Friday, February 3, 2012

Not finished yet, but...................

So the walls are finished - the fireplace is finished - the radiators have been painted - all the trim and moldings are finished - windows have had one coat - coffee table has been painted - and I cleaned up before I left so that she could use the room on the weekend.  The lighting is not very good and the walls look much lighter than they actually are - will try to get a true color photo next week.


Still have to paint the t.v. stand ( I think the only thing not being painted is the couch, lol, literally, the garden stool in front of the fireplace will be painted as well )
We are trying to schedule our weekend so we could source out lamps - carpet - accessories - etc.
She wanted a beach/cottage look -
I am thinking Roman Blinds - with maybe some trim detail would be best because of the radiators but all options are still on the table with that one.

xxx

Thursday, February 2, 2012

I'll have that on ice ( please )

I am really torn with all of this - there is such guilt in hating winter because of global warming -
Our winters are nothing like the winters of my childhood - when we could literally jump off
balconies and land in a snowbank a few inches below.  This winter, except for a few cold days here and there, has been exceptionally warmer - and in December I was afraid we would not have a white christmas.
We did - and that is really enough for me - and if the planet were not in such peril - I would say the following.

" This is the time of year when I start to get fed up with winter - the salt stained boots - the coats that are starting to look a little ragged - the slush that looks dirty - the longing for something, anything green,
This is the time of year when I start looking longingly at my pretty summer dresses hanging forlornly in the closet - when my skin looks so white, it turns me off, when I want to smash the shovel that sits on my front porch ominously reminding me day after day that yes, Suzan, there is still more to come.
This is the time of year when I debate going to Cuba or Mexico or Florida and when I am on last minute deals as a past time. "

But, alas, the planet is in peril and so instead, maybe I should just get in the car and drive up to Quebec City and embrace it............................




   and perhaps book a room here - at the Ice Hotel



Who knows how much longer these cold winters will be with us -
Maybe it's time to start treasuring them again.

( but I still hate that my boots have salt stains on them )

xxx

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Progress on the fireplace!

Today was very productive - I painted out the fireplace for Nella ( my girlfriends place I am decorating )
and painted the living room - just have the trim left - and the windows and doors -
Then the fun part starts - decorating - what I live for really.

Here is a photo of the fireplace in progress ( has since been finished ) I did not take a picture of before
but it was RED BRICK - picture Santa Claus coming down the chimney red.
By the way - out of the 3 colors on the wall - she has chosen the soft gray blue on the top center of the mantel I was literally holding my breath on this one, I really did not like the 2 yellows - but she kept saying she wanted warmth - I know enough by now to know that any color can work once you accessorize, but I can't help it, I am always drawn to cool colors - grays - blacks - whites - that's who I am I suppose - I see everything in black and white, lol

And here are a few photos of the room which I absolutely love


That Ikea t.v. stand will be painted out black - and hopefully the t.v. will kind of fade out - uggh - mentionned before I hate t.v.'s in living rooms?


and her window wall - I just love love love this - this is very common in the section of the city that she lives in
( N.D.G. for fellow Montrealers - where I lived until last year ) the radiators are so special, we both had a glass of wine on the weekend perched on 1 each - discussing plans for the room - with really warm tushes.

my plans include incorporating this stencil work somewhere in the room in white



and I am hoping she goes along with it - have yet to discuss it with her because she gets very overwhelmed by all of this - and I have to mention things 1 by 1 to let it absorb, lol - for me it's nothing - I would do it and if I didn't like it I would simply change it - but I know most people put a little thought into things, lol.
I once painted my living room 4 times in a week until I hit the exact shade I was looking for - no joke.
I may pull a Suzan on her and just do it while she's at work - thank God she's a friend - can you imagine doing this with a stranger client?
Too bad - I like it ( lol )

She is looking for sconces for above her mantle ( the original ones from the 40's or 50's are there - and they are homely - so I directed her to Elte Furniture ( one of my favorite furniture stores - check them out online - you'll see what I mean instantly - oh and check out their rugs - to die ) and she found these,

love the circular pattern, they are a contender for sure but we haven't made a decision yet on lighting.

