From the dining room you can see the other side of the living room built-ins. These cabinets are 20″ deep and full height, they will provide masses of storage for the kitchen and dining rooms. The double door cabinets on the upper left hand side have flipper doors and the interior has glass shelving – perfect for a bar, the single cabinet to the far left will house stemware leaving the lower cabinets for bulkier items. On the right hand side the cabinets will act as a pantry and will also store large pots and mixing bowls – items that are not used on an everyday basis but still need to be close at hand.

In the dining room I wanted to take advantage of the recess – we decided to install a custom upholstered bench here.

Not any kind of bench but a gorgeous one with a webbed seat and a softly curved back. Family and visitors alike will be fighting to sit here! Can’t wait to show you the fabrics. We have a solid blue felt on the bench seat and cream & navy geometric pattern on the bench backs, the dining room chairs are upholstered in a cream linen. It’s going to be lovely!

Next the study wall and the family room!

I have 3 trays of samples in my office pertaining to Project James – I cannot wait to see everything come together on site.

Here’s a look at how far the living room has come along.

We started with quite a dark space and the only thing that we have retained is the fireplace surround and the original leaded glass windows – everything else has gone. However where we can we have re-used items in other spaces. The crown moulding for example was in perfect shape so we’ve used this in the upper hallway. The doors separating the living & dining room will be re-worked into closet doors for K’s bedroom.

A small fragment of original wallpaper was found behind the rad.

The wall separating the living room from the dining room was completely removed to allow for the plumbing feeds to be relocated and built-in cabinets have been installed to provide lots of storage in both rooms.

Once the crown moulding is installed all will look seamless!

I have designed a walnut writing desk with bench (still to be upholstered) and a set of nesting tables for either side of the fireplace. The small drum table will be sprayed a high gloss blue. Quite divine really.

Tomorrow the Kitchen & Dining Room!

The Interior Design Show is well worth a visit this weekend. Yesterday (Friday) was trade day and the show did not disappoint, here are a sampling of my top exhibitors to visit.

Studio North highlights new products and designs from young and upcoming designers. It’s always packed with inspiration.

Heidi Earnshaw Design

Heidi’s daybed was so comfortable it was pretty hard to leave! I love the fact that this piece can be instantly changed by removing the down filled topper – leaving you with a with a flat surface – great for doubling up as a coffee table. I would love to see this piece with the topper case in a contrasting fabric. A sunny Chartreuse to contrast with the grayed linen base.

J K. Studio

I always gravitate to natural materials and I love rabbits – so this area designed by Jeremy Kehoe stopped me in my tracks.

Brothers Dressler

My photograph is really rubbish, so please check out their website – genius!!!

There was a little bit of a regal theme (not that this in itself is a bad thing), scattered throughout the show. Blame it on Kate & Wills!

For a pop of colour you can’t beat Kate Thornley-Hall’s area carpets & toss pillows.

For those who want paired down regal, Identity Apparel offered ‘her majesty’ tosses using old army surplus blankets – great for the cottage.

Am Studio showcased their amazing collection of pendant fixtures. Why have blah when you can turn something like this on every day! Another bad photograph by me – sorry!

Talking of everyday joy – Au Lit Fine Linens made me just want to curl up and fall asleep. I loved this bed. I love the fact that the linens don’t have to be perfectly pressed to look fabulous. I am hoping that the trend of looking like we sleep in a freshly laundered and ironed bed every night is fading. Real life living shouldn’t be that tight and constrained.

Enjoy the show – general admission this weekend is from 10am – 7pm today and till 6pm on Sunday. Me, I’m attending The Canadian Design Bloggers Meetup!

Loving this adorable video from Type Books, Toronto! Quite magical.

The New Year brings many new things, one being the chosen colour for 2012 from Pantone (the world authority on colour – not to be confused with Pantene who make shampoos..).

This year it’s Tangerine Tango – not a colour that I naturally gravitate towards. The only item I own in this shade is my Lufkin heavy-duty tape measure. I selected this brand because of its colour, it’s so bright I can always find my tape measure whether buried in a pile of construction or paperwork debris.

All I can say is a little goes a long way, less is more as the following images can testify too.

Today my garden looks like it’s been designed for an ice queen, it’s really quite magical. It’s especially magical when you are off on vacation and don’t have to go anywhere! I know that next Tuesday, when work begins again I won’t find it all so enchanting…… but for now, when I can sit and dream out of my window I intend to enjoy!

Loving these new ottomans from Schumacher – just a perfect hit of colour to get you through the drab days of winter.

I’ve blogged about this online magazine before from Kinfolk, but today with the rain splashing against my windows this video seems so appropriate for a lazy Sunday afternoon – especially the beginning with the bread & jam & tea. Enjoy…………….

It’s a new month and today my new website launched. Thank you to Pat Vandesompele my amazing site designer whom I’ve worked with since ’07. The man is a genius and takes my garbled thoughts and turns them into something that always exceeds my expectations.

Secondly to Tim McGhie for his spectacular photography on Homes 1 & 2.

Thirdly to my dear friend David Solomons(this is sounding like an Oscar speech….) who corrected, well re-wrote large sections of text for me at a moments notice.

And finally to all my lovely clients who allow me to do a job I love. It’s been an amazing year.

This home is approx. 90 years old and it has an entrance foyer, living, dining and kitchen with small study area at the rear. On the second floor there are 3 bedrooms and one bathroom. In the basement there is a family room, laundry & bathroom. We have amazing plans for this space. It’s all about maximising square footage and turning this into a great home for a very active family of four.

Our plans include extending the entrance foyer to accommodate lots of concealed hanging and shoe storage and levelling of the back of the house to create an inviting main floor family room and on the second floor adding a master en-suite and walk-in closet.

The demolition has been completed and now we are working on the structural changes required to open up the kitchen to the dining room.

In the basement we are installing the plumbing for the new shower room and laundry room. This is also giving up the opportunity to gain a little more head space.

The basement bathroom ceiling looked visually low due to the cast iron pipes that ran beneath the joists. These have been removed and our bathroom is going to look amazing.

Nothing like starting with a clean slate!