Reason to Hire a Decorator #3: Organizing

Yesterday I was sitting on the basement floor with my four year old, attempting to recreate a Lego flying object from one of his books.  The floor was littered with hundreds and hundreds of different pieces that he had been given to him by his 17 year old half brother.  As I was trying to find pieces that might work for his flying object, all I could think of was how much easier it would be to find a piece if all the pieces were organized by colour, size and function.

Source: ebay

So I will admit it, hand in the air with the other over my heart...I have an organizing fetish.  I'm addicted to having things in their place.  I love being able to find things where I expect them to be.  Some people call it crazy, but I think it is efficient.

As a decorator, one of the things I like to do when assessing a space is thinking who will use the space, how will they use it and is there sufficient (and proper!) storage for the things that need to be here.  With 5 people living in our small home, this is especially important.  Even for children, if they have a space to put away their things away, they'll do it.

Recently I added some labels to some existing baskets in my son's room.  I didn't change what was in the baskets, just labeled them.  An immediate change was noted...my son started to clean up his room at bed time, and he was playing with those toys more often.   

In the fall, I was able to convince my husband to tear out an existing useless cabinet in our kitchen and replace it with a PAX Ikea cabinet that we had used in our old house.  For some reason, the cabinet had not fit in any of the rooms in this house and had been sitting awkwardly in my daughter's room.  I measured the opening in the kitchen and with the help of a handyman, turned my horrible open closet to an efficient storage system.  All the drawers were already in the cabinet and they now hold recycling bins, garbage bags, a spice drawer, and baking supplies.  There is even a pull out shelf that holds all the wrapping foils and plastic wraps a girl could ask for.  Beer goes on the top shelf...both the full and the empties.

I was on a roll after this conversion.  One last little fix up was needed for my linen closet.  Storage is not plentiful in this little house, so sometimes I have to be a little creative.  In my linen closet, I have minimal shelf space, but when you close the door, there is a lot of space between the back of the door and where the shelving starts.  So, I started to store things on the door.  My favourite addition? A swinging towel bar that allows me to hang laundered, ironed table clothes.  Now the effort I put into ironing is not wasted when I stuff the table clothes into the closet.

Look around your space.  Could you use the help of a decorator to put things where they belong and make your home more efficient and beautiful?  It'll make you happier...I guarantee it. 

Until next time,

Special limited time savings of $25 for a colour consultation.  Click here for more information.

IDS 2012 Through My Engineering Eyes

I'm just back from visiting the Interior Design Show in Toronto.  During my visit I was able to attend two very well organized blogging events.  One was called Blog Podium which focused on how the media and blogs interact and the other one was the Canadian Design Blogger's Meetup.  Both fantastic.  Both taught me to be myself, in 500 words or less, with fabulous pictures and original content.  Hopefully I'll be able to translate their teachings into something fantastic for you to read.

So here I go...

This was my second year at IDS and while I'm still pretty new to the design world, this being my second year at the show, my comfort level with exploring the space on my own was much higher.  What happens when you explore on your own?  You see the things through your eyes.  What draws you in may be different than a fellow designer or design enthusiast.  So, my having a background in engineering, my eyes were drawn to joinery and interesting finishes and textures.

I love organizing, as you may know, so I also love creative things that allow you to live in small spaces.  One of the first things to catch my eye were some Murphy beds from a company called clei. The poor girl working the booth spent the whole time opening and closing those babies, which I'm sure resulted in some aching muscles. They had a number of different systems that were creative for a small space.  Check them out at Resource Furniture if you are in Toronto.

clei

clei

Valcucine

Another wow for me was on a closet system by Valcucine.  They had integrated the lighting into the shelf, so that you could see what was below the shelf, and it didn't take up any space.  Brilliant.

Valcucine

Kantelberg + co.

Kantelberg + co. had an amazing, original light fixture that mixed metal and glass in a way that was unique.  Love unique.  It reminds me of my daughter's best friend's hair when it's all beaded up.  It had me staring up into it, trying to figure out how all the little springs are attached.

Kantelberg + co.

Native Trails

Native Trails had a hand hammered reclaimed copper bathtub that made my jaw drop.  The closeup picture shows the beautiful workmanship that hides the welding joint.  The one shown here is nickel plated.  Interesting fact...the copper sinks and tubs also fight bacteria, though not so when they are plated.  And of course the non-plated ones get an amazing patina as they age.

