Creamy and Dreamy

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My computer’s desktop background presently is a photo of my cottage which I will not be visiting until next spring.  But the photo keeps me inspired.  So in honour of sun-drenched spaces I thought I would close out the week with spaces that I call Creamy and Dreamy.

This sun-drenched kitchen would make any chef happy.

An outstanding expanse of windows would certainly create a light filled space.

This photo has a very calming feel – almost dream like.

Love the mix of styles, painted floor and creaminess of this space.

Ikea’s sun-drenched room Scandinavian style.

And of course my cottage.

Have a great weekend.

Images via Houzz.com, Canadian House and Home, Ikea, Modmissy

How to Steal a Million

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Yesterday, Rotterdam’s Kunsthal Museum experienced its worst nightmare – stolen art!  In the wee hours of the morning thieves made off with 7 paintings by master artists.  Included in the heist were:

  • Monet’s 1901 Waterloo Bridge, London and Charing Cross Bridge, London.
  • Henri Matisse’s 1919 Reading Girl in White and Yellow
  • Paul Gauguin’s 1898 Girl in Front of Open Window
  • Picasso’s 1971 Harlequin Head.
  • Meyer de Haan’s Self-Portrait
  • Lucian Freud’s 2002 work Woman with Eyes Closed.

Truly a terrible situation as the art was from a private collection and generously loaned to be on display for the public’s viewing.

Curious as to how the thieves could pull off such a feat in today’s world of technology and hi-tech security it made me wonder ‘how does one steal a million’?  How did Audrey Hepburn and Peter O’Toole do it in the 1966 movie How to Steal a Million?  A romantic comedy about a woman who must steal a statue from a Paris museum to help conceal her father’s art forgeries, and the man who helps her.

If you have never watched How to Steal a Million you must.  The fashions, cars and set designs are well worth seeing.

The movie is set in France so there is great architecture to be seen.

The sweeping staircase and Baroque furniture in the home Audrey shares with her father is beautiful.

Notice the bed linens, upholstered head-board and wallpaper are all the same pattern in Audrey’s bedroom.

The curving banquette that Audrey perches upon while wearing her infamous lace mask is so fabulous.  Possibly velvet.

Of course there is lots of art to be seen.

And here is something interesting that I noticed.  Audrey Hepburn sitting at her dressing table in How to Steal a Million and looking rather pensive has an uncanny likeness to Henri Matisse’s Reading Girl in White and Yellow also looking rather pensive.

I wish all the best to the Kunsthal Museum in retrieving the stolen art.

 

 

 

Coat Hooks

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No doubt autumn is here; I awoke this morning to frost on rooftops, cars and my garden!  Sadly (for me) it’s time to pull out the warmer coats.  Now where to hang them?

Thought I would share with you some interesting variations of the coat hook.

First up is the Girotondo Coat Rack by Alessi.  I like the polished chrome.

The Kartell hook made of polycarbonate is available in 4 vivid hues and solid black and white.

The classic Hang It All Coat Rack by Ray and Charles Eames never disappoints.

The Hook Box by Luca Nichetto designed to not only hold a coat but solves the problem of where to put your ‘stuff’.

Another hook that solves the problem of where to put your ‘stuff’, the Cubby coat hook designed by Materious.

The FontanaArte Holder is made from blown transparent glass that provides a spot for bus fare or the dog leash.

The Tabard designed by Denis Santachiara is fitted with 6 hooks on the inside and a lamp to light your clothing.  Generally coat hooks are covered by clothes, whereas the Tabard covers the clothes protecting them from dust.

The Droog Sucker designed by Jan Hoekstra and Leon Ramakers solves the problem of having to drill holes into the walls by ‘sucking’ onto a smooth surface.  And it’s available in 6 different fun colours.

The Quote Hooks by Blend give gentle reminders each day.

Which one would you choose?

 

Iris and Emmie

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Every Home Stager has their tricks of the trade; the ‘go-to’ items that are used when getting a home ready for sale.  One such item I often purchase for staging was the Iris Roman Blind by IKEA.  This simple to install and very affordable (~$7) white cotton blind was the perfect solution to dress up a bathroom or even a small kitchen window.  Unfortunately IKEA discontinued the blind (safety issues) and just when I wanted one for my own home too.  Darn!

But here’s an interesting story.  One day I pull up to the car wash and while waiting for my turn in line I decide to tidy up the inside of my car.  Just as I am about to throw my garbage into the pail provided for customers guess what I see standing up in the garbage pail? An IKEA Iris Roman Blind still in the package.  Brand new never been used and exactly the size I was looking for!!  What are the chances?

But goods news, IKEA now sells a blind similar to the Iris – the Emmie.  (Must be the sister version!) This blind is also a good-looking, affordable solution for a window.

I like the tailored crispness of this blind and can see it hanging in a bathroom, nursery, kitchen, cottage or wherever.

Check it out.  http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30219016/

One Small Step for Mankind

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Green.  Green is the colour that symbolizes nature and the natural world.  It is the colour of balance and life.  And being green is to be thinking of the earth in sustainable and healthy ways.  We have not inherited this land from our fathers; rather we borrow this land from our children.  It’s about everyone doing their part.  Less impact on the earth; reduce, reuse, recycle.

