Decorating Finds

I have powder room envy — perhaps because I don’t have one, and just can’t find any spot on my first floor to have one installed. I see them cleverly hidden in people’s homes, under stairs and built into closets, and really, really want one.

Recently, I found the perfect cheap and cheerful powder room vanity at a show. It’s a great unit made by Muti Kitchen & Bath, T460, that's available in six colours. It comes as a set with a sink, faucet, cabinet and mirror, or you can buy just the vanity with the faucet. Personally, I would go for the latter option and then hunt for a really special mirror.

Have a look around your first floor — perhaps the inspiration below will make you reconsider a quirky nook that would make the prettiest of powder rooms.

Muti Kitchen & Bath, T460, cost with mirror, $495.

And then there's my friend — and designer — Colleen McGill’s home.

Whenever I'm at Colleen's house, I can’t wait to open the door that hides this dolly of a powder room. The sink she designed makes my heart skip (the striped marble heated floor is also a lovely touch).

It’s all in the details: this mirror with its organic shape is gorgie above the clean rectangular lines of the sink.

A powder room is the perfect room to decorate. Wallpaper, lighting and perfectly selected accessories make this space interesting and eclectic, for instance.

Not experiencing powder room envy yourself yet? Then, view our Small Bathrooms photo gallery.

Photo credits:
1. Muti Kitchen & Bath
2-4. Morgan Michener
5. Elle Decor, photography by Simon Upton
6. Elle Decor, photography by William Waldron

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I don’t know about you, but I'm still experiencing an Olympic high of Canadian pride. (Congratulations to Team Canada for their record-breaking medal haul! And kudos to Hbc and their designers for giving our athletes the best-looking outfits in Vancouver, hands down.) With the Olympics barely over, and the Academy Awards (a.k.a. the Oscars) coming up this Sunday, I can’t get red, white and gold out of my head.

This Lee Caswell Antiques collection of trays becomes a gallery wall, in lieu of photos or art. I love the grouping of cut-crystal decanters on the card table below. But it’s the rich red wall behind that really elevates the drama.

This gorgeous colour photograph, “Château de Versailles” 1985 by Robert Polidori, was part of an exhibition at Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal last fall.

How cool are the oversized white and gold hex floor tiles in this quaint little house photographed by Simon Watson? I love the crimson velvet sofa, too.

My take on Oscar’s red carpet: The Colour Reform series at ABC Carpet (available in Toronto at Elte) salvages old rugs by over-dyeing them with saturated colours. Gorgeous!

And here's my version of the gold statuette. My office buddy Michael Penney can vouch for my endlessly annoying search for a large white Buddha, but I’m thinking I might be able to settle for a gold/bronze version like this blessing Buddha I found online.

Champagne is an Academy Awards party essential, of course, so I’m coveting this ice bucket from Vancouver’s The Cross Decor & Design. I would use it as a vase, too.

If you are serious about an Oscar party, you need to have some paper and pencils on hand for recording bets. The FAF notepads from Design Within Reach have rubber bumpers so they don’t slide or scratch your table. You can also download and print an Oscars ballot from ET Canada’s website.

Happy post-Olympics/Oscars weekend!

For party planning tips and inspiration photos, check out our Party Rooms photo gallery.

Photo credits:
1. House & Home October 2007 issue, photography by Virginia Macdonald
2. Maison & Demeure June 2009 issue, photography by Robert Polidori
3. Simon Watson
4. ABC Carpet & Home
5. Big Happy Buddha
6. The Cross Decor & Design
7. Design Within Reach

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To paint or not to paint? That really is the question.

My partner and I are moving into a new apartment, and it has this lovely vintage gas fireplace with a darkly stained mantel.

The fireplace is faced with some pretty interesting tile — but I can’t decide whether I hate it or love it.

I am trying to figure out whether to leave the mantel stained, keeping the look traditional, or just paint it out. In my search for inspiration, I’ve come across some gorgeous mantels. Obviously not all of them will suit our space and the existing elements — but they are still fun to review! Here are a couple of options…

Option 1: Paint it black. I love this look — it's so sophisticated, and with so many graphic elements in the space, the black really grounds the room.

Option 2: Go rustic. I love the roughed up look of this one. I’m not sure if the landlord would be too happy about this treatment, though…!

Option 3: Keep it simple. This is my favourite from the Lulu DK website. It's so clean and simple, plus it highlights all the other elements in the room.

Now to make a decision — that’s a whole other story! What would you suggest?

For more mantel inspiration, view our Fireplaces And Mantel Displays photo gallery.

Photo credits:
1-2. Stephanie White
3. House & Home May 2009 issue, photography by Angus Fergusson
4. From Flickr.com, Domino June 2008 issue, photography by Matt Albiani
5. Lulu DK

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It used to be that home décor trends followed the looks on the runways — eventually. Now, thanks to blog postings and tweets right from the front rows and backstages of every fashion week show, this crossover gap has pretty much vanished. The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York recently wrapped and I couldn’t help but notice that my favourite looks from the catwalk are already hot home trends.

