The Weekend in Review: IDS 2015 & Other Stuff

This was meant to be an easy weekend, but the unlisted tasks (4 loads of laundry) and the impulse tasks (rearranging decor accessories) had me up past midnight late Sunday. Regardless, all was accomplished and I'm ready for a new week.

To review:

1) Empire Auction preview (starts at 10 am Saturday). Done.

2) IDS Globe Style Saturday (Jonathan Adler @12, Alexa Hampton @2, Thom Filicia @4). Attended!

3) Paint final coat of Aspen Valley green on both doors in front hall. Done. Thank goodness!
 
4) Go through three years of House Beautiful magazines and tear out inspirational pages, recycle the leftovers. Done.

5) Catch E! "Live from the Red Carpet: The 2015 SAG Awards". Done & blogged.

Saturday afternoon was spent at IDS where I was able to enjoy all of the Globe Style Saturday presentations by Jonathan Adler, Alexa Hampton & Thom Filicia. In fact, thanks to my media pass, I was able to personally meet and briefly chat with all three of these talented designers in the VIP lounge. Such a thrill!!☺

A key takeaway from each presentation:

• Jonathan Adler advises each of us to enjoy "rules free living" and to "embrace vulgarity" by adding gold accents to our decor.
• Alexa Hampton shared a lot of great tips. I love the "Sharpie method" she employs to envision a new design by drawing on a photo of the existing space with marker.
• Thom Filicia passes on a piece of advice he was given by the late great Albert Hadley: "Always have an element of surprise in your design."

In other weekend news, I stopped in at Empire Auctions Saturday morning for the preview, but that was a strike out - no classic marble top commodes this month. On the bright side, this gives me at least another month to save up for the splurge. I also finished the final coat of Aspen Valley on both doors in the front hall and added gold highlight to the trim. Later this week I'll be able to put the doorknobs back on - yay!! Lastly, I got through several stacks of decor magazines, tearing out tons of inspirational spaces. I guess I know what I'll be working on next weekend...lots of trimming & organizing to do:

SAG Red Carpet Fashion

Just a quick post about my choices for best dressed on the Screen Actors Guild red carpet. The pre-show was a quick 2 hours, but that's all it took to spy a bevy of beautiful gowns.

Julianne Moore in Givenchy

She always looks beautiful in emerald green!

Julianna Margolies in Giambattista Valli

Another jewel tone - stunning!

Tatiana Maslany in Oscar de la Renta

Love the abundance of fabric, such a luxurious gown!

Joanne Froggatt in Honor

Absolutely lovely, styled by Canadian Brad Goreski!

Kaley Cuoco in Romona Keveza
There's something to be said for simplicity!

Felicity Jones in Balenciaga

Pretty in Pink!

Reese Witherspoon in Giorgio Armani

One shoulder white, fits to perfection!

Claire Danes in Mark Jacobs

 A unique gown with amazing detail along the side!

All photos via E! Online.

What's Up This Weekend

I know I said this last week, but c'mon, how can it possibly be Friday again so soon? It was a busy week with the antique auction, IDS breakfast preview, Indigo summer preview and IDS gala - all time well spent! (Somewhere in there I also went to work.) This weekend will be more of the same; Empire holds their auction Sunday through Tuesday, and I'm heading back to IDS on Saturday to hear speakers Jonathan Adler, Alexa Hampton & Thom Filicia.

Weekend To-Do:

1) Empire Auction preview (starts at 10 am Saturday).

2) IDS Globe Style Saturday (Jonathan Adler @12, Alexa Hampton @2, Thom Filicia @4).

3) Paint final coat of Aspen Valley green on both doors in front hall.

4) Go through three years of House Beautiful magazines and tear out inspirational pages, recycle the leftovers. (Last weekend's leftover task.)

5) Catch E! "Live from the Red Carpet: The 2015 SAG Awards" (Sunday 6-8pm)


I'm should be able to do all of this with time to spare. What are y'all up to this weekend?

Three Out Of Ten Ain't Bad

I want you.

I  need you.

But there ain't no way I'm ever gonna afford you.

Now don't be sad.

Cause 3 out of 10 ain't bad.

I came away from yesterday's french antique auction with 3 of my top 10 choices, which is more than I realistically thought I would bring home. The prices were surprisingly affordable, although not on my coveted marble top commode which sold for $1400.00 + commission & tax.

I managed to come in as high bidder on the brass & marble coffee table and two fabulous sets of sconces. The set on the left will go to my good friend Tim, and I'll keep the set on the top right. Please do not ask my where any of this is going. I'll figure it out. Eventually.

French Antique Auction

By the time you read this, I'll be fidgeting nervously at the auction house, fist tightly clenched around my paddle as maximum bids roll through my head. In early January my friend Jasmine alerted me to this auction, and I've dreaming about nabbing a few pieces ever since. French Antique Auction? Yes, please!!

I sifted through the preview images and narrowed my choices down to these ten exquisite pieces. If nothing else, I need that marble topped dresser (I've always been outbid at past auctions). If I come home with more than that, I may have to move again. But c'mon, I know I can find a spot for those sconces...and that statue...and that mirror...

