December Song

WARNING: Guaranteed to make you smile and give you that warm and fuzzy Christmas feeling. : )

I have to thank Brad Ford, Interior Designer and blogger, for posting this video on his blog Design Therapy the other day which is the first time I'd heard this song by George Michael - fitting because i think its a bit of 'Holiday Therapy'!  He described the animation as mesmerizing and it truly is - I am crazy for this song and completely smitten with the video.

If you're not in the Christmas spirit yet, this song will surely do it.   Dare I say, I think its a new classic. And ok, I'll admit it, I heart GM.

Enjoy!

FACHADAS VANGUARDISTAS DE ARQUITECTURA MODERNA CON LAS MEJORES OBRAS ARQUITECTONICAS

Dos videos con fachadas de las mejores obras arquitectónicas de los últimos tiempos. Le Corbusier, Luis Khan, Candela, Zaha Hadid, Mies, Barragan y otros arquitectos que han hecho estas estructuras increibles vanguardistas y futuristas. Todas con estructura, función y belleza.

Dear Santa......

.......All I want for Christmas are these spinning tops.

 Oh Pretty Please : )

These stunning tops simply make my head spin with joy, and are ranking pretty high on my wish list.  To commemerate the innovative design of Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller introduced these limited edition solid walnut tops in October of this year but they'll only be available for purchase until April 2010.

This collection of exclusive tops are inspired by my all time favorite design team, the Eames' giant collection of huge toys, and designed by one of my favorite porcelain studios, KleinReid.  How can I not have these these!

“Toys are not really as innocent as they look. Toys and games are prelude to serious ideas.”

- Charles Eames

"We drew inspiration from Ray and Charles Eames' gigantic toy collection - calling them "avid" collectors puts it mildly!  We sifted through cataloged toys, games, folk art, models - you name it - and spent an afternoon at their case study home in Pacific Palisades, CA.  We quickly fell in love with their tops, from primitive to refined, amassed from around the world (and featured in their film "Tops" of course).

Back in our studio we set to work creating shapes and making models. The trio is turned solid walnut and celebrates silhouette, material and most importantly - PLAY!  They're intriguing at rest and addictive in use."  - David Reid

No.1

No.5

No.7

This select edition of three are the first of what will be a series of 12 tops with additional designs slated for future release.  The trio are available thru Herman Miller for $199US per set and thru contacting KleinReid, however, a note on their website states they're currently out of stock.  So Santa, maybe if you call my friend at Herman Miller she may know where to find some. ; )

Herman Miller describes the tops as both classic toys and kinetic art!

For those of you who live in the Manhattan area, I'm so envious...., this weekend KleinReid is having their annual holiday sale this weekend.  This studio is at the forefront of porcelain design, (even Michelle Obama is a fan), so if you're in the area this is sure to be a treasure trove of unique "made from scratch" finds.

Photos:  Hermanmiller.com  and kleinreid.com

Victorian Row House: A Designer Reno on A DIY Budget - Part 5

The Living and Dining Rm - Before & After

I should start this post by stating that we began this renovation in the spring and as September rolled around I was feeling more and more uneasy about the possibility of moving out of my rental and into this newly renovated home. With the stock market crash and the collapse of major wall street firms, I was left feeling really uncertain and confused about holding on to this piece of real estate. Knowing that if I moved in it was going to be short term anyways, we decided it would be best to sell after completing the renovation, but we would need to do it sooner rather than later. Sooooo,,,, with the plan now to sell,,,,we debated whether to furnish the house or not. And the vote was yes. We spent 2 days moving furniture in from my own home and purchasing some small items to fill in the holes. I was happy with the end result as it was certainly a step above the average 'staged' home,,,,yet, it doesn't reflect how I would have loved to have furnished the home had I planned on living there or if I had had more time and even a teeny bit more money! But this was the reality and I made the most of what I had.

The after photos posted above (and in previous posts) illustrate what the house looked like after trying to furnish a house with zero money and in only 2 or 3 days!!!  If you've seen photos of my current home and my previous home,,you'll no doubt recognize most of the furniture.

Now here's a few of the before's a bit about some of the material's and details we used.

Before - View of Living Room and Front Entry before closing.

