The bulging linen cupboard in my home is a dead giveaway. I have a bit of a thing for bed linens. My collection falls into two main categories: 1. Pure White, and 2. Striped. There are many proponents of the pure white bed in the design world. I am one — to a point. And that point is when I need to mix in some stripes. I just spent a couple of days scouting new finds and striped bedding was turning my head constantly. The stories I am working on don't require striped bedding — or any bedding at all. It just comes down to how I scout. I first do a quick full sweep of a store and then zero in on what I'm looking for. It's during that first go-around that I might see something that sparks a story idea, or that a colleague might need a photo of. Or, frankly, that I might have my eye on buying. But it's all part of the job to put the personal aside and stay focused on the story at hand. That said, I may just be dreaming of striped bedding tonight. Here are some favourites:
Sailor + Regatta from Unison Home. If I owned a coastal B&B, this would be the bedding in every guest room.
Gallery Stripe from West Elm. Love the bedding, love the walls, love those sconces which are not available in Canada, which makes me sad.
Ripple Stripe quilt and shams from West Elm. This set features the teeniest tiniest stripes in a gauzy fabric with stitched detail. I love switching to a quilt like this when the weather warms up... if it ever does.
Darien from Pottery Barn. I spotted another colourway of this in the store today, checked it out on the website when I got home and found this coral mix. It's so me I can't stand it.
PB Classic Stripe from Pottery Barn. Awning stripes in a romantic but not prissy colour — so serene.
Catalina from Libeco. This is my Holy Grail of bedding. It is pure Belgian linen heaven.
For more ideas for bedding, watch Lynda Reeves' Online TV segment.
Photo credits:
1. Unison Home
2. West Elm
3. West Elm
4. Pottery Barn
5. Pottery Barn
6. Libeco
Here's a little inside scoop on the story "Know the Ropes," produced by Joel Bray from our May 2012 issue. Most of the story (except for page 143) was shot on location at my house in Tweed, Ontario and our back stairs play a pivotal role.
When the realtor first showed us the house, the back stairs were a feature I fell for instantly. I've always thought there was something fun and secret about back stairs. When it came time to renovate the kitchen several years ago, I decided to give the back stairs a mini makeover, too. Along with ripping up the carpet and painting the wood stairs in Farrow & Ball floor paint in Pointing (2003), I decided to add the rope handrail. I bought all the supplies at a marine supply store, Genco Marine in Toronto, and enlisted my Dad's help with the install. He's a former naval reservist who actually does "know the ropes" when it comes to knots and splicing. Here's a little more about how we created the rope rail.
This is what the rope rail looks like from downstairs in the kitchen. (That's my French bulldog Lulu perched on the stairs waiting for me to get a treat out of the treat jar in the pantry cupboard.)
Here's a close-up view of the loop at the bottom of the stairs. My Dad used a technique called the 3-strand tuck splice, which involves partly unraveling the rope and then weaving it back into itself. You can find step-by-step instructions at the Machovec website here.
The splice is then wrapped in jute twine, a technique called "whipping".
At the top and bottom of the stairs — and every metre or so along the rail — the rope is held in place with wall brackets and shackles. I chose shackles just big enough for the rope to fit through so that it wouldn't slip through easily when gripped. I used butterfly anchors in the wall to hold all the brackets securely.
At the top of the stairs the rope finishes in a coil. I did this just because I thought it looked nice, but it is actually a nautical technique referred to as "flaking". To fake a rope, lay it down in individual coils (each called a fake) so that the rope will unravel evenly and cleanly without fouling (or kinking). The end of the rope, called the "bitter end", is wrapped in more whipping so that it won't unravel.
So why not give it a try yourself? Or get even more ideas for rope projects in our Online TV segment.
