This Artist is an Inspiration

You've never seen pictures of my son's room,

and there's a reason for that :)

We've ended up with an entire matching ikea set - remember the robin series?

We bought him the bookshelves at our last house,

then my brother offered us his son's desk (same series)

then D's sis offered us her son's bed and nightstand.

Crazy.

Although it's functional,

the sizing is becoming a little small for him,

and it's a bit matchy-matchy for me.

A plan is slowly forming,

and yesterday I was cruising around looking for pics of reclaimed wood accent walls,

and found the most inspiring, amazing blog.

It's called Brooklyn to West,

written by Ariele, a builder/sculpter/furniture maker living in Brooklyn.

Sounds interesting already, right?

Ariele drove acroos the country with her business partner and friend

collecting wood and antique chairs,

where she spent five months designing and building

a restaurant from reclaimed and salvaged materials.

She is truly passionate about her work, 

and her phenomenal photography perfectly captures the beauty of her designs.

If you ever wanted to read about an artist living their dream,

go over.

Some of the magic...

Thank you, Ariele,

for re-igniting the artist in me.

x

over at HodgePodge today - come by!

It's a sunday, not a usual blogging day 'round here,

but the amazing DIY extraodinaire Barbara of the HodgePodge blog

recently asked me to take part in her So Canadian, eh? series,

and of course I said yes!

You can pop over and read it if you like...

Such an honour to be featured alongside the talented designers she always has lined up for us,

and it's always so interesting to read how they got started, their best advice, and so on.

Thank you very much, Barbara, for having me over today!!

Hope that one day we manage to meet somewhere between Vancouver and Toronto...
maybe we can do a vintage run together somewhere around Calgary :)
I have a feeling you would be a fabulous thrifting partner, lol.

On the colour front, since we've already talked about
choosing a grey for your walls, pink and grey, and green and grey,
 I thought next week maybe we'd talk about one of the most common challenges my clients
 are dealing with when trying to bring grey into their palettes -

hope you'll stop and in share your thoughts.

happy Sunday, lovelies - x

Hello friends!

It's another Monday, and another fabulous Crushing on Color post!

Todays treat for the eyes is brought to us by the ever-inspiring Carol,

from The Design Pages.

If you haven't been over to Carol's blog, you're missing out on an absolute goldmine of DIY ideas.

She not only posts the finished products, 

but there's always step-by-step instructions for those of us who may not be as crafty as she :)

Let's see what color Carol is crushing on these days, shall we??

Hello to all the 10 Rooms lovely readers.

I'm Carol from The Design Pages.

It took me only a split second to decide after being asked by Anne-Marie to be part of the

Crushing on Color series.

Peacock blue has become a favourite for me in both fashion and design.

This is my favourite shade for furniture or walls.

My favourite shade is one that is right in the middle

 of the light, almost turquoise, and the deep royal blue.

This shade can look fresh and hip.

It can also look calm and sophisticated.

It works paired with other bright, bold colours.

It also looks amazing with neutrals.

A little pop can go a long way with this very versatile colour.

If subtlety is not your style,

you could go all out with this wallpaper.

My very favourite of all the combos is the peacock blue and yellow mix.

There is definitely a peacock blue room in my future...

 but for now I'll settle for a bit of this...

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So, what do you think?

Do you love peacock blue or is it a bit too much of an attention hog for your liking?

Thank you, Anne-Marie, for having me over today.

Carol

Carol, your post is gorgeous!

Such a rich, lush color, yet it's so versatile... we're completely on the same wavelength, hon.

(when Carol sent over this post I had just taken my daughter fall shopping

 and bought her THREE peacock blue tops and matching nailpolish!)

And the peacock and lemon mix?  LOVE!

Thanks so much for taking the time to guest post... and as always, 

I'm looking forward to swinging by your place and

 seeing what shenanigans you've got going on - x

Anne-Marie

end-of-summer spectacular

So as summer rounds the bend,

I'm savouring the last moments of lounging with the family.

