This casually elegant room was inspired by a brown and cream colour scheme. The Stylus sofas are traditional, but comfortable for socializing in front of the fireplace that is surrounded by 1" mosaic tiles. The room is full of display space for family pictures and momentos as well as storage in the coffee and end tables from Stanley, and the custom cabinets that flank the fireplace.

The chocolate brown Barcaloungers offer a relaxing place to watch the flat panel tv above the fireplace. The custom drapes of Robert Allen fabric (my personal favorite) beautifully frame the view and window seats, which are now a functioning as seating when there is a full house - and there often is! After having removed wallpaper a while ago that covered almost the entire interior wall space, the client was reluctant to go back to what she had recently gotten rid of. But is she ever glad that she did! The grasscloth wallpaper from Ontario Wallcoverings adds a depth and warmth to the space.

This is the before picture!

I had the opportunity to decorate a lovely row house in Kerrisdale, Vancouver. It was a great opportunity to showcase the latest trends in traditional Christmas decor. I started out with a "vanilla gold" tree, and used brown, cream & bronze accents t decorate it. Metallics like gold, silver, bronze & copper are hot colours for Christmas decor. Rather than the usual "brassy" glitter decorations, I used antique glitter decorations, which were more subtle and classy. Another popular detail is natural elements. Twigs, birds, berries and fruit to name a few, is seen much more in all decor, not just Christmas decor
This is, of course, just one of the many schemes that are exciting and new. But watch next year.... you may see more gold trees in the stores.

Accessorizing your home is like the icing on the cake. It is important that it is practical for your lifestyle, yet pleasing to everyone who comes to your home. Use things that are meaningfull to you. Even the Royal Doulton porceline doll you inherited from Grandma can find a place amoungst your displays. Its fun to add new and trendy things to mix it up. You can splurge on items that are worth it. But mostly your accessories don't have to be expensive. You'll see that natural elements are very popular. Seashells, coral, wood.... Use woven baskets to hide some of the things that don't add beauty to your display. Make sure you display similar coloured books together, and place some vertically and some horizontally. I carry a number of the most stylish acessory lines available. Let me know if you want to add a certain something to your display.

The above picture is taken from the HOUSE & HOME MAKEOVERS magazine for fall 08. Pick one up for some more tips!

Antique Market

If you are wanting to "go green", or to add more character pieces in your home or need furniture on a tight budget, consider using a re-purposed piece. Ask me about some of the antique or repurposed furniture I can supply

Stylus is one of Canada's largest furniture manufacturer. They have a great selection of contemporary or traditional upholstered furniture, and leather too! Their "Nest" chair is so fun to have in a family room or rec room. My pricing on this line is unbelievable. Now you CAN afford a new sofa!

Thanks for visiting my blog! I have done this as a way for my friends and clients to keep up with what is going on in my business. It was just a little easier than setting up a website. I hope to do regular updates on projects that I have completed; feature new furniture or other interesting design elements that I will be selling; show design trends that I have come across; and have a place for you to check out the websites of all the furniture lines that I represent. Check back regularly for interesting posts.

Before and After

This is what our bathroom originally looked like! Everything was smushed against one wall: The bathtub, vanity, tiny shower and sink. It was in desperate need of a makeover!

The New Bathroom

What a great luxury it is to have a well lit beautiful retreat. I redesigned the layout of the bathroom so that we had a trough sink (big enough for 2), beautiful custom vanity with drawers (novel idea) and a large shower with a rain head.

Suite Dreams

It was a year in the making, but it is finally done. We are thrilled with our bedroom retreat. I often take a high/low approach when decorating. This is a great example of that. My chandelier and furniture were a bit of a splurge, but I have many great inexpensive finds; mostly from Homesense, and my sink! The sink we really wanted was $1500, but we got one almost the same from IKEA for about $150. GREAT SAVINGS!