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with news of successful bidding. Please cross your fingers for me!!

Front Hall Progess & Aspen Valley

Yesss! It was another successful weekend - I came painfully close to completing all of Friday's "to-do" list items. I knew it was an ambitious list, but in the end I just plain old ran out of time. The weekend could have used another 5 hours, or maybe I could have skipped that Sunday evening nap ;)

1) Cut to length all trim for both interior doors in front hall. Done
 
2) Paint all lengths of trim & both interior doors in front hall in Aspen Valley green. Done
 
3) Nail trim onto doors, fill nail holes & sand when dry. Done
 
4) Caulk around all trim. Done
 
5) One more coat of paint on all trim to touch up nails holes and cover caulk. Incomplete
 
6) Go through the last three years of Style at Home & House Beautiful magazines and tear out inspirational pages, recycle the leftovers. 1/2 Done, 1/2 Incomplete

As you can see by the list "check off", a good amount of progress was made on the doors in the front hall. This time I tried a new method, painting the door fronts and trim separately before attaching the trim. It seems a bit more labour intensive to paint all around the trim once it's up (meaning more brush, less roller). Regardless of my efforts to shortcut, the doors still need one more coat. Hopefully I can get around to that soon so that I can put the doorknobs back on (one of these doors leads to the guest bath). In other good news, I really, really like the look of Para's Aspen Valley green.

Hopefully I'll get through the pile of House Beautiful magazines tonight (list item #6) because the rest of this week is going to be busy. I've got a fun event happening Wednesday evening (watch for Wednesday's post), Thursday morning will be an early start for the Interior Design Show breakfast and Thursday evening I'm going to check out Indigo's Spring & Summer preview. Speaking of IDS, it's happening this weekend, January 24th & 25th at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Will I see you there?

A New Weekend...A New List

Another week over? That was fast!! It feels as though I just made last weekend's "to-do" list and here it is, Friday night, and I'm working on a new one. I may be setting the bar a bit too high this weekend, since I have to be in the mood for step 4 (caulking), and if that doesn't get done I can't move onto task 5. We'll see how it goes.

Weekend To-Do:

1) Cut to length all trim for both interior doors in front hall. (Last weekend's leftover task.)

2) Paint all lengths of trim & both interior doors in front hall in Aspen Valley green. (Remember to pick up a new roll of Frog Tape!!)

3) Nail trim onto doors, fill nail holes & sand when dry.

4) Caulk around all trim.

5) One more coat of paint on all trim to touch up nails holes and cover caulk.

6) Go through the last three years of Style at Home & House Beautiful magazines and tear out inspirational pages, recycle the leftovers. (I have eight years of Canadian House & Home which I can't bear to destroy.)

Anyone else DIY'ing and Organizing this weekend? Tell me I'm not alone!!

Monday Check Off & A Solid Front Hall Plan

On Friday I posted a "to-do" list for what I needed to get done over the weekend. I love that I did this, because it meant that I didn't end up languishing on the couch thinking "I can do all of those things next weekend". I tackled that list and although it may have been a tad too ambitious, most jobs were checked off.

Let's revisit the list:

1) Pick up paint test pots of 2-3 various shades of blush pink for front hall. Done
 
2) Source brass curtain rod for my mom's ongoing den makeover. Done 

3) Sand & prime trim moulding for two interior doors in front hall. Done
  
4) Prime both interior doors in front hall. Done
 
5) Cut to length all trim for both doors. Incomplete. Distracted by Golden Globes red carpet.

Testing paints in the front hall was interesting. Within seconds of brushing it on, I knew that the blush pink wasn't going to work. The colour was so soft that it didn't show up at all, so immediately I returned to my original plan of Farrow & Ball's Brockhampton Star wallpaper. I tested Para's Aspen Valley in a few spots and I gotta say, I was mucho happy with the look:

The Aspen Valley is a hint lighter than the wallpaper, which is for the

best since the front entry hall doesn't get much natural light:

Here's the plan to combine the paint and wallpaper. Wallpaper is expensive, but with this idea, I'll only need to purchase one roll, keeping the project budget friendly. The plan is to trim out the front entry wall (already done!) and hallway doors (working on it!), paint everything out in Aspen Valley, then install wallpaper within the moldings. Easy peasy, right?

My goal is to get this done and dry before this year's Oscar party which happens the weekend of February 22nd. I think I can, I think I can!!

Golden Globes Red Carpet Arrivals: What I Loved

I like to form opinions about my favourite red carpet fashions before the mainstream media gets in my ear so that I stay true to my own sense of style. Hence, I'm quick out of the gate today with my choices for best of the red carpet. I love that there was a lot of colour on the Golden Globes carpet - in particular I have a soft spot for the yellows. Of course metallics always work for awards season, and the neutral black & whites are always crowd pleasers. Here's what I loved on this first big red carpet of the Hollywood awards season.

Naomi Watts in bold chartreuse.

Column dress by Gucci.

 Leslie Mann shines in sunny yellow.

Sequin dress by KAUFMANFRANCO.

Jenna Dewan-Tatum in buttercup yellow.

Flowing gown by Carolina Herrera.