Photo credits:
1. House & Home May 2012 issue, photography by Angus Fergusson
2. Donna Griffith
3-6. Margot Austin
You could never call me a minimalist. In fact, I'm very much the opposite. Yet, there is a part of me that fantasizes about what life would be like with just the essentials. The most exquisitely designed essentials. This little daydream led me to investigate the work of one of the most extraordinary minimalists working today, John Pawson. I discovered a project that well and truly deserves to be described using the word awesome with all of its original powers and import.
The project is a 60-foot sailing sloop, appropriately called the almost nothing (with a lower case "a" and "n", naturellment). Pawson collaborated on the vessel with Italian yacht designers Luca Brenta and German builders Kiel. The results are truly jaw-dropping. A statement on Pawson's website describes the work:
The project's functional goal is to create the ultimate day racing yacht, built for recreational rather than competitive purposes, but with the highest levels of maneuverability. The aesthetic expression of these functional aspirations is embodied in the sleekest of carbon-fibre hulls surmounted by the geometric purity of a triangular white sail.
Perfect symmetry.
An elegant wheel and controls. And notice this deck design detail, which allows the helmsman to stand upright with his feet flat even when the sloop is seriously leaning.
The cabin below deck is pure John Pawson poetry, with pale-grained wide plank wood floors, heaps of white and smooth, seamless finishes throughout. This is the kitchen and dining area.
The expression "A place for everything, and everything in its place" is best demonstrated in boat design, don't you agree? And yet, why should we possess more or be less organized on dry land? That's a question for the ages.
Just past the dining banquette is this lounge, which can convert for sleeping.
The bathroom sink and faucet. Ultimate clean design.
The principal sleeping compartment tucked into the bow. Talk about a decompression chamber. The only thing that would make this place any more peaceful would be your own personal masseuse.
The view of the interior from the foot of the bed with a skylight that floods the area with sunshine.
Is it just me, or does this place seem like the perfect condo? Could you live à la the almost nothing? Or would you go batty?
Before you answer, take a moment to watch this breathtaking video of the sloop under sail test off of Sardinia. It will give you goose bumps, trust.
Video courtesy of Vimeo.
For more yacht inspiration, read Reiko Caron's blog post.
Photo credits:
1. From Plain Space by John Pawson (2010 Phaidon)
2. Luca Brenta
3. The Hansen Family
4a, 6a, 7, 9. John Pawson
4b, 5, 6b, 8. B-Yachts
10. From Plain Space by John Pawson (2010 Phaidon)
You know when you hear of something or someone again and again over a short period of time? Call it zeitgeist or trend, but Paule Marrot is definitely having a moment. I am loving all of what I am seeing.
Paule Marrot (1902-1987) was a French painter and textile artist who counted August Renoir and Raoul Dufy among her influences and contemporaries. Her bright, happy prints are a celebration of birds, flowers and colour and were loved by design legend Billy Baldwin and Jackie Kennedy. Brunschwig & Fils produces some of her prints today and I recently found samples of Tulipes and Hugues Capet (right) at the Lee Jofa showroom in Toronto, which carries the line. I think these would be perfect as slipcovers at a cottage or in a sun porch. I do that sometimes — pick up a sample or two and carry them around for a while imagining a million different ways to use them. Fellow H&H-er Stacey Smithers and I agree the tomato red of that Tulipes print could just be the next big thing. Remember Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton at the Oscars!
I first fell for Paule Marrot's work when these Brunschwig & Fils fabrics were the focus of a display at Bergdorf Goodman in New York, which was featured in House & Garden magazine (RIP, I so miss it) in 2005. (BTW, fun fact, the Bergdorf display was produced by decorator James Andrew — he of the wildly popular blog What is James Wearing?).
Fast forward to a couple of months ago and stylist Joel Bray pulled together this room seen on the cover of the latest H&H special issue Best Decorating, which hits newsstands March 26th in Canada and April 3rd in the U.S. The stunning bird and feather artwork is a Paule Marrot print and part of a collection of her work now being produced by Natural Curiosities.
