January 31, 2010

Business Advice from Kimberley Seldon!

Attention Ottawa and area decorators and designers!!!

On March 5, 6 and 7 Kimberley Seldon will be sharing advice on the "Business of Design" right here in Ottawa!  

Kimberley has quite an extensive background in design and is a very busy lady with speaking engagements, television appearances, publications (including O Magazine in Jan 09), shopping trips, furniture design, etc.... etc... 

I have been watching Kimberley on CITY-TV's CityLine Home segments for a while now and have heard her speak at our latest Home &  Design Show in October of 2009.  I even had the pleasure of meeting her at a book signing event at that same event.  If you've seen or heard Kimberley, you'll know she has a very down-to-earth style and gets her message across by combining her extensive knowledge with a humorous and personal approach.

Check out the details of Kimberley's Business of Design seminars and sign yourself up for what promises to be a very informative event!  You'll not only learn about running a design business, you'll also have an opportunity to network with local designers/decorators. 

And if that's not enough to convince you - here's some of Kimberley's work as a teaser ...

turvey_004 mcclure_008658turvey_010 bharti_0853

turvey_001 beach_bedroom3 rea_024

All photos from www.kimberleyseldon.com

See you there!!!

January 29, 2010

One winning day!

Yesterday I got the very exciting news that I was one of the lucky winners at Low Tide High Style's lovely giveaway of these wonderfully beachy gifts :

The plate, coral votive holder and shell are perfect for my soon to be finished guest room.  The seasonings and spa mix will be put to good use too I can assure you :)!
Thank you so much to Kat at Low Tide High Style for having such an amazing giveaway.  I am anxiously awaiting the parcel delivery!  Just the thought of them warms me up on this clear, cold (-20 celcius) Janaury day!

Now, on the topic of winning .... hubster was at a curling event yesterday and bought a few tickets for a fund raiser to help the child of a colleague.  This is what he came home with:

Yes, that's right, a 46" LCD HD television!!! 

Part of me is saying WHERE am I going to put this monster? And another part of me is saying WOW, I can't wait to watch movies and sports on this monster!!!  The first part is the decorator in me, the second must be due to my declining estrogen levels these days :o)!  Of course the hubster is carefully considering the best viewing angles, wall-mounting considerations and the possibility of fitting it into his "lounge" (the unheated garage that he inhabits during our warmer months).  Needless to say that's "NOT" going to happen :)!!

There will have to be some planning and research done to find the right spot, but I'm more than just a little bit excited to get this baby installed and working.  Of course, like everything else in my life lately, there will be far to much work to complete before we'll get any where near installation !!! *sigh*

And the fun begins ...

January 28, 2010

Reading Rooms ...

A new client has asked for some help to design a reading room in her home.  The idea is to create a space that will provide a calm quiet escape from the everyday where she can read, meditate or practice yoga.

  While I’m pulling together her proposal, here are some wonderful images that I’m using as inspiration…
 2-library-xlg 2-study-xlg-18924040 11-tankersley-candelabra-0708-xlg-33202534 east-hampton-library-with-vintage-charm-xlg-39407192 red-library-xlg-69295705 sea-worth-library-xlg-10760287
Source (all images http://www.housebeautiful.com/)

January 26, 2010

A stylish giveaway...

Quick - get in on this one fast - it ends tomorrow!!!

Low Tide High Style - a fabulous blog I've just discovered - is having a wonderful giveaway of these gorgeous pieces:


January 25, 2010

IDS 2010 – the afterparty

This Thursday past, Kelly of Design Ties and I headed to Toronto for the 2010 Interior Design Show at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. 

logo

For two full days we walked, talked, took pictures, gathered literature and oooooo’d and ahhhhhh’d over bathrooms, tiles, lighting, fabric, fireplaces, paint, wallpaper, carpets, kitchens and soooooo much more.  We hobnobbed with Toronto’s interior design elite at the Opening Gala on Thursday night and  had some celebrity sightings on Friday – Jane Lockhart, Brian Gluckstein, Glen Peloso, among others… 

And now the “afterparty” begins – sorting through all of the material that came home with me, following up on contacts and best of all - using all of these goodies as inspiration for current and future clients.

Here is just a glimpse of the cool stuff we saw…

IMG_2808 IMG_2773 IMG_2774 IMG_2776 IMG_2781 IMG_2793 IMG_2802

January 20, 2010

Look what I found ....

