Monday, March 10, 2014

A Frezy of Paint and Wallpaper for #projectwowzers

I would usually start the week by telling you what I got up to over the weekend with the fam etc.

Thing is, I haven’t really seen them much the past few days.

I ended up working ALL WEEKEND, which was actually super duper deliciously fun because I got to hammer out the paint and wallpaper scheme for an ENTIRE HOUSE…and not just a few room sort of house…a 6500 square foot historic French renovation in beautiful Lake Forest (where my sister lives- love, love,) Illinois. Yes that’s right…in the course of 2 days, the homeowner (who is PS, amazing and PSS, is game for anything and PSSS rocks my designer boat with her bad self) and I went through paint after paint and wallpaper after wallpaper to come up with a plan for all 36 or so spaces…and yes, you read that right.

The home is packed full of beautiful moulding and built ins so for each and every space, we were looking at things like trim and bookcase colour and walls and sloped ceilings etc. etc.

So…here my friends is a peak of what I’ve been up to in the form of paint and pretty wallpaper.

And yes, I’m living all of my wallpaper fantasy dreams vicariously though this client…especially on the Grand Versailles, Bathouse Monkey, Erotica and Pink Marble front…

Foyer-

Shared little girl’s room and bath-

Playroom-

Son’s Room and Bath-

Master Bedroom -

Master His and Her Closets-

Master Bathroom-

Mudroom-

Kid’s Powder-

Guest Room and Bath-

Big Girl’s Room and Bath-

Laundry Room-

And all other rooms all moulded up in shades of things like BM Revere Pewter, FB Hague Blue, FB Railings and FB Black Blue.

Are you dead with jealousy yet?

I am.

Seriously.

This will be my dream house for realz.

The homeowner/winning client just sent me pictures of the kitchen with brass cremon bolts on giant arched windows. Le sigh…total and complete heaven.

Stay tuned for all of this coming to life toute suite…painting starts, with wallpaper already on order.

God I love fast action!

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Blogger Ladies Whose Work is Rocking My Casbah This Week #2

It’s my favourite day of the week because it’s time to showcase the incredible talent of some of my lady friends.

1. We’ve all be waiting on the edges of our seat for Bailey to reveal ‘Project Holly’ and wow…was the big Style Me Pretty showcase of her latest design slam dunk, ever worth the wait!

I’m so enamoured with Bailey’s creativity. Her ability to mix and match patterns and colours is just so inspired. She truly has such a gift for making a space feel so joyful and thoughtful. She pushes every boundary there is but in way that makes each room she designs feel comfortable but still also daring and rich.

I just adore every thing she touches.

And even though she was quite obviously touched by the wand of design genius, my most favourite thing about Bailey is that she’s as kind and supportive as they come…a real gem among gems as it were.

2. I’ve loooong admired the incredible work of Style at Home design editor Jessica Waks and am so entirely blown away by every drop of her new home reveal…the kitchen/family room was released in the magazine’s February 2014 issue (you can see that here,) with the rest of the main floor featured in the April 2014 edition. And let me just say, I’m quite honestly DYING over all of it…

I can’t even pick a favourite thing to talk about…

Though, the Irish Mint walls in the study combined with the graphic Hex fabric on the window…yes, that’s probably my most loved element…but then there’s the black and white floor in the entrance…oh and the purple leather Louis dining chairs/chinoiserie wallpaper duo…oh shit…there’s also Staffordshire dogs flanked with beautious sconces and topped with a gorgeous mirror…oh and my most favourite Oly Studio Jonathan Bench with a Hermes blanket on it…and let’s not forget about all that moulding and all that brass…and the chandeliers…the chandeliers!

It’s all ridiculously stunning…grown up, feminine, gutsy stunning.

PS, if you’re not already following Jessica’s blog, you should be. For every room of the reveal, she writes up these amazingly detailed posts about her inspiration, selections, processes etc. etc. It’s quickly become one of my most favourite daily reads.

