Taking colour to the next level

It’s easy to stick to a neutral colour palette when buying furniture and accessories. It’s easy, timeless and everything goes together. But don’t think that colour can’t have those qualities too. Bright and saturated accessories, furniture and walls can really add personality to your living space, and it doesn’t have to cost a lot to buy into this trend – the commitment level is totally up to you!

Spring Fling

Now that the sun is out, I’m so tempted to bring some bright pops of colour indoors. I have very neutral furniture – grey couch, white shelving, black and white rug – and it could definitely use a refresh. I’m not ready for a big investment such as brand new furniture, so I’ll test it out for a while to see if I’m ready for the next level. Easy pieces to integrate into your current decor can be oversized art, throw pillows, colourful pottery, and bar stools. 

Spring is here, Toronto! Now get outside

Now that Toronto has de-thawed and the temperature is mostly above 0 degrees, it’s time to plan our social life post-hibernation. Being cooped up for three solid months gives you a lot of time to daydream about what you want to do when Springtime comes. Toronto has it’s share of great and unique activities, and being Canada’s largest city really helps draw events on a national scale. Here are some that I am really looking forward to checking out this Spring:

Breathe easy with household plants

I have never been lucky with indoor plants, usually killing them within a matter of weeks (by accident of course). But they can be great feature pieces inside your home, while also providing some healthy air to breathe.

A few years ago, the folks at NASA released their findings for the Clean Air Study, outlining which plants do the best job of filtering the air on the space station. Down on Earth, these plants can be used for the same purpose in your home and they are easy to find. They assist in producing Oxygen from CO2, and also help remove air contaminants such as benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene. Their research also showed that they can reduce microbes like mould spores and bacteria by 50 to 60 per cent. If you are an allergy sufferer, or live in a polluted city, this might be right up your alley. Check out the full list of recommended plants here. 

Apartment Hunting 101

Apartment hunting is right up there with the top stressful life events. To be honest I actually enjoy the online search, browsing through the photos, seeing what kind of apartment you can manage on your budget, but setting up the viewings and competing with other prospects is just no fun.

Thank god for online postings, otherwise I don’t think I would ever move. The days of driving around neighbourhoods looking for the “FOR RENT” signs are now gone (mostly), so at least you can do part of your search at home in your pyjamas. Definitely stick with postings with photos. In extreme circumstances where you already know the building, posting with no photos are worth a look in person, but otherwise I would definitely not recommend it. Adding images is so easy now, that if there aren’t any shown, there is probably a reason for it.

DIY paper collage artwork

One step closer to my gallery wall project, I wanted to create some custom art to add to the mix. Since last year I have been hanging onto some paper samples that I love, but didn’t know what to do with them. I have a weakness for unique and ornate paper, I love it. I walk into my local Paper Place, and fight the urge to buy everything in the store. 

These are an assortment of Chiyogami and Lotka paper prints, in gorgeous colourful and metallic patterns. Framing these beautiful handmade paper prints can be a great work of art that not many people will have.

Spring @ The Bay

Last week I was lucky enough to attend an event at The Bay launching their home department Spring lineup. The Bay’s downtown Toronto location showcased amazing home furnishings from top designers on the sixth floor, and kitchenwares in their new and improved space on the seventh floor, which was renovated in 2014. For years the top floor at the flagship location was overlooked and outdated, but now is a haven for anyone looking for small appliances, housewares, and bridal registries, thanks to the addition of Kleinfeld’s last year. Here is the HBC Home Look Book to get you inspired for Spring.

Top shelf

For some reason, I am always drawn to shelves. Even though I definitely do not need nor have any room for new furniture, I am very tempted with a good shelving unit. Perhaps it is because it is a blank slate – you can use it to store just about anything, and therefore it could be used in living rooms, bedrooms, and even kitchens. I love it – a good bookshelf can be a practical focal point of the room that allows lifestyle to become the art in the room.

The beauty about shelves is that you can find pretty much anything to match your own personal style – modern, mid-century, traditional, rustic, or a clean Scandinavian look.

The IKEA Effect

Even the biggest IKEA fan knows what it means to visit on a weekend. It is a major undertaking that will leave your emotions and wallets drained. But I love it. Walking away with your haul, dizzy with thoughts of how you can rearrange your living room to fit that new console table, how your couch will look with those fantastic throw pillows.

And then there is that thrill of building your furniture yourself. Wait, what? What thrill? Do you mean the painful 6 hours of assembling those wardrobes, only to have the doors still slightly askew? I don’t think I know anyone who actually enjoys assembling furniture with just an Allen key, but perhaps it’s the idea of the finished product that keeps us going. Putting in all the time and sweat to build that table, those shelves, install that pendant lamp, makes you feel pretty awesome. There is even a name for this feeling – “The IKEA Effect“, a study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology, which proves we place way more value on something that we built ourselves, even if it is from a pre-made kit.

Stay toasty

We recently moved into a new apartment in December in a smaller wood-framed building, leaving the concrete high-rise behind. While being wrapped up in the amazing convenience of a walk-up, we didn’t realize the drawbacks – insulation being one of them. It can get drafty around the windows and doors, and the gas heating is too pricey to leave on all the time. Toronto is seeing yet another bitter cold winter, so I need to get crafty with some ways to stay warm. Here are some of the best ideas I’ve found to keep toasty this winter without cranking the heat:

The gallery wall

Hanging things on the wall is a big commitment. For four or five years, I have been admiring all kinds and variations of ‘gallery walls’, but I have still yet to do the real thing. I will hang posters and prints here and there, but a gallery wall seems like a big undertaking, lining everything up with such precision, and also nailing so many holes into one wall. There are many interpretations of this trend, from perfectly symmetrical to the mixed-frame organic approach.

The symmetrical arrangement

• Frames are arranged uniformly, with the same size and colour – in groups of 3 in a row, or a grid of 4, 6 or 8.
• Height of arrangement depends on the furniture below – if you are doing a grid design, lower furniture (like a bench or console table) works best, so art is the main focus.
• Best for art with similar themes, or a continuous image displayed over multiple frames.