This week I’m working on a new distance client project way down in sunny San Diego! She’s a doll and her kiddos are cuties! So far it’s going great…I’m full of ideas for re-using and thrifting where possible…and best part is she’s down for anything! Here’s my first stab at an eclectic living dining room combo that incorporates mom’s love of quirky and the pip squeaks affection for barbie cars and spider man. This space does it all.
If you want some help making the place you live a place you love…contact me. I can help!
Read More →
Every day me ‘n the dog hop in the car and go pick up the mister from work. He works in the vicinity of a huge recycling plant that crushes cars and other stuff….every couple weeks an empty barge shows up and over a period of two short days these guys on bulldozers Tetris these old cars and trucks onto the boat for a trip to god knows where. I love to park here and wait where I can watch this process unfold week after week. I’m astounded at how many vehicles are always being loaded up, I mean we ARE on an island…how many cars can there be? Until I figure out the answers to these burning questions I thought I’d share a couple snaps I took a few weeks ago…
I’m totally inspired by a client of mine who takes great local urban/editorial pictures and see’s inspiration everywhere she goes…so I thought I’d try to play photographer for a day until she lets me feature her work on the blog for you all to enjoy.
What do you think? Cool. Weird? Cray Cray? I’m kind of loving the idea of framing one of my pics in a white mat/white frame combo.
Crisp vs Crushed, Clean vs Dirty, New vs Recycled.
If you want some help making the place you live a place you love, Contact me…I can help!
Read More →
I had “one of those days” yesterday..everything went wrong…And I’m the first to admit that I may have a tendency to embellish a story now and then…but this was an incredibly rough one and I hated it!…a pity trip to Dairy Queen was entertained but not acted upon…Instead I went to my happy place and worked on a design plan for our basement living room / TV watching / zombie and dragon killing area. Here’s how it is shaping up.
I got that rug recently from HomeSense and I have plans to hack some more billy’s, make a paper mache skull, do a dwell studio knockoff art piece and buy some bookshelf lighting.
If you want help making the place you live a place you love Contact Me. I can help!
Read More →
Happy New Year Peeps! I’m ready to get the new year started and I’m so excited to share some new interior design client projects with you and some great plans for my own house too. Stay with me…it’s going to be a great year!
Refresh your memory, or check me out, by clicking any of the grid months highlighted below.
Fireplace remodel, One Room Challenge Master Bedroom, Kelowna Living and Dining Room, My first article on a local store called Trade Roots, One Room Challenge My Design Studio, My Etsy Pillow Launch, My Subway Sign DIY Workshop, My Subway Sign DIY, Beni Ourain DIY rug project.
Read More →
Yesterday I was busy visiting clients and giving advice on holiday decorations all over town…it was a dream! One of my stops was in Sooke to start the decoration of a cottage by the sea. It is so adorable it’s crazy…more on the cottage later. I needed to simply and tastefully decorate for xmas, choose a colour palette and theme and leave the tree for the family to do themselves. No problem.
Here’s the view…
And here’s the mantle I started with.
I chose some driftwood accessories from Homesense (The garland the star and a tree) which totaled just over $50 dollars. Everything else was already there. The colour palette mimics the colours inside and out. Natural wood, white and green.
I stood outside in the pouring rain. In Suede Boots (I almost cried) snipping cedar from the forest right outside their door and just layered it into the driftwood garland and a set of Champagne coloured LED lights. The clients had candles everywhere so I grabbed all the white ones I could find and grouped them. Smelled great!
I used accessories like old books and antique or old objects from around the cottage to create little vignettes but mostly I put things away inside the built in cupboards for a clean and simple approach to Christmas.
It was dark by the end of the day but made for a calm and oh so pretty holiday room. The family will do a charlie brown tree on their own and I left them with some ornaments and suggestion to keep the colour palette to green white and metallic. So nice.
If you want some help with your holiday decorating it’s not too late. Contact me…Of course I’ll help you, I’m nice like that.
Read More →
My name is Nicole, and I installed laminate floors.
Of course I love wood floors. They’re beautiful, expensive and don’t hold up to the wear and tear of my current lifestyle. Now, before you imagine cheap and ugly laminate from the 1990s I want to share my floors (outing myself as a LAMINATOR) and show a selection of textured laminates that might change your mind. I came to my decision partly because of this guy…and it didn’t hurt that he helped install it. Good Dog.
I have clients on the fence and I am suggesting laminate for several reasons. Such as….
