A fire table and a photo gallery wall

July 8, 2014 By

Well, I’m happy to report that the fire table was up and running this past weekend, just in time for our wonderful avalanche of guests for the next month.  Click here to see my previous post which shows our inspiration for the table.

We christened it on Saturday night with some good friends and a little bit of Prosecco, they were kind enough to bring.

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Here’s a little better shot of it the next morning.  My hubby did such a great job of it.  I picture many evenings here with a glass of wine….sigh….

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So totally in love with it, but a little disconcerting when later Saturday night, the bugs just kept flying right into the flames.  We are now nicknaming it,  the insect crematorium 🙂

And on another note, I’ve started a photo gallery wall in the upstairs  hall.  It’s been a long time coming, since I wanted to do it ever since we moved in.  Keep in mind that it is just in the beginning stages and it will be added to in the years to come, as it’s a very long hall.  My friend, Mary Anne was kind enough to donate some of her antique finds and I thought they would be a great addition to the gallery wall.  I always like to mix it up and not just have photos and artwork on a gallery wall.

Here’s my process, first I trace the outline of the frames on to newspaper and then cut them out.  With painters tape I arrange them on the wall.  This way you can change it up until you like what you see.  Much easier than putting a huge amount of nails in the wall.  This picture was taken after I had already hung some new frames, I did use the newspaper trick for them as well, just didn’t get a shot of it :-/

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And the semifinished wall. Sorry for the blurred out faces but I just don’t feel right posting pictures of my kids on the internet.

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I’m off to help out my son and his fiancé, with their own art gallery wall tonight. Should be fun!

Lisa

Filed Under: antiques, Art, Cottage, decor, DIY, Exterior, Haven, inspiration Tagged With: , , , ,

Exterior cottage love going on

June 25, 2014 By

Well, now with the warmer weather finally here, at least in my neck of the wood, I hope you are enjoying it. School is almost out and I’m sure that is a relief to end all the lunch making, homework checking and routine. Here’s to a great summer for everyone!

I have a bit of progress to report at the cottage.  Hubby has been determined to get the fire table finished, so here’s where we are now, and by we I really mean him.  I’ve done nothing, except help with the design and the finishes…of course 🙂   Can’t wait to try it out.

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And I received my fabric order from a few weeks back, so I’ll be sewing up a storm, whenever I can get a second.  These will be exterior cushions for the cottage deck.   Can’t wait for them to liven up the wood chairs, wood deck and log exterior of the cottage….you get the idea…so much wood…and so0000 much brown.

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And kind of another exterior update, Hubby got the terracotta tile laid in the sunroom, right at the entrance to the deck.  It still needs to be grouted, I’ll share the progress once it is completed.  He’s been a busy, busy, boy.

While he was working away, I kept myself busy making over this lovely little china cabinet that a neighbour gifted to me.  I know it’s not really related to the cottage exterior theme of this post, but I’d thought I’d share it anyways.  It’s a perfect fit in this somewhat dark corner of the cottage, so I decided it should be a nice bright colour to liven up the corner.  This is how it looked:

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And in the process:

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I told you it was bright….and quite lively.  I used homemade chalk paint (Cyan Sky) and I will be giving it a going over with some antique wax (which will tone it down a little) and then of course, some clear wax to finish it properly.  I love, love, Fat Wax in case you are looking for a recommendation. Check out their website for locations near you.  I’ll post a picture once it’s completed, hopefully soon.

We also went to the Pontiac Artists’ Studio Tour a few weeks ago. I posted about it last year, when all the TBBs went.  Hubby got an adorable candy dish for his office (sorry forget to snap a pic before he went off with it) but I did get this great shot of an old barn on one of the properties.  There is just something about old, timeworn barns that appeals to me.

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Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canadians and an

early Happy Fourth of July, to my American readers!  

Have a wonderful long weekend!

Lisa

Filed Under: Art, COLOUR, Cottage, decor, DIY, Events, Exterior, Fabric, Furniture, furniture makeover, Haven, makeover, nature, The TBBs, vintage Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Guest room mood board, living room designs and some reno updates

June 9, 2014 By

I hope you’ve been enjoying some of the spectacular weather that has been happening.  Makes it really hard to spend the day at the computer, but I may just be bringing it out on the deck.  It has sure been a busy few weeks here.  I’ve just finished a guest room mood board for a client.  Keeping in mind that we wanted to stay on a tight budget for this basement guest room, with a light and fresh beachy feel, here is the mood board.

