inspiration for decor

So we hopped on the Downton Abbey bandwagon….and admittedly enjoyed the ride!  We just finished viewing Season 2 and can’t wait for the next season to start. I don’t know about you but I can’t tolerate watching TV series on TV anymore. Who wants to suffer through commercials and have to wait another week for further developments in the storyline?  Nope, not us!  We’re all about downloading/NetFlix in this household.  There is nothing better than settling in on a Friday night to watch 2-3 episodes back-to-back. Or maybe more like 3-4, or 5…

One more ramble before I move on. Is it just me or are there so many parallels between Downton Abbey and Gone With the Wind?  I mean, Come on! After almost every episode I drew comparisons. <Update> I decided to Google it and ha! I am not crazy. If you’re interested, you can read comparisons here, here, and here.

Anyway, to the point of today’s post – the English roll arm sofa.

Lee Industries

LonnyMag

Ever since I spied this style sofa in the homes of Director Sofia Coppola and Designer Lauren Liess, I have grown increasingly fond of this sofa.

House & Garden and Pure Style Home

The tight back is awesome for a family with a toddler and dog (both of whom perpetually squish our current sofa cushions), it’s deep and can accommodate lots of throw cushions, and the low arms are perfect for napping.

Jenna Lyons via Domino and Ann Mashburn via Atlanta Homes

Now I’d LOVE to be daring enough to upholster one of these sofas in periwinkle, mossy green, sunny yellow, or hot pink, but when I do take the plunge I really can’t justify spending the big bucks on a colour I may tire of in a year.  So I will probably go with a durable charcoal grey cotton velvet, similar to this (but punch it up with some colourful pillows):

Hazardous Design

I am 95% certain I will purchase an English roll arm sofa from Lee Industries but the 5% of uncertainty comes from the size of our entryway door frame. The widest part of the sofa is 34″ and our doorway is 32″. After many diagrams and calculations, my better half has concluded he is “fairly certain” the sofa can make it into the house.  Is “fairly certain” enough to take the leap and order a custom sofa?

Abigail Ahern

Kristen Marie Photography via Apartment Therapy

While I sit on the fence, I’ve been waiting to see an English roll arm sofa on Downton Abbey. And pouring over photos on the web, praying that our home can one day be graced by one of these lovely sofas.

Lonng Mag

Who thinks I should take the plunge?

OCHRE is a British based furniture, lighting, and accessory design company and they have the light I NEED.

via OCHRE

The dining area in our new home is just begging for this lovely “Arctic Pear” chandelier.

via Pinterest and Elle Decor

via Elle Decor

I want to channel the look of Keri Russell’s laid-back but chic home but dang, the OCHRE  Arctic Pear is expensive! In the Toronto area, I sourced the OCHRE light at South Hill Home (for many, many more pennies than I have to spend), or I could get this Robert Abbey crystal drop fixture from Universal Lighting:

An excellent alternative I think.  Should I go for it?

Have you ever stood in your local hardware or paint store with a zillion paint chips in your hand and been completely overwhelmed with the options?  Ever wish you could simply replicate a colour palette you had seen in a magazine, but you could only source the colour of the walls?  I know I have.

So I was very excited when I discovered this really cool online tool called Chip It!  This tool allows you to take any image on the internet and colour match it with Sherwin Williams collection of 1,500+ paint colours. It’s as simple as dragging the Chip It! button onto your browser tool bar, then dropping it over an image you love.  Two seconds later you have the Sherwin Williams paint matches.  Sounds interesting, right?

So here’s a photo I love from Canadian House and Home:

Gorgeous spring colours, right?  But what are those colours?  Hmmm…

I drag the Chip It! button over the image and I get this:

Awesome!  Let’s do it again with one of my own photos (our bedroom):

Drumroll please….

Nice!

So here’s the thing – it is an online tool and there are only 1,500 SW colour matches so you may not get the absolute perfect match. In our bedroom, the duvet cover is really a mustard yellow and not exactly the muddy tan “Tea Chest”.  BUT I still like what the tool suggests, the palette is pleasing, and now I’m thinking that I should bring in a bit of a natural tone/texture into the bedroom to give it more of an organic feel.  See how useful this simple tool is?!

Check it out for yourself HERE – have fun!

Dear Santa,

If you happen to swing the ol’ sled by Indigo on your way over on Chistmas Eve, I would really really appreciate any of the following books, chock full of inspiration. To make your job even easier, you can simply click on each of the images below to purchase online.

I have been a very good girl this year.

xox,

When designing a kitchen, good space planning and a functional layout are imperative.  Of course, aesthetics should always be top of mind but next is functionality.  For those who know me, you know that I am a practical person and I really appreciate functional things.  So kitchens really pique my interest.