If there was anywhere I'd choose to be staying this week, it would be this space,
found a la The Diversion Project.

Some homes are about the decoration, and some homes are about the architecture.
This one is architecture, and it's wonderful to see it left at that, with the unobtrusive decor.

The open loft-feel, large expanses of glass and heavily horizontal planes

 remind me of the stunning modular Dwell homes that I dream of building when we are retired :)

How cool is the kitchen window?
And that island, with it's concrete base and steel top.

Dreamy dreamspace.

I love the way the reclaimed timbers were brought all the way to the ceiling, for a wrap effect. 

And staying in the second bedroom would be sleeping in a treehouse, no?

This is the killer bit - the pool.

The sparkling azure tile beckons,

and I think we all deserve an afternoon in that hammock, don't we?!

And this slice of bliss is built into the structure, at most separated by a pane of glass.

How's that for an end-of-summer paradise?


I'll be back to more regular blogging next week, once the darlings are back to school,
so looking forward to catching up with all of you in the next few weeks :)

(and getting our projects around here back on track!)

xo

Crushing on Color: Sundeep of DesignWali

I've decided that all the fabulous Crushing on Color guest posts will be up on Monday's,
because they're always chock full of eye candy,
and what better thing to get through a Monday-wish-it-it-was-Sunday ?!


I've been looking forward to this one, 
if you've visited the cool local blog Designwali, 
you'll see why - Sundeep has a passion for saturated color...
and she didn't disappoint!

Hello 10 Rooms Readers!

I am Sundeep from Designwali and for today's "Crushing on Colour" post you might as well call me Pinky.

 For some strange reason all shades of pink are on my mind lately

 with anything from coral to magenta to salmon pink! 

Now personally I think it is a lot easier to wear pink

 than throw it in a room,

 but in small doses it can really bring that punch to room

 and add some character when required.

ooh lovely shades of pink.
Salmon pink was my saree colour pick for my sisters wedding and it made me feel divine!
All images via Fashion Inquisitive

Pink can be cozy!
Image via House & Home.

Go bold with a wall... very chic.
Image via House & Home.

A pair of pink occasional chairs... of course!
Image via Decorati

Now this is super bold... but works!
Image via Houzz.com

For those of us that are not that bold a few orchids (or any pink flower) always does the trick.

  Image via Decorati.

Thank you so much Anne-Marie for letting me participate in your series.

For a girl who is usually devoted to grey...

punching up our lives with colour is an absolute must. 

Thanks all!

Sundeep @ Designwali

Wowsas, Sundeep! 

I loved this post - 

your pics show how much power a little splash of color can have...

That cherry blossom pink front door is my favourite -

what a happy, welcoming thing to come home to each night.

Thanks again for taking the time to share your color crush with us!

Anne-Marie x

Beautiful Blogger Award..

When I started this blog, I wasn't entirely sure what would become of it..

I certainly never expected that the blog would lead me to meet

 so many talented and delightful people.

I have been honoured when someone found my post interesting enough to comment..

the positivity that floats throughout the blogosphere is unbelievable - 

talk about a support network.

It's a bit of a relief to know that other people are so passionate about the same things I am :)

Some of you wonderful ladies have even featured some of my projects,

yes, Louise of Table Tonic, and Lindsey of Better After,

I'm talking about you - thank you so much.

(I'd send this award on over your way but I'm told it's for the relatively unknown bloggers)

One of the most fantabulous people I have met is Sharon of Layers and Layers.

Sharon is a great commenter, always interested in what's floating around out there -

and she has often made my day with her friendly words and entertaining viewpoints.

Sharon and her partner Yvonne recently received the beautiful blogger award,

and have passed the honour on to me - 

you guys are too sweet!

Pop over and read their post - 

I guarantee you'll leave with a smile on your face and a new blog to follow..

So now it's my turn.. the 10 things you didn't know about 10 Rooms...