- budget ;
- easy to install;
- durability for homes with pets;
- less impact on wood resources;
- AND….They CAN look great!
Check out these textured laminates.
And these…
And here’s mine…although it’s a bit darker brown in real life.
Here it is installed in my basement. K is sad because the last bit of nasty carpet has been removed.
I know that for many decorating and design is all about beauty and quality and so some folks are dead set on the real thing. That’s OK, I think I get it. But for me, decorating and design is about living better so if that means I save a few thousand dollars for my family and allot of shrieking when there’s an accident (not naming names) then I’m going to opt for the savings. You can install it in the basement too which is fantastic! For me, a thick plank of laminate installed properly can give you the look and feel of wood floors for way less. No squeaking either! Laminate works for me, and I’m OK if everyone knows about it.
Contact me if you want help making the place you live a place you love.
Read More →
Baby Mamma wants a little less Brown and Orange and a little more of the colour mix from the folded blankets pictured below. Just goes to show you that inspiration comes from anywhere! Requirement for this little dude’s room is still soft and mellow…we are gettin there!
Read More →
I have found that many folks appreciate eclectic style decor but once we start talking about it I realize that we have very different ideas of what it means..Indeed, there is a broad meaning to the term, and similarly a great deal of styles that are genuinely eclectic. So why not take some time and identify, deconstruct, analyze and illustrate the different types of eclectic design I see in my mind, and out there in the big old world.
ec·lec·tic/ iˈklektik/
adjective: Deriving ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources.
First Let’s Talk about Industrial Eclectic. Followed by some more posts illustrating modern, traditional and electric eclectic etc. Ok, not electric…just seeing if you were paying attention.
A cool modern interpretation of industrial eclectic from Apartment Therapy. The owners Jessica and Johnathan have taken some classic mid century chairs, lighting and teak dining furniture and added over sized industrial letters. Cool. A few stools that have an industrial edge guard the kitchen and the whole place has a youthful, playful vibe that would have read straight modern without the industrial elements. Very hip…Call this one. Hip eclectic
Next let’s contemplate a softer side…Country eclectic. Of course country style interiors wrote the book on vintage cool functional accessories. This urban farmhouse is an example of mixing eclectic vintage elements like an old coca cola sign into an interior punctuated by cheerful painted furnishings and softer lines. Lauren and Paul’s House Tour here.
Many eclectic interiors are home to a collector and the display of treasured items ultimately becomes the focal point. Take a look at Sheryl Crowe’s house featured in Elle Decor. Her Kitchen is all about industrial functionality and display.
What about the neutral side of eclectic? Is there anything out there for the greige crowd who want a little eclecticism in their lives but not too much flash? Heck ya! Check out what Jennifer has created at the Old Painted Cottage! The addition of this cart table and some other mixed era vintage pieces results in a soft industrial eclectic interior.
Some folks should just start out easy, like me and incorporate some awesome chairs into your space..it’ll up your cool factor like 10 points, instantly. I like this shot from Design Sponge of some Tolix chairs around an old table. It inspired me to get mine!
I think it is worthwhile to note that you certainly don’t have to live in a downtown loft in order to incorporate industrial touches into your home. Trip Haenisch artfully added industrial flavour to a residential home by adding a reading corner with some industrial style shelves and accessories.
Simply adding some interesting industrial style lighting can transform an area of your home.source
The architecture of a space can lend itself to the industrial eclectic look too. Consider these commercial style railings mixed into a traditional country style home. Great mix
So that’s a little peek into industrial eclectic. You can achieve it with accessories, furniture and, of course, architechture.
Come back again for more inspiring photos and discussion about other eclectic design styles.
If there is anything in particular you would like to see, drop me a line in the comments.
Well Looky at that! Desire to Inspire has some Industrial Goodness today too. Check it out here
Read More →
I’m in negotiations to get this…. (ewww bad craigslist photo)
So I can make it into this…(in my basement bonus room with french doors…soon to be amazing office a la Emily A. Clark)
Wish me Luck!
Read More →
If you’re like me you’re always thinking about how things could be improved…tweaked or re-arranged. I am usually happy with my creative results in terms of decorating…. but I am also always thinking and learning and being inspired by the world around me and the result is that I mess around with my own house ALLOT! At the moment I am preparing to re-do my bedroom. My basic scheme can be seen on the board below.
I’ll keep you posted over the next couple months as to how I’m doing. What projects are you working on?
Read More →
Recent Comments