Today I had the pleasure of spending 6 hours in a kitchen showroom.  I know – this may sound like a nightmare to some – but I enjoyed every second of it.  What’s not to love about surrounding yourself with gorgeous kitchens, whether they be modern, traditional, or transitional?  When you are looking at fine craftsmanship and beautiful and functional layouts, it is easy to imagine yourself working in such a kitchen.

The kitchen above is a prime example of an aesthetically pleasing and functional L-shaped kitchen. And although there are many lovely facets of this space, what I really want to show you is how they dealt with the corner because it really demonstrates how a potentially awkward corner can be made oh-so-functional if the kitchen is well designed:

Exhibit A (above) – Initial thoughts: upper cabinets extend vertically right down to counter and horizontally to the far wall.  There are two doors….hmmm….hello door in face.  And below the counter it looks like we have a great big corner cupboard. Sigh.

But wait! There is hope:

Exhibit B (above) – a bi-fold door disguised as two regular cupboards!  Now you can easily reach all the way in to access dinnerware and you don’t get smacked in the face. Ingenious.

Exhibit C (above) – Le Mans trays which allow you to easily access and use that corner space effectively. Solutions like this make me happy!

Anyway, I don’t want to bore you with more details on how you can make a kitchen more functional. I’ll keep those tidbits to myself and my future fabulous kitchen (or yours, if you want me to help design it).

If you are here just to see pretty things, let me suggest you take a look at the Paris Kitchens website (the lovely establishment I visited today), visit my ‘kitchens to covet‘ over on Pinterest, or check out some of these older posts:

• elements for the perfect white kitchen
• more white kitchen inspiration
• [room of the week] the ultimate kitchen
• tops trends of 2011 – the new country (kitchen)

(images: d.simpson @ Paris Kitchens)

Yesterday my Mom and I drove out to Oakville to attend a “Design and Decorating” talk with Lynda Reeves of Canadian House and Home. Sadly, because I was traveling with my Mom, we were late and we missed it (sorry Mom, gotta tell it like it is). It wasn’t time wasted though, since we were still able to tour an absolutely stunning 3.9 million dollar home – the grand prize in this year’s Princess Margaret Welcome Home Sweepstakes. (fyi – Princess Margaret Hospital is one of the top 5 cancer research centres in the world, located here in Toronto)

Inspired by wine country and European-style villas, this 6,800 sq/ft home was exquisite top-to-bottom. I was a little snap-happy so let me take you through…..

Left (above) – a stucco facade with so many windows. You know it is going to be flooded with light inside.

Right (above) – a mature,tree-filled backyard. The patio is simple and understated. Light the lanterns, bring out a bottle of wine and a blanket, and you’re set for the evening.

Left (above) - not just a wine cellar, but a whole wine room! Not featured in these pics: 4 wishbone chairs around a wine-tasting table.

Right (above) - the laundry room is to die for. Laundry on one side, this expansive desk on the other, and a HUGE island in the middle. I would not mind doing any chores in here.

Left (above) - herringbone floors in a natural finish. Yum Yum. I also love the leather butterfly chairs. I can imagine a huge chunky thick rug moving into this living room in the winter.

Right (above) - I love this print by Toronto-based artisit Daniel Schneider. (you can purchase other prints in his Chandelier Series from Art Interiors – I think I saw this or a similar piece hung on a condo wall next to a dining table where there was no wiring for a real chandelier….great idea)

Left (above) - mustard cabinets, dark honed counter tops, travertine floors, ultra-high end appliances, and a French-country feel makes this kitchen a winner. Not with everyone though – as I was taking in every inch a number of other visitors came through and exclaimed, “Ugh! How 1920′s”…”I hate this colour”….”No, no, no”. Well, to each his own I guess. I bet they had no idea how much this kitchen cost.

Right (above) – a little breakfast work area – room for the espresso machine, toaster, a quick zap in the microwave, and open shelving to display your kitchen pretties.

Left (above) – one of the main things I liked about this house was the blend of traditional and modern. A prime example, this Bauhaus bench and modern art in the foyer, seen as you pass by into the traditional dining room and kitchen.

Right (above) – another fine example of the marriage of traditional and modern- the framed display cabinets (hardware showing which is a traditional design feature) and a modern sectional.

Left (above) – here you can see how much light floods into the home. Beautiful sconces flank the windows and I really really liked the iron work on the stairs.

Right (above) – an elegant little nook. I believe this would be the storage location for coats, as it was around the corner from the entryway. With 6,800 square feet you can afford to waste this kind of space.

Left (above) – an elegant bed and the linens were gorgeous.

Right (above) – the window treatments throughout the home were lovely. Many of the room use these seagrass Romans with decorative panels. This room had burlap drapes which was interesting.