I went to the Natural Curiosities website to see more of the collection. I was delighted to find these interesting detail shots showing how the works are mounted. The paper is mounted on fabric-wrapped frames that are then encased in an acrylic box.
I fell in love with this print of water lillies and decided to make it the wallpaper on my computer screen here at the office — very calming.
Then my eagle eye spotted the same piece hanging on the wall in Patricia Lovett-Reid's home in the April 2012 issue of H&H. Gazing at it all day on my computer at the office is one thing, but being able to do so while having a long soak in that amazing tub would be a whole other level of serenity.
Other licensees have been capitalizing on the joie de vivre of Paule Marrot. Hipster Brooklyn accessories company Hayden Harnett offers a pretty silk scarf in the Guermantes print (also seen as wallpaper on Nick Olsen's fridge in my previous blog post). Caspari makes playing cards (above right) and Steven Shell makes this great chest of drawers featuring several Marrot prints. Now, if only someone would make Paule Marrot wrapping paper I would definitely get busy on a DIY découpage version of this chest!
For more fresh florals, see our 10 Floral Accessories Under $50.
Photo credits:
1a. Paule Marrot
1b. Margot Austin
2. House & Garden, photography by Thomas Loof
3. House & Home 2012 Best Decorating special issue, photography by Angus Fergusson
4. Natural Curiousities
5. Paule Marrot Lillies, Natural Curiousities
6. House & Home April 2012 issue, photography by Stacey Brandford
7a. Paule Marrot Guermantes Scarf, Hayden Harnett
7b. Paule Marrot Florals Playing Cards, Caspari
8. Paule Marrot Piaf Dresser, Steven Shell
It's no secret I've been known to frequent antique markets and flea markets whenever the opportunity arises. There are a few items I keep my eyes open for — tartan blankets, silhouettes and ironstone pitchers are all among them. Not surprisingly, I also have a weakness for magazines. Sometimes I pick up a back issue of a current magazine for a dollar or two. But occasionally I come upon true vintage gems like these:
These issues of Canadian Homes and Gardens date from the early '50s. They are so much fun to pore over to see how much some things have changed and how little others have. The cover of the one at the bottom of this photo is so amusing. There's dad, who we learn inside is Mr. Joseph Fleming, cleaning his guns in the living room, which is noted as the "Showplace of the house, transformed into a blending of Northern ruggedness and contemporary comfort." In some of my issues, the copy editor was Canadian journalism legend Robert Fulford. The women's editor was Zena Cherry, The Globe and Mail's former gossip columnist. On the masthead there's also a person with the title Child Training Consultant!
This issue is from 1951, but I think this room looks very now with its grey walls, Eames-style molded plywood coffee table and shag area rug. And the woman on the sofa looks like she was styled by Brad Goreski for Kate Spade New York 2012. (Never mind that the guy is smoking a pipe — yikes!)
The ads are a hoot! Love this one for The Decorator Refrigerator. It came with instructions on how to coordinate the appliance with your drapes using just 1-3/4 yards of fabric. Love it. It reminded me of a shot from the late Domino mag from a couple of years back of Nick Olsen with the fridge he transformed using a Paule Marrot tulip print wallpaper called Guermantes from Brunschwig & Fils.
Amazingly, so many of the stories are the kinds we would do today in the pages of House & Home. It seems clever storage solutions, small space tips, DIY ideas that save you money and this story called Where to Put Your TV Set are what we call "evergreen" editorial — in other words, always relevant. Others stories, like a DIY I spotted on how to insulate your pipes using asbestos cement you mix yourself, make you shudder in disbelief.
One issue included this bound-in sample of metallic geometric wallpaper by Sunworthy (left). Cole & Son's recent Sienna Tile (right) bears an uncanny resemblance.
One issue featured a contest where homemakers could write in their idea for a new gadget that would help them around the house. Mrs. Blenkhorn of Athol, Nova Scotia wished for some kind of machine that would automatically mix her bread dough.
