Style at Home: Celebrating Canadian Designers

Room Design &  Photo by:  Carol Reed

There's truly nothing I'm prouder of than being Canadian so I was thrilled to be invited to share my favorite space last month for a special Canada Day feature on the Style at Home website.

You can read all about why this is my favorite client space here.  It was an easy decision to chose Gail's kitchen for all the reasons that are mentioned in the article.  Further to that on a personal level it was the first project I documented in its entirety on social media from initial meeting to magazine cover - I blogged and tweeted the progress. To eventually see the completed kitchen on a recent Style at Home cover was such a perfect finale. (for more posts on this project you can search "Gail's Kitchen" in the side bar).

Not only is this room one of my favorite spaces, this image is one of my favorites too - prior to the extensive reno this is a view that wasn't even possible due to a large catwalk that cut thru the cathedral space and hovered over the eating area.  Removing the catwalk was the very first thing on my agenda and it was impactful!  Exposing this cathedral ceiling added great volume and light, and,,,,this incredible sightline from the loft space above.

Thanks to Elaine Song for putting together such an wonderful feature, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the inspiration behind the 10 other celebrated Canadian spaces.

Front Door Friday: Turquoise & Chevron

Chester, Nova Scotia

If you've ever visited the seaside village of Chester, Nova Scotia, chances are this charming turquoise coloured chevron panelled door has caught your eye - as it did mine a couple of years ago.  I've posted a photo of this door before on the blog and on twitter but I think you'll agree its worth repeating.  A shingled house always stops me in my tracks but the unexpected colour of this front door paired with the grey shakes is truly sublime.   And the antique brass seashell door knocker,,,,hello, can I come in please!

Chester is a picturesque little village on the South Shore of Nova Scotia popular for sailing enthusiasts.  Its tree canopied streets are lined with charming historic homes.  Many of them are summer homes so this turquoise door colour perfectly suits the quaint coastal style of the community.  The closest colour match I can find is Sico's Paris 1900.  I think its especially interesting that here its paired with linen coloured trim as opposed to white, I think this evokes a more nostalgic vibe.

Photo by:   Carol Reed

The TBB Blog: Summer Cottage 2013

I was thrilled to participate this past week as one of 4 guest Designer's contributing to the TBB's Blog series "Colour Fabric & Style 2013".  My friend Sonya of Sonya Kinkade Design (and TBB contributor) asked me if I could submit a favourite paint and fabric scheme of 2013.... and I of course, not having the patience for an imaginary concept, decided to pull a scheme that I love from my client files.  The timing couldn't be better to share this classic navy, white and green scheme which is part of a total renovation of an Ontario summer cottage I worked on during this past winter.   The cottage at this moment is still being pulled together for its first season with its new homeowners, and no doubt over the course of the summer will continue to receive some finishing touches.

You can check out the story behind this scheme along with the colour and fabric specs here on The TBB's blog and I'm sure you'll enjoy the entire series.  Thank you Sonya, Maureen, Lisa, Donna, Nicole and Mary Ann for including me -  it was an honour to contribute along with such talented company!