Velvet Crush

Won over by a fabric that used to give me the heebie-jeebies? I’ve surprised even myself. But this gorgeous dress seen at Nanette Lepore sealed the deal.

Arbiter of style Ronda Carman recently blogged about the stunning velvet chair sultry Jennifer Aniston is slinking over on the March 2010 cover of Architectural Digest.

The rich, muted jewel tone is what makes this tufted velvet sofa from Horchow up-to-date. Eggplant velvet is probably one of the most foolproof choices if you’re thinking of a chair or sofa makeover.

Boho Patchwork

The pretty layers at Rodarte have the effect of patchwork, like the Rythme Modular Sofa done in Missoni fabric by Roche Bobois.

Gilt Trip

Is gold the new grey? Just saying…it’s everywhere. And in unexpected ways. For example — kitchens and bathrooms. Pick up our Kitchens & Bathrooms special issue, on newsstands at the end of March, and you will see what I mean. On the left gold is made wearable by Michael Kors. And livable by the pieces on the right from U.K.’s Graham and Green.

Hot Mix

Burberry Prorsum is always my favourite, hands down. I used to work in an urban office that was home to a couple of fashion magazines. Racks and racks of beautiful clothes in constant rotation were always lining the halls and my snooping led me straight to Burberry Prorsum every time. (Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs second.)

The contrasts between old and new, different textures, scales and colours are in sync with House & Home’s “look of the year” in the January 2010 Trends issue. Both are sexy, sophisticated and approachable, with pieces that you can work way beyond a single season.

Is it the effects of a recession? Maybe. But if you ask me, smart and stylish always come out on top, whether the economy is in a bust or boom.

For more of 2010’s colour trends, view our Paint Combos photo gallery.

Photo credits:
1a. The Globe and Mail
1b. Architectural Digest
2. Tufted Velvet Sofa, Horchow
3a. The New York Times
3b. Roche Bobois
4a. The New York Times
4b. Chateau Library Armchair, Graham and Green
5. The New York Times
6. House & Home January 2010, photography by Angus Fergusson

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I don’t know about you, but I find rooms decorated with twin beds sort of endearing. They hold memories of childhood, cottages and I Love Lucy reruns — it's comfort food decorating, really. They also make it easy to pull a room together, because they're symmetrical and straightforward. Think of them as the perfect place to start when designing a bedroom. Two beds + pretty table + decorative lamp + cute artwork + rug or painted floor = easy bedroom.

Because the equation is so simple, you can keep the room chic and cheap or go for broke and layer up juicy quilts and beautiful statement pieces. Have a look at some pretty inspiration below, including beds that will surely make you long to sleep in a twin again.

This simple boys’ room was in a chalet that we shot for H&H in November 2009. The wooden beds offer warm weight to a room decorated with traditional checks and stripes.

The simple upholstered beds shown here from Hickory Chair have a little extra height to the headboard — a proportion that makes them feel interesting and grown-up.

You can’t go wrong with beds like these and a fresh white palette.

This photo proves that it’s all about the symmetry.

This hand-hammered iron bed is a stunner. Notice that it has a headboard built into the four-poster — nice detail.

The Malm twin bed frame from Ikea comes in white or black and offers sleek, clean design. I’ve been on many photo shoots with this bed set up for kids — it often fools me into thinking it's custom because of the simplicity of the lines.

For more design inspiration for children’s rooms, view our Kids' Rooms photo gallery.

Photo credits:
1. House & Home November 2009 issue, photography by Virginia Macdonald
2. Candler Twin Bed, Hickory Chair
3. Stephen Falcke Interior Design
4. Kristen Buckingham Interior Design
5. Marco Bed, Oly Studio
6. Malm bed frame, Ikea

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One of my sisters is redecorating her bedroom. She called me while I was on set this week to ask if it was crazy to do it all in black and white. It is an adventurous and surprising move for her, and it made me realize that while black bathrooms are everywhere right now, I am still not over black bedrooms. (But I am, thankfully, completely over the kind I aspired to in my brief Goth phase.)  

When done right, black bedrooms are bold, cosy and impossibly chic — a cool, Paris apartment kind of look like photographer and stylist Lena Proudlock’s...

Or, J. Crew creative director Jenna Lyons’ bedroom, with its inky, matte, chalkboard painted walls.

Canadian designer Connie Braemer is another trendsetter way ahead of her time. This bedroom was first shown on the pages of House & Home years ago. It could appear in the next issue and look totally now.

Black striped wallpaper is a good compromise if solid black seems too overwhelming. Try Farrow & Ball’s Block Print Stripe. If wallpaper is too much of a commitment, you can always paint stripes instead.

I think this look would most appeal to my sister. Here are some items that I would invest in to decorate, too:

Oly Studio’s Jonathan Lounge.

The Myla mirror from Made Goods.

A candlestick lamp with a black shade like the Scallop Motif lamp from Elte.

Dwell Studio's Sketch and Pin Dot black and white bedding from Modern Karibou.

As for painting the walls black, editor's picks around the office include Ralph Lauren's Surrey (TH28), Benjamin Moore's Black (2132-10), and Farrow & Ball's Off-Black (57). I suspect that's what I might be doing the next time I visit my sister in Edmonton!