Felicity Jones chose a rich teal.

Gorgeous traditional gown by Christian Dior.

 Julia Louis-Dreyfus in shimmering white

One shoulder dress by Narciso Rodriguez

Kate Hudson in a sexy white number.

Fishtail halter by Versace

Jennifer Lopez in metallic gold.

Cape & Dress by Zuhair Murad.

Julianne Moore in metallic + feathers.

Gown by Givenchy Couture.

Reese Witherspoon sparkles!

Strapless Sheath Dress by Calvin Klein.

 Sienna Miller wears a beaded & embroidered blush.

Most visually interesting dress  by Miu Miu.

 

Emma Stone mixes metallic & black.

Jumpsuit by Lanvin.

 

 Jennifer Anniston in classic black (that fits beautifully).

Sequin Halter by Saint Laurent.

I wasn't going to name the worst dresses, but these are just too tempting!

Claire Danes in Valentino. Ugh.

Keira Knightley in Chanel. Double Ugh.

 Photos via E! Online

Weekend List

I'm a list person. Without a list, I'm a bit lost; you might even say that I'm listless. Normally I make a task list every weekend to keep myself motivated  -  I love the sense of accomplishment that comes with every check mark. With that in mind, I want to make myself accountable by posting a decorating "to-do" list for the upcoming weekend here, which I'll follow up with a Monday "done" post.

 Free printable "Things To Do" list via Saved by Love Creations

Here's what's on the agenda this weekend:

1) Pick up paint test pots of 2-3 various shades of blush pink for front hall.

2) Source brass curtain rod for my mom's ongoing den makeover.

3) Sand & prime trim moulding for two interior doors in front hall.

4) Prime both interior doors in front hall.

5) Cut to length all trim for both doors.

I'm feeling motivated!! Let the check marks begin! What are you up to this weekend? Any projects on the go?

I Painted...Again

I hinted at pretty pictures yesterday, so I thought I should follow that up with a little something today. New Year's Day is always the best in terms of enthusiasm, and I got off to a great start with a bit more painting. A co-worker asked me today how big my condo is, because he couldn't understand how I am always painting... To be honest, my condo is not extremely large, but I am the slowest painter in the world. Last year I painted the dining room wall, then a month later I painted the living room wall. Now I've finally finished the wall at the end of the entrance hall which wraps around the guest room doorway and connects to the dining room.

Sorry for the grainy photos. I'm planning to break out the good camera for better photos soon. I'm hoping to put together a "whole home" tour!!

 

I circled this area on the floor plan below to illustrate where these walls are in relation to the overall layout of the condo. Now all of the walls throughout the open concept space are painted the same shade of navy blue, Para's Marine Bay (P5156-75).

 

The only walls remaining unpainted are in the front foyer and entrance hall and I'm having a really hard time making a colour decision for this area. I started to consider a green scheme after falling in love with Farrow & Ball's "Brockhampton Star" wallpaper pictured below, but I'm not 100% convinced that it's the right way to go.

The other colour I've been playing with in my head is a blush pink such as Ralph Lauren's "Old Garden Rose". The tricky part is where the two paint colours meet in the study area. I worry that there's too much contrast between the pale pink and the bold navy.

I'll suppose I'll get there eventually, just give me some time. Or give me some suggestions if you have any!!

So...It's 2015

**Warning** This post involves a lot of words. So... if you're here for pretty pictures, please check back tomorrow :)

It's the start of a new year. There's just so much potential in the months ahead. Sure, so much potential. I have to admit, however, that I doubt I'll do anything earth shattering this year. At the end of 2015 I expect that I'll weigh about the same, I'll be in the same job, I'll be driving the same car and I'll be living in the same place. Maybe I'll have a few more grey hairs & slightly deeper wrinkles...

Despite all of that ^^^, it actually goes without saying that the year ahead holds potential for the little joys of life. I plan to complete a few projects around the condo, and I still hope to find just the right dresser for the corner of my master bedroom (that was on last year's list). I'll help some friends with a master bath "refresh". Really, anything can happen!!

When I started Cherish Toronto six years ago, I was so enthusiastic that I posted every almost every other day for the first three years. I often wrote about my own home, but there were more personal things thrown in there too; exploring the places I visited, sharing spaces I found inspirational, talking about Toronto events to attend, bragging about fabulous thrift finds. This year I want to get back to that.

Things really started to slow down on the blog in early 2012 when I started to over-think every post. Bloggers were being encouraged to blog consistently, to have a clear message, to edit content, to create an editorial calendar. What the what?!?! Right then & there I lost my enthusiasm for blogging, although I didn't realize it at the time. Looking back I can see where it happened, and Cherish Toronto took a hit. 86 posts a year. 47 posts the next. Just 27 posts last year. I felt that if I didn't have a project to share, if I hadn't done...something...then it wasn't worth writing about.

It's time to turn this bus around, and I'm going to get back to my old blogging style and share, share, share. The next time I go to an antique shop or the auction, you're gonna know about it. If I make an interesting discovery, the whole world is gonna find out. If I score at the thrift store, trust me, you'll hear about my treasure hunting skills.

Maybe I'll do something earth shattering this year after all.