Native Trails

Holtz Furniture

Holtz Furniture had some amazing joinery used in their reclaimed wood pieces.  Not sure I could use their pieces, it's that kind of beautiful.  The bottom photo uses a piece of plexiglass as a support to show off the beauty of the wood.  They had a piece at the show last year that used a thick piece of glass, so I was pleased to see the plexiglass used here.  I'm not a fan of thick glass due to its green hue.  I think it takes away from the wood.  Just my two cents...

Holtz Furniture

Holtz Furniture

There were many, many other pretty and unique things at the show.  I'll have to share those at another time.  If you are interested in reading more about IDS2012 and the blogging events, check out some fellow Ottawa Decorator's blogposts: Maureen at Modecor Muses, Kelly at Jax Does Design, Lisa Goulet Design, Sonya Kinkade Design

Until next time,




Special limited time savings of $25 for a colour consultation.  Click here for more information.

Reason #2 to Hire an Interior Decorator: Matching Grandma's Favourite Chair

So most of us, when changing the decor in a space have limitations.  They might be an existing tile that can't be replaced,

Source:  http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress/?p=10249

 some drapes that you paid a lot of money for 3 years ago and can't afford to buy again right away,

Source:  http://autohomedecor.com

or it might be Grandma's favourite chair that she's either using or has such sentimental value, it can't be changed.

Grandma's chair...Source:  http://4.bp.blogspot.com

Or maybe these finishes or chair styles are not the problem, it's that your tastes has changed and it's time for some new things.

We all have decorating limitations.  It's the interior decorator's job to work within those limitations and still make your space as fabulous as possible.  I worked for a couple of years as a design consult at La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries.  During that time, I was frequently given the challenge to coordinate with some existing furniture in the client's home.  In most cases, it was entirely possible to bring in new things to blend, disguise or hide the challenge in the room.

So bring it to us...we LOVE challenges.

Until next time,





Special limited time savings of $25 for a colour consultation.  Click here for more information.

Reason #1 to Hire an Interior Decorator: Paint Colours

So here we are with a brand new year.  There is something about changing over to that fresh calendar that always feels so good.  A new year brings new possibilities and adventures, new opportunities to make ourselves and our spaces the best they can be.

This year I would like to bring you a bi-weekly blog detailing how hiring a certified interior decorator, like myself, can save you a lot of time, money and frustration, while altering your personal environment for the better.  We all know what it feels like when a room is "just right".  How can you achieve that? Let's start with something as basic as paint colour.

Now, anyone can go to the paint store and pick a colour.  After all, how many of you painted your room beige, thinking it was going to go with everything, but it didn't work.  Why are there so many beiges and whites?  Well, that's because they are all different!  Some beige will read as pink or red

Benjamin Moore HC-48 Bradstreet Beige

like Benjamin Moore's Bradstreet Beige, while others will look green like Benjamin Moore's Hemp Seed. 

Benjamin Moore CC-578 Hemp Seed

Some will come across as grey and others will change dramatically as the light changes in your room.  Speaking of light, did you know that the amount and quality of light, both natural and artificial, will also greatly affect the colour.  Do you still think you can pick the perfect colour, in a paint store, with all fluorescent light?

The next time you decide to spend money on several gallons of paint, and all the time it takes to paint a room, think how much you'll save in time and money by hiring a certified interior decorator to come and give you some paint colour choices.  Our extensive training in colour allows us to see what is in a colour, allowing us to choose between colours to make the optimum choice for your space and your existing finishes.

Wondering just how much can you save?  An average big box store sells a gallon of paint for roughly $50.  Figure you'll need a couple gallons for an average room to give you decent coverage.  That's $100, plus the ceiling, which often needs a colour other than pure flat white to show off your furnishings to their best potential.  There are after all even more types of white than there are beiges!  So adding in the ceiling paint, you've spent $150 (+$200 for a brand name paint).  Choose the wrong colour and you'll be spending a whole weekend--two or more times, plus $150--two or more times, when you could have paid an interior decorator $100-200 ONCE and got it right the first time.  How much is YOUR time worth?

Save your time and your money, and get it right the first time. 

Until next time,





Special limited time savings of $25 for a colour consultation.  Click here for more information.