Left (above) – this was the Master bedroom which, to be honest, I found under-whelming. By the time I reached this bedroom I was feeling like I over-dosed on Restoration Hardware. So much unfinished wood, linen, and burlap which really emphasized the rustic feel, but overall it was a bit too much. I really liked the rug though, it was so cozy on my bare toes and I was pleasantly surprised to see it was from West Elm. Seriously considering this rug for my living room now.

Right (above) – another blend of traditional and modern in the Master ensuite. The shower-made-for-two featured was a sleek glass walk-in (no doors). And look at that deep soaker tub. Oh yes.

Left (above) – this was the second kitchen. Kidding. This was the garage!

Right (above) – look at that organization! This special grooved paneling allows you to hang hooks and baskets where ever you need them. Ingenious.

That concludes your personal tour of the 2011 Showhome. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did! If you’d like to see more, hop on over to the Canadian House and Home website where you can see a bunch of video tours and more photos.

*****

Today, cancer affects us all. Current estimates indicate that 40 percent of women and 45 percent of men will face some kind of cancer diagnosis, so we must accelerate our mission to: CONQUER CANCER IN OUR LIFETIME.

To support Princess Margaret Hospital and to help conquer cancer, click HERE.

*****

(images: d.simpson)

Hello blog friends! Just in case you missed it last week, I wanted to let you know that I’ve set up a Facebook page for my business DAYNA SIMPSON INTERIORS.  But that’s it folks, no Twitter account.  As my son loves to say (in a high-pitched voice) “no, no, no!”. Not going there.

So hop on over to Facebook to LIKE me. I’ll be posting more thoughts on design, decor tips, and inspirational photos over there and you don’t want to miss out!

The time has come. Our little man has graduated from playing on his foam mat, to wanting to sit at the table like a big boy. Sigh…at 18 months he’s so grown up.  So I’ve started thinking about the next addition to his bedroom – a table and chair set for him to play at and get all creative.  I’ve done a fair bit of web browsing and have concluded that there is quite the range in terms of what you can spend. Luckily, the furniture is cute at all price points!

This first set has fun and modern lines, is handmade, and customizable:

[Available on Etsy for $270.00 USD by Jesse Dirk. You can choose the colours and stain!]

I love the colour and shape of the next table + chair set, but unfortunately the price is not as attractive:

[by notNeutral, $499.00 CDN at Modern Karibou]

The next is a modern little bench set with chalkboard-top and the one I’m leaning towards:

[P'Kolino chalk table with reversible top. Available in Canada at Ella & Elliott for $119.00 and in the US, at Amazon.com for $79.99]

Then of course, there is always IKEA:

[LATT table + 2 chairs for only $24.99]

There is no need for this ultra-affordable set look so plain and IKEA’ish – -check out this great DIY’d version from the The Happy Home:

So which set would you choose for your little one?

Last weekend while in Montreal, I came across a store with the coolest concept for indoor plants:

How it works: Flowerbox Gallery offers a selection of cardboard, ceramic, and stainless steel boxes, as well as specially sized plants and flowers to insert into the flowerboxes.  Then you hang it on your wall. Cool, eh?  Such a modern way to bring plants into your home! I can see this is a kitchen, a bathroom, a sunroom,…really the possibilities are endless.  I think a Flowerbox is especially brilliant  for apartment and condo dwellers where horizontal surfaces  space can be limited.

Every Flowerbox is totally customizable, from the box itself, to the plants you choose.  From succulents and moss, to mini orchids and peace lilies, they have just about anything you could imagine.  Depending on the plant(s) you choose, you would simply take the box off the wall to water, then re-hang.

Flowerbox Gallery is located at 440 rue St-Denis, Montreal. All other locations are in France.  Ok – so who will open a Toronto location for me?

(images: all by moi)

Reminder!  Tune in to CityLine this Thursday to see the ‘Home Day’ show I attended (it airs at 9:00am & 2:00pm on CityTV). I probably didn’t make it on camera based on where we were sitting but you should watch anyways for some masculine inspired home decor tips. It was/is a good episode!

Following the theme of the CityLine episode and in recognition of Father’s Day this coming weekend, today’s post is geared towards Dad.  By ‘Dad’ I mean a young hip ‘Dad’. Or maybe just a male. Probably a single male who wants a hip place. Like this:

With a bedroom like this:

And a bathroom like this:

Admittedly, ‘Dad’ probably isn’t going to live in one of these super stylin’ places. Because there are kids. And a significant other who controls all the decorating in the home. And most likely ‘Dad’ has been relegated to a basement man-cave (if he’s lucky).  So this was really a post for all the single guys out there.

To re-cap, a bachelor pad requires:

(1) leather, preferably distressed lived-in leather, (2) wood and chrome, (3) black accents or walls, (4) art

(images: 1-cityline, 2-b&b italia, 3-the brick house, 4-pinterest, 5-four hands, 6-elle decor, 7-apartment therapy, 8-design*sponge)