Benjamin Moore HUE Award Winners Make History

The Huey award, coveted among architects, has been given to an Interior design firm this year.

N.Y. based Diamond Baratta Design have been recognized for their outstanding use of colour.

I gathered a few (okay, more than a few - it was hard to stop)

examples of their work here. 

If you know someone who suffers from "the beigies", 

this would be a good time to send a little inspiration their way..

Starting off at least colour  and easing our way into the rainbow...

love the hit of blue on these oversized pendants - imagine the room without them. The floor adds interest without stealing the show.

Beautiful Cobalt chandelier and and matching velvet on the chairs 

- again, imagine the room without the blue, it would be quite dull.

Thinking about adding some accents to your space yet? I am.

How about papering half the wall (seeing this more and more lately, aren't we?)

with an exquisite colour such as this - note the patterned floors here,

William Diamond and Anthony Baratta are pretty fearless with pattern.

Okay, this one I would probably still adore in white! But it sings in periwinkle..

My favourite, I love mid-tones, colours slightly greyed down, especially this blue on the bed.

The carpet and art are playful, don't take themselves too seriously.

I think this room is interesting - 

everything in the top half is pink, and everything below is blue -

 they don't bring in a bit of pink on the floor, or vice versa, which I would have done.

The effect is very dramatic.

 I wonder if the ceiling was painted pink as well? It's like a cotton candy sky..

So much texture from the trellis, and all the furniture has been painted in the same hue. Maybe these two start with a colour, and then plan everything around that particular colour. 

This is a restful hue, and it balances all the action going on around it.

Okay, here it is - the sun!

Oh, I wish we could see the rest - what is on the other wall?

This one is a little too intense for me to sleep comfortably in every night, 

but for a weekend place...

Last but not least, this is what I mean about knowing their way around pattern, they are so talented.

I count seven different prints right away.

 That wing chair in the back is stealing the show.

What do you think? Could you have this room in your home?

Does this make you want to commit to a bit more colour and pattern in your own space?

Or are you already there?

til next time...

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The Greenest House in the O.C.

Lovely breakfast, tea and toast, gazing out over the FOOT of snow we got last night...

Easter is so early this year - doesn't it seem strange to be unpacking bunnies while there are flurries outside?

Anyway, the snow got me daydreaming about living in a desert... hence the California home you are about to see.

The Costa Mesa Green Home was designed by Architect David Gangloff and built by Gonterman Construction. This is the first custom residence in the O.C. to receive LEED Platinum certification.  Located at 1811 Gisler Avenue in Costa Mesa California, it is offered for sale at $2,999,000.

That includes 5000 square feet of living space, with seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms, and a three-car garage. Does it come with a housekeeper? That's a lot of cleaning!

The green features go on and on.. grey water recycling,  a no-water landscape, innovative ventilation design, use of durable, sustainable and non-toxic materials, photovoltaic panels to power the entire electrical load - this house is not expected to generate an electrical bill outside of standard add-on fees.

What about asthetics?

The architect was aiming for a modern interpretation of the craftsman style. Lets check out the photos, shall we?

Brian Egan Photography

The furniture could have been a bit more inspired (no lamps? tables? art?) but what a gorgeous interior.

Love the generous proportions, graphic beams, the rock interior walls (same as the exterior), polished concrete floors, and that cute little powder room. Outside: a fireplace, choice of sun or shade, and simplistic pool - perfection.

What do you think? Ready for a move to the O.C.?

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Meet Adi Zur: Toronto Painter

The work of Adi Zur is defined by her constant urge to reconcile past and present, to create imagery to show the paths chosen, that which defines our lives.

Her work has incredible movement, not just around the canvas but into it. I feel like I'm being drawn into a journey when I look at one of her incredible paintings.

You can find her at 

The Artists Project at the Queen Elizabeth Building,

 Exhibition Place, To from March 4-7

What do you think of her work?

Is it something you would hang in your home?

til next time..

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The New CB2 Catalogue is Chock Full of Goodies...

The new CB2 catalogue arrived in my inbox, and as always, 

there's a few things that made me look twice.

Great Hopscotch hall carpet - whats more fun than hopping down the hall?!

The kids used to have a rainbow version from Ikea, but it didn't survive the move.. this may be it's replacement..

Great use of the Flor tiles:

The array bookcase is a common sight now (didn't  Umbra have one?) -

but when used for towels they become an arty display-

Some metal hexpods add modern interest to a bookshelf:

and, of course, lighting - I really need to replace the horrible ceiling mount light that resides above my dining table - if you know of anywhere to get clean, organic, slightly industrial, non-glitzy chandeliers -  please send me a link! This one has potential:

okay, off to do some work now!

til next time...

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New Custom Furniture Line: House of Habit

So you have probably seen Georgia Interior Designer Wendy Blount's work in Metorpolitan Home.

I just visited her portfolio and had to restrain myself from bringing over every image.

Whether she is working in a more traditional style, a modern mix, or something a little bit relaxed,

 she always brings together a refined, cohesive space.

I love the feel of these rooms..

I love the innovation in these:

So now Ms. Blunt has teamed up with Interior Designer Brook Taylor

to form House of Habit, and produce elegant furniture with

the attention to detail and little bit of Glam that we see in her interiors.

Here are a couple of beauties:

Do you see those legs?!!

House of Habit offers custom legs, and let me tell you, they have the best gams in town!

How about the shapely metal leg pictured above?

Or Leather?

Maybe you'd like a bit of sparkle?

Beautiful, huh?

Which one do you love?

I adore the metal "Genie" leg - a little shine, a bit of gold to update your interior...

Add another item to the growing wish list...

til next time..

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The Hall Mirror - From Junky to Fabulous

So a few posts back I showed you a mirror I found for $38.

It was huge, and heavy, with a gorgeous beveled edge mirror set in a really unattractive, damaged pink frame.

So I bought it, even though I was not quite sure what I was going to do with it  

(this happens around here a lot!).

It sat in the storage room until a twitter buddy, onhomedecor, posted a link to this pic

What a great idea for an accent wall.

  For a twist, you could use old atlases, photography books, botanical journals, whatever tickles your fancy... It's simple to do, just make sure you put up a dry strippable wallpaper underneath (so you can remove it down the road), and use a layer of wallpaper paste underneath and on top of each page, saturating it completely.

So how does this relate to the mirror?

I decided to decoupage the frame.  

Off to the local sally Ann, where I found this vintage beauty -

This was my favourite story as a kid - all I wanted was a life of adventure - my children are the same way, fascinated by geography and always wanting to learn about life in other places.

as a book lover, I felt really torn (no pun intended!)  about destroying this book, but just kept telling myself that I was actually preserving it, in a way...

out came the first page...

no turning back!

I arranged the pages around the frame roughly where I wanted them,

got the modge-podge out, and a stiff brush.

This took a suprisingly long time, but after I finished and it dried out for a day,

 we hung the mirror in our entry way - over a simple bench my Dad made for me.

I am so happy with it! I feel like it tells a little story about us when you enter into our home, and thats what decorating is all about.  I always try to explain to Staging Clients the difference between decorating and staging - one is personalizing your home, and the other is de-personalizing your home. Personalizing is definitely more enjoyable, but staging helps other people to see themselves living in your space.

here are few more pics for inspiration - sorry, I'm not sure where they all came from, they were in a forgotten corner of my picture files!

Have you ever done anything like this? I'd love to see your creations!

til next time...

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