nobody can believe they’re ikea kitchens!  Proving that Its not about how much something cost or where you buy it - its about how you use it!  For me designing with Ikea products is like playing with lego blocks,,,the possibilities are limitless.  I look forward to posting Part II of Why I Love Ikea Kitchens in the upcoming year featuring new bespoke Ikea kitchens and more tips and tricks.

Yes - this is an Ikea kitchen.  More after photos of this project will be shared in the year ahead.

My Favorite Posts....

I have a couple of personal favorites from this past year. One was The Before & After of an E-Design project. Simply stunning! For anybody who hasn't considered the benefits of using e-design services, this is bound to impress you. My client's after photos prove that a small investment in a good design plan will net you maximum value from your reno dollars. You can also check out my e-design website thedesignshop for more images of this project in the sample gallery.

This is an after photo the client sent to me, I'm planning on visiting the house in person in the upcoming weeks to take my own photos which I'll share with you here.

Another personal favorite post was the Victorian House Tour. Having the opportunity to tour this house was a thrill for me and such an unexpected surprise. My sister-in-law was the listing agent for this house and as she was preparing for the public open house she invited me to come by for a tour. I have a thing for victorian houses and this one, happened to have been designed by the well know Toronto firm of Powell & Bonnell some 10 years ago, and probably one of the few (if not only) traditional home they've designed. Of course, I fell in love the second I walked thru the door. I had come armed with my camera and I excitedly went from room to room just shooting away candidly. I must have taken hundreds of photos in about 20 minutes. I composed a blog post from some of the photos and the homeowners were so thrilled with the post they printed it out and left if with all the real estate agent’s literature for the public open house. Of course it didn’t take long for the house to sell and I’ve been invited to visit the homeowners new home one day once they’ve settled in, and I can’t wait to see what they’ve done with it.

Living Room vignette from the Victorian House tour.

The Year Ahead......

{Before & Afters}:  I’ll finally be getting around to posting final after photos of Brian’s Condo, along with More after photos of the 70’s Sidesplit, more photos of a mid-town condo reno, and after photos of the stunning e-design bathrooom reno...

Sneak Peek of the 70's Sidesplit master bedroom.

{Client Projects}:  In the coming year there’ll certainly be no shortage of subject matter for me to blog about, my biggest challenge will be finding the time!  New projects include the dramatic transformation of Gail’s Kitchen and Family Room currently under construction,,,,,,I’ll be  collaborating with one of the city’s hottest landscape designers on the redesign of a rooftop deck of a mid-town condo, I’ll be furnishing a modern suburban family home for a yonge couple including a hip nursery and very chic his/her dresssing room,,,I’ll be tackling a new kitchen design for a idyllic log cabin retreat in north ontario that is nothing short of this designer’s dream setting.  And all this, will be happening over the next few months......

The plan for Gail's Kitchen & Family Room reno.

Modern love - furnishing a home for a young couple.  I've got the main pieces in place for this Living Room, wait and see how the rest of it comes together.

{Student Work}:  Each month I receive dozens of portfolio’s and resumes from students seeking employment or internship opportunities.  Unfortunately I can’t hire them all but I’m blown away by the level of talent and skills these students have developed, i wish ci could. , One thing I’ve been wanting to do for some time now is to start posting some of these amazig projects that the students have created.  I hope to illustrate the level of talent and skills design students possess and provide a platform that will give them some well deserved exposure.  I’m thrilled to tell you my first post featuring student work will be this month and i’ll be intrudocing you to the the work of of 2nd year student Lisiane D'Amico .... of Sheridan college.  She’s also a graduate of Ryerson’s architectural science program and you’ll be blown away by her talent..

Loft renderring by student Lisiane D'Amico.

{My Home Renovation}:  The most exciting topic of all for me will be my own home renovation,,,hopefully I’ll be starting on it before the 2nd anniversary of this blog, first I have the huge challenge of finding the house.  I actually had to shelf house hunting this past winter and spring because i was too swamped with work.  So I plan on spending a lot time with my real estate agent in the near future,,who i’ll be introducing you to here on the blog....

{A Special Guest blog}:  Featuring Kara Reed one of Toronto’s busiest real estate agents.  You may recognize her as Sarah Richardson’s agent most recently appearing on HGTV's Sarah’s House 3, but she’s been my sister-in-law for the past 20+  years and not only is she one of the most special people in my life she's also been a favorite client.  I had the pleasure of designing (a total gut and reno) her 3 level mid-town condo in 08 and 09.  Kara's client list reads like a who’s who of Toronto, from the design industry, entertainment, sports and finance, she has access to some of the most spectacular homes in Toronto.  Her and I have toured hundreds of houses together, often she’ll call me and say ‘where are you ,,you gotta come see this house!!”  And of course I do and I’m never disappointed!  She’s sold two of my own homes (for record breaking prices) and has lots of experience seeking out those diamonds in the rough.  So I'm going to collaborate with her on a feature post or two in which we'll share our views on the realities of investing in home improvements in today's market. 

Real Estate Agent, Kara Reed

I'll leave you with my favorite photo of the year. I can't exactly explain why its my favorite, perhaps because it was such a candid photo of a completely undesigned room, there was no plan or intention for this space, things that the homeowner already owned just fell into place here by happenstance and the simple beauty of these things together captivated me - I just grabbed my camera and snapped away. I hope there'll be many more images like this to come. : )

Thanks for reading,

Carol