Ive been shopping for a few clients, you know, looking for special things and came across a few that were good enough to share. These items are absolutely affordable, local and meaningful for the clients I am shopping for, and I can do the same for you…check this out….
Map Pillow of Vancouver Island
I loved these pieces by Kelowna Artist Leaane Spanza
Salt Spring
False Creek
This Painting by Artist Karen Chan really caught my eye, esp for anyone who is a transplant from Vancouver…
Great Close Up Photo of Totem Pole in Victoria
Contact me if you would like some help making the place you live a place you love!
Read More →
As I’m sure you know, the historic Johnson Street Bridge is being dismantled this week. You can follow the progress here.
Photo by Brandon Godfrey
Someday when I’m all grown up and living my dream of being a fabulous Interior Designer (with a private plane so I can go to Mexico whenever I want WITH my dog)…..my office will look like this….(office by Roughan Interiors)
drool.
Read More →
Well here it is, the last post in the One Room Challenge to complete one room in my house in six weeks. It really was the perfect amount of time and it was so much fun to follow the progress of all the other bloggers who took part. I’m really going to miss having so much traffic to my blog, but I’m glad to have met some really awesome ladies that I can continue to follow and learn from …but most of all I am so glad to have finally finished the bedroom!
Here is what the room looked like when we moved in 2 years ago….These pics document how I changed the paint and the flooring immediately upon moving in…
And here is how it looks today…
works like a charm 
I have to say that I’m really happy with the results. I’m not a professional photographer, but I hope I’ve captured the moody eclectic feeling I was going for…of course the dog would not leave and I was losing the little bit of brightness in a weekend of pretty much solid rain…so alas the resident ham/helper is in the shots.
Here is my Inspiration Pic again by Designer Eric Cohler:
RECAP
- Painted Bedside tables and changed hardware
- Replaced Hardware on old dressers
- Painted feature wall
- New Duvet Cover, rug and Lamps
- Re-purposed small frames and art pieces creating gallery walls
- DIY Art pieces
Check out the other amazing bloggers taking part in the challenge and see their final reveal!
Jen Office
Kelly Office
Danylle Girl's Room
Emily Boys Room
Suzanne Girl's Room
Kim Living Room
Taylor Living Room
Jennifer Laundry Room
Pin It
Read More →
Wow, I can’t believe it has been a year. Peeps if you are contemplating a renovation this year then you should make your 
way to the CHBA Show March 9-11th at the Save on Foods Memorial Centre. I attended this show last year so I could scoop up deals on counters, tile and other building essentials. Check out the vendors, they are local and there are always incentives that can save you money!
I’ll be there checking things out, and I suggest anyone thinking about projects this year do the same! The Celebrity guest this year is Jillian Harris…and if you are currently watching the Handyman challenge on HGTV or ever watched the Bachelor you know just who she is. Check out her blog too. here
Read More →
A couple months ago I researched interior french doors for my own basement. And this week they got installed! I have not painted them yet, but I’m so pleased I had to share!
Before we knocked the wall down.
My mother – in – law hard at work!
Extending the floors into the Bonus Room
Got Doors Home.
Hanging Doors.
Doors Hung.
Now the fun part! Trim and decorating!!
Read More →
The One Room Challenge is almost complete, and as I put the finishing touches on my room I wanted to thank my blog buddy Linda from MyCraftyHomeLife for generously asking me to participate in the challenge and the rest of the lovely ladies who kept me accountable! This has been really fun…and productive!!
This week is all about the DETAILS. They are what make every room personal, functional and meaningful for the occupant! Attention to the details is what is going to make you feel good about your project long after the new paint smell has cleared to room. The details in my room that are worthy of note are as follows…..
- Knobs: I switched the factory nickel knobs for some antique brass knobs to help tie the old dressers into my design concept.
- Cords and Phone Chargers: One of the main functions of the bedside table on my husbands side is to charge his blackberry, iPhone and tablet. I’m sure you can imagine the mess of cords etc this creates so I wanted to use the awesome drawers in these tables to house all that crap.