PSS…you know how I’ve been leaning a little more sculptural/modern/less is more these days? The combo of these two reveals is making my brain hurt…pretty maximalism is just soooooooooo delightful. I feel my design pendulum sliding again;)

Monday, March 3, 2014

Weekend, Coats and Paintings

Happy Monday friends.

I hope you all had a super duper weekend.

Mine was brilliant for a few reasons…but cold…holy mother of all that’s good and holy we’ve had a rough winter this year. It’s seriously just been so ridiculously cold. On average, we’ve been hitting about -10 C every single day…for like months…and with the windchill, that’s feeling more like -20. It’s crazytown. You know that whole argument about how climate change is not happening, well I call bullshit on that one…and I know you mostly all think that Canada is always freezing anyways but here in Toronto, we’re actually further south than parts of California, so it’s not actually ever this farking cold (for more than maybe a day or two all winter anyway). I hit upon this little video on FB coutesy of Jenny…

…and well, it certainly brought the whole point home in such a ‘thanks for making it clear as mud with a whiteboard’ sort of way…it’s most definitely time to act as it were. For my part, I’m starting to take control of this bloody hideousness by purchasing a coat that will actually stop me from feeling like I’m dying slowly every time I stand waiting for my kids in the schoolyard…question is, when it’s this cold, what the heck coat do I buy?

1. I’m not getting a Canada Goose

2. I need something that is actually warm…not just cute

3. I’ve narrowed down my choices to 3 and if any of you have one of them or have had an experience with any, please report.

a. Parajumpers Long bear of Kodiac…

b. Nobis Merideth

c. Outdoor Survival Canada (of some variety)…

I’ve tried on the Nobis and OCS numbers…what I like about them is that they’re both made in Canada and super ducks warm…I think the later is good to -60C…trouble is, I think they’re almost too much of a good thing. I almost felt like I was going to pass out in the store when I had the OSC one because of how warm the thing was…sort of felt a bit claustrophobic almost…but maybe that’s just what I need for outside etc. The Nobis was lighter but there was only one left and it was the wrong size so I’d have to order that sucker in. I haven’t seen the Parajumpers in real life but I love the look of it and I’ve read good things so…

Again, any thoughts/reveiews with any of these guys would be much much appreciated.

[And of course, by saying I’m going to do my part for climate change by shopping, I obviously kid…trying to do the real stuff with the family as well;]

Moving on.

Aside from coat hunting, I also spent a lot of time with my big boy. He had his first commercial shoot on Saturday…it was a looooong day but the highlight for me were a) seeing his excitement over the whole thing and b) trying to soak up every detail of incredible house the shoot took place in…holy Dinah…soooooo goooooddd…

20′ ceilings clad in wood…full height bookshelves with super cool scupltural things inside…incredible art everywhere…etc.etc.

I wish I could have took photos of the whole place but I had to be all stealth about it and the lights were pretty much off the whole time…you get the idea though- it was pretty sublime.

And aside from that business, I did some painting…working on a new spring series…

…that are going to be about pretty colour and blooms…hoping to have them up in the shop by week’s end.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Blogger Ladies Whose Work is Rocking My Casbah This Week

As per Monday’s post, I’ve been soaking up much blog friend amazingness as of late. Some standouts for me:

1. Amber just revealed this bathroom and I’m DEAD over it…

I’ve literally NEVER seen a wallpaper that I love more than that floral by Ellie Cashman…

…and along with the marble and brass (which is PS, a Restoration Hardware vanity that Amber had plated- sooooo brilliant,) well let’s just say I very much wish that little jewel-box of a bathroom was mine.

When the #projectdreamhouse happens, this paper will go somewhere. For suresies.

2. I’ve been following along with the renovation of Angela’s home over at the Painted House/via her Instagram feed and holy moly, she’s literally created my dream house in a nutshell…every single detail is perfection…

3. And speaking of perfectly perfect things, behold the ridiculously Parisian chic home of Jessie aka The Design Daredevil…

Lord knows I LOVE a girl who embraces black, gold and architectural splendor…oh and busts…adore my fellow cement people lovers.