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1.  I have lived in 17 different homes. 14 after the age of 18, when I left home. I've never actually counted that out before... um, I swear I am not a compulsive mover, LOL. It has been one year and three days since the last move, and we are staying in this one, really :)

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2.  I am not really much of a cook.  I do like eating.. but the hours it takes to prepare something really fabulous? Um, no.  D. is a prince and frequently turns up at dinner with yummy take-out or offers to BBQ.. and has never, even once, grumbled when I have forgotten about dinner altogether, tee hee..

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3.  I once lived in a VW van for two months.  It was an adventure that had no schedule, and when we reached Tijuana we felt like it was either commit to a huge trip or head back home... the lure of a stove and a hot shower every day was too much to bear. We met some compadres (BC), crazies (New Mexico), pretty amazing surfer dudes (Cali, of course) and saw a side of the human nature that we are never likely to forget.

4.  I can be found riding around on jetskiis, snowmobiles, and dirt bikes.  I love the speed.  Growing up with three brothers brings out the adreneline lover in you.

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5.  I am a cryer.  Coke commercials, ballet recitals, you name it - I cry.  Sometimes it's a bit embarrassing - in the line at the grocery store, for example :) I wasn't always like this - some super-sweet guy altered me in ways I wasn't prepared for - x

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6.  I have dreams about decorating.  Is that scary?   Choosing colors, putting up wallpaper.. puh-lease tell me I am not the only one?!!

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7.  I love to fly!  I can't understand the fear some people experience when flying.  Flying means travelling, that means new vistas, adventure.. grab the suitcases and go!!  I am on a super-high when boarding a plane, I think it's actually a little annoying - D?!

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8.  I am a tea junkie.  Orange pekoe, chai, licorice, hell, I'll even try that crazy puerh tea.. if it's brewable I've probably drunk it.. This is an improvement from my bartending days.. when it wasn't so much tea I was subsisting on LOL

9. I am stubborn to the point of ridiculousness.  Once I start on a course of action, there really isn't much point trying to stop me.  I cheekily justify this craziness by quoting Thomas Edison:

 "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that do not work."

10. I really do not like being the center of attention.  I prefer one-on-one conversations to big parties, and  time with my family to just about anything else...

         

 so on that note..

I am saying thanks again to the lovely Sharon and Yvonne and passing this award on to a few people you should get to know if you don't already, 'cause they're great:

 Jules of The Diversion Project always finds the most beautiful spaces, bits and bobs - plus I like her :)

Mary of Mary, Mary Culinary is a dear soul, who has travelled all over this planet, teaching, but actually trained as a chef and can whip up ridiculously delectable treats without much effort at all..

Sally of Divine Distractions is changing it up at her place, and always gathers fab eye candy to muse over..

Poppy of Project Gadabout always makes me smile, and usually makes me laugh, sometimes hysterically..

Today I finally took pics of Coco's turquoise and pink bedroom, it was a wee bit behind schedule because of all the cleaning that was required to be able to photograph her little hideaway..
and lasted for about five minutes after I was done :)
I'll post them tomorrow.

til next time..

dhurrie dreams and a thank you

the patterns and colors of dhurries are always a delight

and you all know how much I love a patterned carpet....

we've seen them used as upholstery with great effect - 

that wee loveseat is on my wishlist....

and this one even works as a tablecloth...

but this idea?  THIS idea is genius....

just makes me want to break out the paintbrush!

If any of your know more about this room, please share details!

I found it on pinterest... isn't that where we find everything these days?!

I'd also like to say thank you to Megan (A Lived in Home) today,

for sending the One lovely Blog award my way -

you're a sweetheart, Megan!

I always appreciate your thoughtful comments around here - x

If you haven't explored Megan's blog yet, pop over,

she's got a great style and an adorable little one, Ava, 

who makes star appearances frequently :)

The color posts have been a bit thin lately, we're on summer hours round here, lol.

But next week I'm going to tackle another grey + color post, maybe green,

since so many of your expressed interest in it, which was a surprise to me!

And, 

the oldest darling and I have been working on a few bits in her room, 

I'll post some pics shortly - 

x

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