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The background colour is the room’s current colour – Benjamin Moore’s – Collingwood OC-28.  And I’ve suggested painting the existing unmatching wood side tables in New Hope Gray 2130-50.  A sheer pretty roll up blind for the tiny  window is perfect to let the light in. A soft upholstered headboard in a linen fabric keeps the bed looking fresh and clean and works well with the existing soft blue/gray tone on tone paisley bedding.  A mirror in a fun shape and a simple bright white dresser are perfect for storage needs and a graphic striped runner completes the beachy feel.

I’m also working on a client’s family room that is very long and narrow.  With dimensions of  23′ x 9′,  it’s a tricky one.  I’m loving the suggestions found on Pinterest, check out my Long Narrow Rooms board to see some of the inspiration photos I’ve collected.

Also on my desk, is the finishing touches to a client’s living and dining room that is all things minimal and modern, oh yes…and with lots of Indian touches and style.  Having lots of brilliantly coloured artwork to play with makes me a happy designer 🙂

And we also been having some fun with the cottage renovations, the sunroom roof was replaced and some skylights removed at the same time.  Lots of mess, but heaven knowing we will not have any more water pouring into it, when it rains heavily.  And we will be replacing some tile flooring in there as well, stay tuned for a tile repair that will look like an entrance rug…fingers crossed….

Hubby is also in the process of making a fire table for the cottage deck.  Lots of stone and concrete bought for it and here’s hoping he has some time in the near future to actually get it finished.  I’m looking forward to leisurely sitting around the fire with a glass of wine while enjoying the river view.  Here’s our inspiration –

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Via www.techo-bloc.com website

And in anticipation of having a beautiful fire table to sit at, I’ve ordered some outdoor fabrics to make some cosy pillows for our rather hard wood chairs.

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Well, you’re all caught up now, on what I’ve been up too.  How’s your summer going so far?

Lisa

Filed Under: Art, Bedroom, COLOUR, Cottage, decor, Exterior, Fabric, family room, Haven, inspiration, Projects, renovation Tagged With: , , , ,

Charming Southern Iron Work

April 28, 2014 By

A few weeks ago, my hubby and I were in Charleston, South Carolina.  I had not been to Southern Carolina before and I had always imagined it as a gentile, historical, civilized place and I was not disappointed….Mint Julips anyone? The weather was perfect, sunny, warm and with a gentle breeze.

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I’ll be doing a few posts on Charleston as it would make one very looooonnnnng post if I included everything in one.  As usual, I took many architectural photos of homes and the iron work that is all over Charleston, so for this post I’ll be focusing on the beautiful ironwork that is all over the city.

 Lots of it was done by the blacksmith and iron work artist, Philip Simmons.  Unfortunately, many of the original iron work was melted during the War between the States (as the Civil War is referred to in Charleston).

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There’s a definite European feel to Charleston, with their quaint little alleyways and cobblestone streets.  I also had a strong sense of deja vu, since sometimes I felt like I was back in New Orleans.

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This was an exterior bar at the back of a restaurant that was so charming in it’s use of salvaged materials, that I just had to take a picture. Note the various pieces of iron work that are placed on the face of the bar.  Each is so intricate and beautiful on their own.

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This grill below was in the middle of a large hedge that bordered a property.  It looks very old to me.

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This very fancy and scrolly (is that a word?) ironwork was on a very old theatre (sorry forgot the name) in the city centre.

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The gated entrance to a private residence from their car port.  And below, a gated side garden on one of the large homes that we toured past.

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Families’ mottos were often included in the iron work gates and grills, to show what their business was. For example,the tobacconist would have a pipe in his gate.  Unfortunately, my photo of this particular gate did not turn out…I hate that.

Next up, some architecture around town.

Lisa

Filed Under: Architecture, Art, Exterior, Haven, Travel Tagged With: , ,

Design Plan – Gray, Mauve and Yellow

March 17, 2014 By

For this cold St Patrick’s Day, I’m sharing I’m  a little bit of spring with a fresh and pretty design, even though there’s not much green in it.

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I’m totally in love with the yellow chair, the artwork, the rug, the console…okay I just love everything.  This entryway design is for a client’s home. It was decided to do the entryway after we had finished converting their main floor living room into a functional and pretty home office, a little bit of reno creep.

Stay tuned for the home office reveal soon.

Lisa

 

 

Filed Under: Art, COLOUR, decor, design professional, Entry, Haven, inspiration Tagged With: , , , ,
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