4. Some #getpublished magic over the past few weeks with:

a) Alex and Liz’s office in the Glitter Guide…

b) Erika’s feature on The Everygirl…

Seeing that last image just made the mental image of Erika working away to create my new site, totally come to life…so so grateful to her and ridiculously inspired by her Everygirl interview.

PS on that front, I was thinking that I might do a little behind the scenes of how my website came to be in terms of development and design…of interest?

5. If I had thought of this post/potential series earlier in the week, my dear friend Nicole would have been noted here for her amazing new photographic genius on UPLO (PS, if you haven’t spent hours diving through all the incredible work on this site, do so now…I time sucked a good 5 hours last night) but since I just came up with it, she’s getting two mentions this week and deservedly so…in addition to the goodness I posted on Monday, check out her Lego Slim Aaron brilliance that I just realized was hers, thank to Erin’s post from yesterday…

So delightful…how much do I want one of these to be the centerpiece for my little dude’s room in the new house? That would be very much.

All in all, these ladies have given us a major case of inspiration overload no?!?! And how about a giant high five to these talented woman for making shit go and happen in such a ridiculously fabulous way.

I’m actually thinking now that I’ve typed out the title of this post, I’m going to turn this into a series…I need a good image board- stay tuned.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

A Project Reveal and Wallpaper Guts #projectfeelinvintage and #projectdarkanddramatic

First off, a huge thank you to everyone for being so amazingly supportive and sweet about my new site…I’m so incredibly grateful.

And now for today’s rather long post…

As you might know (read here,) I’ve been given the task of making over the hallway for #projectfeelinvintage. This is of course, a dream project because my client is game for anything…when we first talked about the space, she gave me the task of going bold, bold and more bold…oh and wallpaper…she wanted it and asked for something memorable/exciting.

So, I immediately hit the web and found this collection of amazing…

And I’m happy to report that I think we have a winner with the second to last aka…Makelike ‘Lush’…sooooo excited.

Wallpaper = bliss.

And speaking of, I’ve had a very good week when it comes to this pretty stuff. You might remember #projectdarkanddramatic…

…well, things are moving right along and the room is almost complete…here’s the early reveal on that one…

…just a few finishing details and then she’ll be done…so amazing to see moodboards come to life!!! Also, her dog on that bed is brilliant…so regal!

And now that the bedroom is almost finished, my fabulous client has asked me to do a little mini-makeover on her living room…

…with the mandate to make things feel a little ‘Modern Parisian’ in feel.

To start, we’ll be painting out the kitchen cabinets white and adding detail moulding to all the charcoal walls.

The main entrance wall that runs from the front door to the living room is going to get wallpapered up and some new furniture and lighting is going to be added…the sofa, wall-unit, coffee table and mirror will be staying.

With all of that in mind, here’s that plan…

And yes, some Cole and Son Wisteria is very hopefully going to happen…

…so in love with how it ties the two spaces together. It’s looooong been one of my faves so delighted I might get to use it.

And speaking of using things, if there’s anyone out there who might consider one of these paper with one of the paints attached…

…please let me know…would LOVE to make it happen…like really love.

Oh and also…if there’s a mystery client out there who wants something uber whimsical and has some money to spend on wallpaper, I would kill giants to put up this Flat Vernacular pencil goodness…

…it’s made of pencils…mind blown.