I drilled a hole in the back of the piece and another hole in the back of the drawer so I could slide a power bar into the drawer and hide all the cords but still keep Mr. Man happy and organized.
- Launch Pad & Landing Strip: You may have guessed, if you read my blog, that my dog is pretty major in my life, and so it’s reasonable that he is a big part of my design too. He’s getting old
and can’t jump up or down like he used to so this leather bench is his dignified helping hand to get up, and my new Rug (that I LOVE) is his landing strip so he doesn’t slip on the wood floors when executing a dismount from our bed.. Love you Bubbs!!
- Art (or rather, Wall Decor) – Lucky for me I have a lot of pieces and frames around the house that were not really being used so I played a little mix n match and re-used pieces I already had.
Nothing was bought new for the walls in this room (except the arbutus tree painting I got at a flea market for $8). I also made a piece from an old canvas I had painted years ago. I smeared it with gold and other metallic paint and then drizzled it one night with a champagne gold, and the next night with copper. It’s not fine art, but let’s call it “just fine” art. Since a couple of my attempts were pretty bad, I’m actually OK with this one. Not sure which way is up though ?? What do you think?
- Dimmers - I wanted a hotel like dimmer on the bedside lamps since they are located on the far side of the new bedside tables. I got these dimmer switches on a recent trip to Ikea for $9 bucks which I thought was a pretty good deal. This is going to make life a little easier, and I like that! I fastened them to the bedside table with a plastic clip. Easy Peasy
Come Back Next Wednesday for the FINAL REVEAL of all our projects!!
Check out the other amazing bloggers taking part in the challenge and see what they’ve been up to!
Jen Office
Kelly Office
Danylle Girl's Room
Emily Boys Room
Suzanne Girl's Room
Kim Living Room
Taylor Living Room
Jennifer Laundry Room
Read More →
Hey Peeps. For those of you into modern furniture or accessories, check out the new Crate and Barrell offering opening in Vancouver on February 18th, CB2. And Yes, they ship throughout Canada! pic is the link as usual
A couple highlights for me are the occasional tables and ottomans. Good looking and smart…I love that!
Read More →
This week I am researching contemporary open concept living – dining – kitchen spaces for a potential client and I knew just where to start to collect the most awesome inspiration photos….Jeff Lewis Design.
I’ve been a fan of Flipping Out from the start and one of his best flips on the show (IMHO) was his first Valley Oak residence in LA. This space is going straight to my tablet for what I hope will be a successful pitch meeting in the very near future. I hope you like it as much as I do! He’s such a rock star!
Read More →
Thanks for coming back to check on my progress in the one room challenge. This week I managed to paint the walls and complete my bedside tables project…A relief because they were the two most labor intensive aspects of the room. The rest is the fun stuff…but more on that next week.
Here is how the room progressed this weekend…If you look closely you can see that early on I had an enthusiastic assistant, but he deserted the project shortly after the work began…typical.
Click here for my Week 2 post on choosing my paint colour. I chose Kendall Charcoal (Benjamin Moore HC 166)
In addition to painting the feature wall I finished these bedside tables…Click here for the Week 3 shots in progress.
My Tip of the week relates to installing new hardware onto cabinets or furniture pieces like I did this week..
Professional Tip: When installing new hardware to your DIY project sometimes you need a longer or shorter screw than the one that came with your new knobs. There is a screw called a “breakaway” that you can break off at the appropriate length in order to get a nice tight fit. They are available at most hardware stores. The only trick is to try not to damage the thread by squeezing too hard when breaking off the pieces….my advice is to buy a few extras
Check out the other amazing bloggers taking part in the challenge and see what they’ve been up to!
Jen Office
Kelly Office
Danylle Girl's Room
Emily Boys Room
Suzanne Girl's Room
Kim Living Room
Taylor Living Room
Jennifer Laundry Room
Read More →
Recent Comments