I want to give a big ‘shout out’ to Keilhauer, www.keilhauer.com a furniture manufacture who I have previously written about (see here).  Part of Keilhauer’s mission statement is their sustainability program called ‘Planet Keilhauer’ – to create a company that is environmentally benign and socially progressive.  Their ‘Big-Time Corporate Goal’ is closed loop manufacturing – a sustainable system in which a product is created using renewable energy, with no pollutant output and no waste, the materials used in production are recycled and reused rather than discarded.

Wouldn’t it be great if all manufactures thought of this?!!

Well guess what?  Keilhauer has achieved their mission statement goal.  Their products are now LEVEL® certified.  LEVEL® is the sustainability certification program for the furniture industry that was created to provide the most open and transparent means of evaluating and communicating the environmental and social impacts of furniture products in the built environment.

A family owned company that started in 1981 manufacturing custom furniture for the local market Keilhauer products are now sold world-wide.  Since its inception Keilhauer’s values stressed respect and integrity for its people and its customers.  Today that includes people and the planet.

Bravo!

Audrey Hepburn – Breakfast at Tiffany’s

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It was over 50 years ago today, October 5th, 1961, that the much-loved movie, Breakfast at Tiffany’s was released.  One of the greatest female screen legends, Audrey Hepburn, played Holly Golightly, a young free-spirited New York socialite.

The first time I watched the movie I had thought (or hoped) that the beautiful Holly had it all; great fashion, big dreams, lots of friends.  The world was her oyster.  Not true.  By the end of the movie I had tears rolling down my face.

Audrey Hepburn made a lasting impression on generations of people and she still does in so many ways.

She endorsed the colour pink.

She showed us how softly painted pink walls can make one look beautiful.

Audrey made ‘repurposed’ furniture look au-courant whilst lounging on her bathtub sofa in her NYC apartment in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

She has always been the perfect figure for pop-art,

And is the perfect silhouette for mega-giant IKEA to create PJÄTTERYD, a larger-than-life sized canvas of Audrey Hepburn, seen hanging in everything from hair salons to clothing shops and living rooms to dorm rooms.

We love you Audrey Hepburn.  Thanks for everything.

The legend lives on.

 

Niagara Falls

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This past weekend I visited Niagara Falls, Canada.

The Horseshoe Falls dropping about 173 feet in distance and averaging 4 million cubic feet per minute of water crashing over the crest line provide an amazing spectacle of the power of water.

But while admiring the falls I find it hard to ignore the beautiful colour of the water.  The green colour is a byproduct of the ~60 tonnes/minute of dissolved salts and very finely ground rock produced by the erosive force of the Niagara River.  But I am thinking paint colour – Benjamin Moore Greenwood Lake 2037-50.  A fresh green that brings life to spaces, illuminating the room with pure, extraordinary colour.

Of course design takes inspiration from nature and fundamentally shapes how a person experiences the world.  One only has to take a look at the Waterfall Table and can predict what the designer’s inspiration possibly was.

Design is everywhere.  In life take time to smell the roses and notice their beautiful colour!

Nostalgia

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Nostalgia is defined as ‘a sentimental longing for the past’.

At what point in our life do we start to become nostalgic; begin to feel a sentimental longing?

Curious about the logic of ‘nostalgia’ I started asking younger family members and friends what they felt about a particular antique or item from the distant past.  Did it conjure up a certain feeling or a sense of longing for them?  Would they feel a sense of yearning yet?

Ralph Lauren once said, “There is a way of living that has a certain grace and beauty.  It is not a constant race for what is next, rather, an appreciation of what has come before.”  Adding an antique or vintage item to a room can give the space a sense of history and soul.  Antiques are the signposts to our collective past.

I love visiting antique shops even though I lean more towards the contemporary when it comes to my homes décor, I find there is something sentimental about touching and seeing things from the past.  An old teacup reminds me of my Grandmother, the smell inside an antique oak hutch reminds me of my aunt’s Victorian home and a Sunbeam mixer pulls at my heartstrings reminding me of baking cakes as a child with my Mother.

So…..is it about going back and being inspired?  Or is it those who live in the past limit their future?

What makes you nostalgic??

 

 

My End of Summer Place

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This weekend I am going to take advantage of the last days of summer.  The weather forecast looks promising for spending time lounging about in the backyard reading, hanging with friends and noshing on some delicious food.  Too quickly the leaves will start falling and the snow will begin to fly so I plan on grabbing all the summer memories I can.

Whatever your weekend may bring have a great one!

My ‘end of summer’ backyard.

 

IKEA – customized furniture

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I believe there are a very high percentage of people who at some point in their life have or will purchase a piece of IKEA furniture/product.  Given the fact that the total number of IKEA Billy bookcases sold worldwide is over 41 million it is a good probability that at some point we will own one of the 9500 articles sold by IKEA.

With our recent cottage renovation I found myself visiting the big ‘blue and yellow store’ to purchase a number of IKEA products, the most important item was the kitchen cabinets.   Another IKEA purchase was the NORDEN table that we are now using as our bar/island.  Designed by Mikael Warnhammar whose idea was to create a Scandinavian furniture series in solid wood, inspired by the Nordic forests and barren landscape, this table is “straightforward, strong and generous furniture that does its job quietly.”  Exactly the feeling we were looking for.

But our NORDEN needed just a few adjustments to fit exactly what we needed.  For us to use this as an island with stools (also IKEA) we removed the 2 shelves and cut the 3 drawers down in size.  The result works perfectly.

Unfortunately the shelves are no longer present but knowing my husband they will not be wasted and instead re-invented into something else.