Not sure whether you would consider black in a room? These additional room photos may convince you.

Photo credits:
1. From January 2008 issue of Living Etc.
2. Melanie Acevedo
3. From October 2007 issue of House & Home, photography by Virginia Macdonald
4. Country Living, photography by Keith Scott Morton
5. Oly Studio
6. Made Goods
7. Elte
8. Modern Karibou

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One of the unspoken qualities of a design editor is the ability to collect. My husband and I are in the process of moving homes and I’ve come to the realization that I am an excellent collector! So much stuff: years of birthday cards, concert tickets, bags of buttons and even a collection of stones carted all the way back from my travels in South America. 

What to do with all this stuff… I know, a lot of it should be purged, but I’d like to hold onto a couple of those special items that have important memories attached. And while I’m at it, why not pull them out of their respective boxes and put them on the wall in a shadow box to instantly personalize our new home?

Shadow box frames are very easy to come by and available in an assortment of sizes, shapes and finishes — I’ve seen them at Ikea, West Elm, and Pottery Barn. And even better, you don’t need to worry about a custom cut mat — just line the back with a cardstock weight paper.

In my search for ideas, I’ve come across many cool and updated versions of the traditional shadow box. I can’t wait to get started!

Here is a selection from Pottery Barn. Some cute ideas, except I don’t think my bathing suit is going to make the cut!

I love this one by textile artist Hillary Webb — so simple and elegant.

Pencil crayons — what a fun way to add a hit of colour to your space!

Bring the outdoors in with these natural curiosities.

For more on displaying and hanging art, check out our Art Advice Guide.

Photo credits:
1. Pottery Barn
2. Hillary Webb
3. Pottery Barn
4. Automatism blog

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One of the great parts of my job is getting out and about and attending press previews. It can be a bit tempting at times — seeing all the fabulous new home bits before they hit the retail level makes me want to redo my space! Recently, I attended the HomeSense preview for Spring/Summer 2010 and it didn't disappoint. Have a look below at some of the products featured — the look is fresh and colourful and very, very livable.

These items will start rolling out to select stores in March, so keep an eye out for any pieces you might have to have.

The whole natural curiosities trend has really taken off and framed butterflies are a classic — I love the unmatted option shown on linen here.

This desk is so simple, and in grey, who can resist?

Mixing nautical and denim is clearly a trend. Still, what I was really drawn to here is the off-white knit wool pouf. It has such a modern look. I will be hunting for this come March!

The textiles shown are super fun this season — so mixed and colourful. Consider these as fun additions to the top of a bed or a kitchen/dining table. And check out the rug — too cute!

This is crazy, but kind of amazing if you had the room — a really well designed metal greenhouse. Perfect at the cottage. The piece is designed with a sliding barn door frame, and constructed so glass can be added easily to the frame. So fun. Designer playhouse, anyone?

For more gorgeous HomeSense finds, check out Michael Penney’s picks.

Photo credits:
Morgan Michener

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You’ve heard it from House & Home’s 2010 Trends issue, the trends gallery, Michael Penney and likely other reliable places too: four poster beds are a big, hot trend. This is from Calvin Klein’s latest collection. I’ve been dreaming of one since I moved into my bedroom-less apartment a year ago and as Tommy Smythe (see his fantastic apartment in our December 2009 issue) once told me “if there’s an elephant in the room, dress it up and celebrate it, don’t try to pretend it’s not there.”

I probably still have Mexico on my mind from my last post but it’s actually a poster bed with a canopy that I’m in love with lately. While I can’t exactly have this breezy, poolside look, draping around a bed is a great way to create a ‘room’ within an open space.

Here is a good example of the ‘room within a room’ from another boutique hotel, Casa Angelina in Amalfi. The mostly white palette and simple style choices in the rest of the furniture prevent it from looking too girly or precious.

Kara Mann is my latest designer crush. I love the gauzy effect from the sheer fabric not reaching the floor that makes the room look light and airy. She strikes a great balance between keeping the décor sparse enough to be serene but just layered enough so it’s not clinical.

I thought I was set on the soft, drapey look until I saw this gilded antique bed with a hard canopy in a room by Stephen Sills. I’ll have to talk my work buddy, flea-market-expert Michael Penney, into keeping an eye out for one for me.

I’m also a fan of this truly eclectic version, courtesy of Canadian designer Patricia Gray. It is actually a room by Turkish designer Asli Tunca, an incredible, unpredictable version of minimalism that is achieved with colour and what looks like mostly antique pieces.

It’s no secret I love white. An all-white room may seem asylum-like to some people but I think the different textures of this concrete floor, leather Moroccan pouf, chipped wood bed frame and drippy crystal chandelier make it anything but. If this were my room I would probably drape sheer fabric over the top of the frame. Come to think of it — anyone know a good woodworker?

Photo credits:
1. Calvin Klein
2. Mr and Mrs Smith Boutique & Luxury Hotel Specialists
3. Remodelista
4. Kara Mann
5. Stephen Sills Associates
6. Patricia Gray Interior Design
7. Decor Pad

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