That's all for now folks, won't be going to her place today - it's hair day - sit in a salon and have my hair washed, dried, and straightened - so that tomorrow I can put it up in a clip - and put my painting clothes back on. Do not try to figure me out - nobody can.

xxx


Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Painting a fireplace

One of the first things I painted when we moved in here was the fireplace - it was an old reddish brown brick and I could not look at it ( we have an exposed brick wall in the living room which is original brick - but the brick on the fireplace had been replaced and was newer and a completely different color and it darkened an already dark room.  I suggested we paint it white and John kept saying no, he wanted to have it resurfaced in a slate, soooooooooooooo, one night when he was sleeping I crept out and opened the paint tin and painted and painted and painted ( it takes a lot of paint to cover brick ) so that it was done when he woke up,  if he hated it we could always cover it after, right?
He liked it!  I liked it! ( notice I say liked - past tense - will get back to that at a later date - but suffice it to say that my disorder includes getting very bored with things very fast lol )

It really made a night and day impact on the room for very little cost.

So this is what this leads up to.
My girlfriend just bought an apartment - with a brick fireplace - and again the brick is reddish brown and dirty with soot stains and really quite an eyesore so she asked if I thought she should paint it.  YES!!!!!!!!!! ( she has hired me to decorate her house - so this is now my job ) and off I ran with the tools of my trade.

Got to her place - pulled out the tarp - and began this very very simple job.
OH MY GOD - her brick does not have mortar between it ( grout ) so every  brick stands out on it's own,
which means you have to paint each brick - and then try to get BETWEEN each brick - with it's gouges and holes and all - and the brush was just not cutting it - I then tried a tiny foam brush which I could just sort of poke into the spaces - no good.
I than had a stroke of genius - I would put the tarp all around the fireplace - and then get inside it - and spray like crazy -
DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME - I am actually peeing myself thinking of this - somebody should really lock me up - no mask - you have to try to visualize this - as I was darting in and out with this bloody spray can - and choking to death - and as you know you cannot spray up close - you need to be at a distance with sweeping motions - but desperate times call for desperate measures and I was determined ( determination can definitely kill you ) and I was literally attacking this fireplace - and complaining non stop - why didn't they put mortar between the bricks - who lays bricks without mortar - this is the stupidest way to lay bricks etc - etc.
as I ran out for air every 2 seconds -
And guess what - the fireplace got done....................

I forgot to take pics of the before - which is a shame - but I will post pics of the after.  Off today to paint the rest of the room - this apartment has huge potential - so it's exciting to be a part of it's transformation -

Have a good day all,

xxx

Monday, January 30, 2012

All I have to do is dream

This townhouse was just listed - down the street from me - ( here I sit in a tiny 1 level flat - victorian and full of charm but talk about being the poor relations - take a look at this.................)





butlers pantry off kitchen

master bedroom



master bath

master bath


closets

my version of stairway to heaven

option - elevator to heaven?

All that for just 4,500.000 dollars - and by the way no outdoor space, no back yard - no deck - ( but we are facing a lovely park - and honestly? I would never have to leave the interior space - never, lol

Have a good one.........................

P.S. I am really starting to love an all white look - so crisp and clean - seeing a lot of it lately - especially if it's in the right ( different ) finishes, I am so wanting to do it!!!!

xxx


Friday, January 27, 2012

Artwork close to my heart

The year I painted my living room and dining Black - I searched and searched for anything white to hang on the walls - and could never find exactly what I was looking for -


just a note in looking at these pictures again, when we bought the building the dining room was a bedroom - we had the wall knocked down for entertaining purposes ( by a contractor close to our heart - one of my best friends husband - shout out to Daniel!!! if anyone is looking for a contractor in the Montreal area pls let me know ) anyways, we decided to go with french doors - and we ended up buying oak - very expensive - and it was one of my biggest regrets - John would positively not let me paint them because they cost so much - and then there is the man-thing of not painting wood - I usually get my way with anything to do with the house but in this case he was positively adamant - and I came to HATE them - 2 sets of double french doors and one single one is a lot of wood to look at - I wanted to paint them white so badly.
SOOOOO - if you have my sickness and need to change things up often - pls do yourself a favour and buy pine - even jointed pine which is the cheapest you can buy - and paint them to your hearts content. When you look at the photos couldn't you just weep for me lol?