Imagine how delighted Mrs. Blenkhorn would have been to receive a KitchenAid stand mixer or even a Cuisinart bread maker like these! We've come a long way Mrs. B.
Makes you wonder which new designs we have today will still look pleasing and even cutting-edge in 60 years.
If you haven't had enough mid-century inspiration, check out Morgan Michener's blog post.
Photo credits:
1, 2a, 3a, 4, 5a, 6. Margot Austin
2b. Kate Spade
3b. Domino November 2006 issue, photography by Paul Costello, from Apartment Therapy
5b. Cole & Son
7a. KitchenAid mixer, Bed, Bath & Beyond
7b. Cuisinart Bread Maker, Bed, Bath & Beyond
Is it wrong that it's not even the end of February yet and I'm already thinking about cottage decorating? Last summer, my husband, Kevin, and I realized a dream when we took possession of our little cottage on Prince Edward Island.
I have a million ideas for exterior fix-ups, but that will have to wait a few years.
The island holds special meaning for me — it's where my family roots are and as a kid it was our family summer vacation destination of choice. When Kevin and I resumed the island vacay tradition a few years back, he was hooked. Then the trolling of MLS.com started. Fast-forward to July 18, 2011, and closing day arrived on our storey-and-a-half cutie near the north shore beaches where I had spent so many sunburnt summer days. In very short order we completed a mini reno and top-to-bottom decorating in a style Kevin dubbed Surf Preppy. Now that we are starting to plan our first visit of 2012, I am getting a few ideas for additions to our cottage.
We call our place Whale Cottage because it has a whale weathervane up top. So I kinda need these Moby Shams from Thomas Paul. I'm trying really hard not to overdo it on whale things — we already have a couple.
J'adore Turkish pestemals. These gauzy cotton towels from the Turkish Towel Store are perfect for P.E.I. They are way less bulky to cart to the beach than regular terrycloth beach towels. They are big enough to double as a beach blanket, wind break (just tie the fringe around some pieces of driftwood) or be worn as a sarong. Island air is notoriously damp, but these thin woven towels dry faster, too.
When decorating last summer, I searched high and low for the right rattan chairs for our place. The Storsele chair from Ikea ($99) is exactly what I was looking for, but it wasn't introduced until last autumn. Two please.
I am of the mind that one can never have enough tote bags. Love the long strap on this one, the Nautical Tote ($60) from Lands' End, one of my favourite secret sources for luggage, cushion covers, bedding, throws and great pet stuff.
Their Lakeland Cotton Cable Throw ($79) is perfect for chilly nights by our neighbour's bonfire. It also comes in navy, and there are cushions to match.
At the cottage, you can always use a place to put your feet up, or an extra seat. I love this Four Square Boating Stripe Ottoman ($300), also from Lands' End.
I'll be toting my Dyson Hot Fan to the cottage for sure. It's so perfect since it acts as both a heater for cool nights and mornings and a fan for warm muggy summer days. Since our place is small, it's great to have both functions in one machine that I can easily move from room to room.
Last on my wish list is the mysterious iPad3. Rumour has it there's one coming soon. If so, I must have one for re-watching Downton Abbey downloads and checking out the iPad edition of House & Home. If I get one, this will be its case, the Kenton Sorensen iPad leather portfolio ($200). I've had my eye on it at Mjölk for ages.
For more cottage decorating ideas, see our Country Homes & Cottages Guide.
Photo credits:
1. Margot Austin
2. Moby Shams, Thomas Paul
3. Turkish Towel Store
4. Storsele Chair, Ikea
5. Nautical Tote, Lands' End
6. Lakeland Cotton Cable Throw, Lands' End
7. Four Square Boating Stripe Ottoman, Lands' End
8. Dyson Hot Fan Heater
9. Kenton Sorensen iPad Leather Portfolio, Mjölk