Catching up….

So how is everyone? I’m great. I’ve had a ridiculous crazy end of summer, early fall, but it’s all good. I thought it’d be a good time to catch up with everyone and share all my news.

So first up, my daughter got married a few weekends ago at our cottage. And for those of you that follow me, you may remember my son, also got married at the cottage, the same weekend, last year.  Crazy two home grown weddings in one year…and yes, I’m still recovering. So pretty much for the months of August and September, we were busy getting the place wedding ready, which entailed having the exterior window frames painted, the beach roto-tillered within an inch of it’s life, roof repairs and of course, the never ending job of keeping critters from ripping up our lawn, for the oh so tasty grubs (we kind of failed on this point, but I’ll get to that later). We also were having a new furnace and air exchanger (which also acts as an air conditioner) installed the week before the wedding. So needless to say, I was a little stressed out about it all, until it was finally installed and working the Tuesday before the wedding….phew!

My daughter and son-in-law had decided on late fall, so that it would be nice and cool for them….well, not exactly how it turned out. We had our heat wave in mid to late September this year, so our cool fall wedding turned into a blazing hot 40 celsius summer wedding. So obviously, we cancelled the propane tent heaters we had ordered.  But at least it wasn’t raining and the a/c was working!!!

Here’s a few candid shots from the day.

wedding ready beach

wedding flowers

Bride and groom

Wedding

It was a spectacularly great day and since one of my son-in-law’s groomsmen, is a master of fireworks, we had a spectacular show once it got dark. You can check my Instagram video to see them. And you can’t even see the totally ripped up grass, courtesy of the family of raccoons that were being well fed with grubs….sigh…. Oh well, nothing is perfect.

So obviously the wedding kept me busy and just a few days before the wedding, the cottage was photographed for a design magazine. This was sooooooo exciting for me, of course, but it’s an incredible amount of work to try and get everything ready and picture perfect. So all the things I had put off and hadn’t finished, now needed to be done yesterday.  So there was alot of measuring, sourcing, purchasing, picking up, transporting of items, and of course, cleaning, lots and lots of cleaning. Here’s a few shots I took of the cottage prior to the photographer arriving.

Beach chairs

Conversation area on the deck with propane fire pit and

cottage dining room

cottage floral arrangement

cottage front porch

I’ll be sure and let you know when the issue comes out, but don’t hold your breath, it’s going to be awhile, as that is just the way it is, in the design magazine industry.

In between these two things, I’ve been working on completing a cottage reno and starting two bathroom renos. One bath is in full mode now, hopefully done in a week or two, and the other should start in the next few weeks. Here’s a little sneak peek of where the first one is heading, design-wise.

Bathroom tile selection, white and bright

Just realized the adhesive is showing on the top tile…opps. And the little squares are paint options for the clients to view. Once I have proper photos, I’ll let you know which paint colour was chosen.

And just yesterday, I was absolutely stunned to find out that I was nominated as one of the top 100 influencers in Interior Design for 2018. So if you have a minute and feel that I’ve somehow influenced your design style, I’d love your vote. Just click here or on the picture below and you’ll go directly to my name on the list.  Voting is open until Oct 10 and you can vote daily.  And just for that, I’m sending you a big hug and thank you!

Design Hounds Top 100 Influencers Nominee

 

So that’s all my news, sorry for such a long post, but I had a lot to cover. Have a fabulous weekend and to all my fellow Canadians, Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your turkey day!

Lisa

How to have the home you want with the family you love

How to have the home you want with the family you love, without covering it all in bubble wrap?

Isn’t that the trick, though, a happy medium of nice furniture and finishes that stand up to the hoards, which can sometimes get totally out of hand.

I have a large family and being a designer, it  has definitely caused some friction between my wants and desires and the reality of a life, where you can’t run around telling everyone NOT to touch or NOT to sit there.  Well you can do this, but you won’t win any popularity contests.

First, things first.

1. If at all possible buy classic and quality for the larger pieces that will get used and abused.  Like the family room sofa, because after the kids have grown to the point that they don’t wipe their dirty hands on it, yes, this will actually happen.  It can be easily reupholstered and given a new lease on life.

2. Use a good quality, washable paint for the walls, this will be a life saver.  And make sure you have extra paint left over, because believe me, you will be touching it up, if you are anything like me, just before a dinner party.

3. Hard flooring is easier to clean and perhaps, disinfect (you know it, it happens) … than carpeting,  Porcelain tile, stone and even hardwood (as long as you can embrace scratches and think of it as patina) will all be worthwhile in the end. A note on hardwood, light and mid toned floors will show less dirt, dust and scratches than that ebony stained floor.

4. To soften the hard flooring use area rugs, just make sure the one you pick is cleanable.  And I am a big fan of the Flor floor tiles as if something disastrous happens you can just replace the tile or tiles that are affected…how wonderful..a do over.

5.  For smaller pieces, like coffee and end tables, this is the place to have fun and add some whimsey. Use second hand or vintage pieces, paint or stain them to suit and if they get banged up, you have an excuse to redo them.   Another tip with case goods, is to use distressed pieces, so any extra dings or dents just look like they are supposed to be there.  I have used this many, many times in my own home.

There you have it, some tips for having the home you want, with the family you love.

Lisa