Ok - back to the artwork - ( all over the place again Suzan, FOCUS FOCUS FOCUS - )

I love words - books - posters - signs - I cannot get enough of them and so I bought white frames from IKEA - and printed out famous quotations and had them dispersed throughout the " blackness "
I can't find a photo of the 2 gallery walls I created with these so here is just a little example - sorry but you have to use your imagination on this one!

but for those of you that can't it looked something like this - except much larger - and they were truly a brilliant white - they look kind of beige in these pics.......



ok - so now I am going to share some of my favorite words, lol, as framed and treasured by me.

Sundown, yellow moon, I replay the past
I know every scene by heart, they all went by so fast
Bob Dylan ( Tangiers )

We can't all be heroes because somebody has to
sit on the curb and clap as they go by
Will Rogers

Go not where the path may lead, go instead where
there is no path and leave a trail
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Take care to get what  you like
or you will be forced to like what you get
George Bernard Shaw

I get by with a little help from my friends
( do I have to say John Lennon? )

It has been my experience that folks
who have no vices have very few virtues
Abraham Lincoln ( wise man )

Live in such a way that you would not be
ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip
Will Rogers ( I would have to have the poor birds vocal chords removed )

If you can't get rid of the family skeleton
you may as well make it dance ( love )
George Bernard Shaw

Remember not only to say the right thing at the right moment
but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at
the tempting moment........... ( God I wish I could learn to do that )
Benjamin Franklin

We make a living out of what we get,
we make a life out of what we give,
Sir Winston Churchill  ( these words I try to live by )

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by
and that has made all the difference
Robert Frost ( sigh )

JUST WATCH ME
Pierre Elliot Trudeau ( beloved Canadian Prime Minister - although he was talking about a particular event in Quebec history - the FLQ to be precise - when I think of him I think of those words - he was unconventional,
defiant, charming and one of the best prime minister we ever had, and the world did watch him............

But like the song says - they're only words - and words are all I have
for my little blog today.

xxx

P/S - Stacey from http://www.conspicuousstyle.com/ ( pls visit her site - she has amazing taste )
posted this pc today

wow - thinking black walls, white frames, in this scenario - too much for me to take - wouldn't that be gorgeous ( it already is I know, just saying............)

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Privacy Window Treatment

I live in a row house - in the center of the city - so privacy is a very big issue - I could basically lean over and take milk out of my neighbour's fridge when I run out, lol - a slight exaggeration, but only slight - we are very very close - there is not even enough distance between us to make a yard ( just a very narrow courtyard )
Also - because it's a row house there's not a lot of light ( not an issue 100 years ago? ) so window treatment becomes quite a challange.
I tried film, but I felt closed in by it, silly I know - but I did..................and they do not have so many options out there that I could live with. Blinds are just too confining all together for me - so  Dilemma, right?
This summer I staged my mothers duplex for sale - this was a major major overhaul that took a long time - and issues came up that we were not prepared for ( like mold in the bathroom and basement of the lower unit - tres expensive fix ) so budget was tight for decoration - enter the Dollar Store.

I found these plastic ( tiles? ) that connect to each other - hoping to do a window treatment but they did not have enough - so................they ended up on the wall - here and there, this is just one example.

Last week I found them again!
And decided I would try them out for the office window - I like them!  They let whatever little light I get, still come in - but create a little bit of privacy.


they were 2 dollars for 2 in the pack - so 1 dollar each ( wow I am incredible at math ) total cost 10.00
for a pretty unique window treatment - me like it....................I have them attached to an IKEA track system that I already had - so I could slide them over when I want to open the window but you could simply use eyelet screws ( although it would be a pain in the ass to move them over that way - but perfect if you want
to keep them stationary )







you just attach them with the rings - and I suppose  you could get really creative with this - partitions - curtains - wall displays - they could be as large as  you wanted to make them.

They have the same ones at STUDIO SPECIALTY ( Montreal, Toronto and L.A. google it - they have amazing christmas decorations - tons of sparkle) for 45.00 and 30.00 I believe for 4 of them - I paid 4.00 for 4 of them ( again my math skills come in handy ha ha )

Mission accomplished ...........................

For now anyway.

xxx

Sharing with
Funky Junk Interiors
http://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net/2012/09/sn-152-unique-window-treatments.html