As I was browsing for inspiration photos for my newest client (more in another post to come), I came across Tina Govan, Architect out of Raleigh, NC. 










I absolutely love how natural elements are combined into such beautiful exteriors and interiors!  I want to live in one of these homes!!!

Check out more of the amazing projects they've done here - http://www.tinagovan.com/

January 2, 2010

A Matawatchan Project update …

I have a little update for you folks on the Matawatchan Project that I posted about here.  This is the re-built 125 year old log home that I’m working on for  our good friends “A&N”.

Starting from scratch certainly has it’s benefits.  With no existing walls or finishes to deal with you have the luxury of planning in all of your wants and needs.  But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t still issues to deal with.  With this open floor plan, there are structural supports, staircases and the natural log walls to deal with, among others.  I should also share at this point that this home is OFF THE GRID.  That’s right – we’re talking SOLAR powered – how cool is that?  So in order to keep energy consumption low “A&N” want to keep interior walls to an absolute minimum to make maximum use of the light from each window.

First up was the kitchen floor plan that I posted about here.  To refresh your memories -  here is a picture of the kitchen as it sits today.  The kitchen will take up the space between the staircase to the far interior wall for the powder room and from the wall with the clock to the two jack-posts in the foreground.

IMG_2600

The list from “A&N” was simple, your usual kitchen stuff - well mostly…

  • standard sized appliances (fridge, gas stove, dishwasher)
  • island for gathering around
  • corner sink looking out over the countryside while doing the dishes
  • storage and more storage
  • a dumbwaiter – yep – a dumbwaiter (the back entrance is in the basement and any supplies can be brought upstairs via the dumbwaiter – neat huh?)

My job was to fit as much of this in as I could, while considering kitchen standards on traffic patterns, distances and working triangles, al the while making sure there was some pizzazz! 

So after some kitchen planning research, learning the CAD product I posted about here, a couple of iterations with “A&N” – which included switching the direction of the staircase - here is the plan that we are currently finalizing:  matawatchan kitchen plan copyright dh designs

 

We were able to fit in most requirements, but the island wasn’t feasible.  Instead I’ve proposed a long stretch of cabinets and counter that house the gas stove and have a raised countertop for pulling up a stool to chat with the cook as they are preparing meals.  Base cabinets will be a combination of drawers and doors.  I’ve also opted for no uppers on the log walls – they will block the light from the windows.  The one interior wall along the staircase will have uppers and we’ll use open shelving on the log walls between the two windows. 

One of my concerns was the powder room being right beside the kitchen counter, so since “A” does some very creative and beautiful stained glass, I’ve suggested that she hang a piece from ceiling to counter to visually continue the powder room wall, while still allowing light to filter from the opposite window.

We’ve discussed some finishes and are thinking of Caesarstone for countertops – maybe something like this

(Shaded White # 6600)

caesarstone 6660 shaded white

painted base cabinets in a nice medium gray with a hint of blue something like these

(BM 1635 – Waters Edge, BM HC145 – Van Courtland Blue, SW7624 – Slate Tile, SW1223 – Steel Blue)

Uppers on the interior wall in a white/cream (that matches the log chinking) like this

(BM 2144-60 – Cloud Nine)

MPC0005031-2

marmoleum flooring continuing in the grays

(Forbolinoleum.com – Dual 621)

marmoelum 621and open shelving on the log walls between the windows in the same white as the uppers:

untitled 

A&N” are spending a week at the log home during the holidays (the basement is insulated and equipped with a wood stove), so will be confirming measurements for me.  In the meantime, I’m working on other areas of the house (the master bath upstairs has some challenges that I’ll post about later).

This is exciting isn’t it????

January 1, 2010

Welcome to 2010!!!



Well, 2009 had several highlights for me personally - this blog is a BIG one - 50 posts in my first year {who knew I had that much to say}, the amazing friends I have made (both virtually and in person :)), some great travels (DR, NYC, FLA), my graduation from a Residential Decor program,  a BIG birthday celebration for both hubster and I with the requisite celebrations, and several others.  There were also some not so great moments that impacted my family, immediate and extended.  But that's what I love about celebrating the New Year - a clean slate full of promise and excitement. 

I wish all of you a year full of promise and excitement.  May 2010 be filled with love and laughter with your family and friends.  May health and good fortune shine on you and those you love.


Here's to 2010!!!!

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