Monday, February 17, 2014

My House Tour on Style Me Pretty Y’All…and My Last Post of Sorts

Hi friends. It’s Family Day here in Ontario so a holiday of sorts…I’m in the car on my way to visit the parental units as we speak. And since it’s a special day, I thought it the perfect one to do a behind the scenes post about my Style Me Pretty shoots (which you can read here and here). Having the feature up on a site that I’ve loved for longer than I can remember, well…let’s just say it’s a total dream come true. And when combined with photography from the ridiculous talented, Ashley Capp…it’s a bit too much happiness for me to handle. Let’s start with the basement… As you might remember from the very first post about the project, I was thrilled when Home Depot asked me to partner with them to complete the transformation. And with help from my very talented architect Wallace Brown and amazing carpenter/contractor Allen Dawson, we were able to put this together…

A few sponsor notes:

1. Thank you Home Depot!!! The tile in the bathroom and laundry and laminate flooring throughout are more perfect than I had hoped…and sooooo low maintenance…perfect for the basement.

2. Thank you Para Paints!!!!! The entire basement is done in a beautiful crisp white called ‘Chrysler Hall White’.

3. The amazing silk rug in my daughter’s room really set the tone for the entire space…a massive thank you to eCarpet Gallery for making that happen.

4. My anewall mural is one of my most favourite things in the downstairs family room…if you aren’t already in love with their inventory, check it out here.

5. Many people have emailed about the TV unit…it was made by my carpenter Allen…if you’re in the GTA and want one of your own, email away:)

Next, the foyer…

Since it was last shot for Style at Home, I’ve swapped out the Barbary Barry desk in favour of this vintage tessellated stone number…it works much better because it’s so narrow- leaves more space to move around in there. I also changed the runner for probably the millionth time to this vintage Beni dude…he hides the dirt really well and is pretty.

Moving on…here’s the kitchen…

Since it’s last feature, I’ve changed out the gold chairs for these Panton ones…they’re just so much more durable and easy to manage with the kids. Also, I finally got around to swapping out the stove hood- it was the one thing I wasn’t happy with when the kitchen first got renovated and I’m thrilled with the new clean/square white number- it does a much better job of disappearing into the wall then the old floating stainless one…another thanks to Allen on that front.

The room that probably changed the most before this shoot is the living room…

I really wanted to give it a more streamlined/modern feel than it’s previous incarnation so I got rid of the two seating areas, tufted ottoman, gold console and chinoiserie cabinet. I also took down the TV and art wall and replaced it with that giant amazing painting from Jen Mann…obsessed with it. On the opposite side, the portrait from Stephanie Vovas is also a very favourite…as I said in my ‘Behind the Blogger‘ feature, art is what I think the MOST important thing in any space is- couldn’t love these two new additions to my collection more. And to reduce make the space feel a little less girly than in its previous life, all the walls were painted in my new favourite warm white (but not too warm…clean warm I like to call it) Para Paints, ‘Snowfall’.

As for the room itself, I also added in a pair of Alky chairs which aren’t shown in the feature but love them lots as well.

Going upstairs, there’s Scarlett’s room…

…and Jasper’s…

Both of which make me incredibly happy…they’re very much reflective of the little loved ones who inhabit them and when designing for others, I think that’s as good as it gets:)

As part of the Style Me Pretty Living feature, I included an exhaustive source list so if you’re wanting info in that regard, click over there.

And I think that’s my house in a nutshell….all that’s really left to be done is our master and ensuite bath…hoping they get done someday;)

For now though, the house is done and I’ve got lots of other fun project work on the go to keep me busy, along with a new website that’s launching TOMORROW!!!!!

So with that official news, I need to take a minute to thank you my readers for sticking by me over here on good old Blogger since my very first post way back in October of 2010.

It’s hard to believe that this marks my very last ever post over here but as one door closes, another one opens as they say…and I literally can’t wait for this giant one to reveal itself…the making of my new site has been an absolute labour of love…working on it with the infinitely talented

Erika Brechtel from Small Shop and fabulous developer Zoe Rooney, has been just the bestest (more on that after the new site launches) and I’m sooooo happy to tell you that things are all ready to go.

PS..If you find you aren’t able to comment on this post, it’s because we’re gearing up for the transfer so stay tuned…this will be live on the new site as well tomorrow.

So….a farewell from here and a huge welcome tomorrow over at christinedovey.com!!!!