After - View of Living room after new windows, smooth ceilings, floor, trim and paint was completed.

The most compliments we received on the finished house was the new floors.   Everyone who walked thru the door, from installers, to friends, to neighbours to the pizza delivery guy,,,,,all commented on how much they loved the floors and wanted to know what they were, where to get them.  Personally, I loved the floors too and I had them selected from day 1.  They're a natural finish, solid 3/4"th x 3-1/4"w prefinished birch in a loft grade.  And they also happen to be the least expensive floors I've ever specified at $1.99 s.f., in stock and on sale!  They're from an Ontario based company called Kultur Flooring who claim to have the most advanced wood flooring mill in North America.  One of the things I really like about their product is they are the first mill in North America to mill the whole tree for wood flooring - this allows them to offer a range of wood grades and produce really long boards.   Also, for a prefinished floor they have the smallest micro-bevel edge I've seen, giving it more of a site-finished look.

I chose the loft grade because of the character - the variation of colour and the visible knots which reminded me of some of the antique floors I've installed (for a LOT more money), and I think they created a loft like look in the space.  They came prefinished in a clear, matt finish.  I prefer my wood floors to be natural, not stained, and I like them to be very low sheen like a waxed finish and this floor offerred both of those.  This gives them a more relaxed look and is more forgiving to scratches and wear and tear.  I think the older they get, the more character they'll develop.  What sets them off even more is the all white walls and the black window frames, again creating a contemporary urban soft-loft like look.

Before - View of Dining room before closing.

Before - Living and Dining room after demolition.  Newly smoothed ceilings and partial primed walls and railing.

Before - Living and Dining Room just prior to new floors being installed.

We installed new casings on all the windows and doors and decided to custom cut our own.   I was looking for a simple profile, something very clean lined and contemporary looking but there's not much available in stock.  So I purchased 1" x 4" select pine and had my handyman run all the boards thru his table saw to create a wide bevelled top edge.  Once the saw was set up the process went pretty quickly and the cost was a lot less than factory milled casings.  After they were cut, a once over with a palm sander and a primer coat to seal the knots, they were ready for paint.  So we ended up with custom casings for about $1.09 linear foot.  The biggesst challenge was trying to find a store that had enough lumber in stock!

Before - the first new baseboard being installed on the new hardwood floors.  Don't worry,,,1 hour later a super powerful pneumatic nail gun made an appearance.

The second most common compliment we received on the house was on the baseboards. Who would've thought something as boring as baseboards would be so appealing to people.  I assume, like myself,,,many people have tried to find simple contemporary style baseboards with no luck and maybe that's why they were so taken with the ones we installed here.   I selected stock boards again, this time a 1" x 6" primed mdf.  These boards were installed everywhere as baseboard and I love the clean simple lines they create.  The best part is its a really inexpensive solution, (about .78cents l.f.) readily available, pre-primed and with no fancy profile, its fairly simple to install because there's no coping required.  This made my handyman, Six, very happy (or was it just the power nailer).

After - View of living room and dining room new windows, ceilings, floors, trim and paint were completed. 

I think painting out the old hand rail and spindles made a huge transformation to the staircase, no more 80's golden oak.  We cut-off the little curly-que end portion of the old handrail and added a large newel post which i think is more in keeping with the original character of the century house.  The hand rail was painted a glossy black but I also think it would have looked just as good with the spindles painted black as well.

The light fixture in the dining room was a great find at Habitat for Humanity, I'd seen it regularly at lighting showrooms selling for $600, I scooped it up for only $125, brand new in the box.  The living room had this oddly placed junction box in the ceiling directly in front of the window, what normally might instead be centred in the middle of the room.  I decided to hang a small, modern looking pendant chandelier there suspended over the sofa, with the 9' ceilings it added some sparkle, made the window area look more special but also created a nice visual from the exterior of the house.  A bit unexpected but I think it worked really well.

After - the Living Room

Stay tuned for the next post on this Victorian Row House reno where I'll post photos and details about the kitchen and family room!

For earlier posts:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

All Photos:  Carol Reed

Understanding HGTV

Understanding HGTV dream house

Dream house is one of the most popular TV shows liked by a large number of viewers in the United States. It is a television show produced by the High Noon Entertainment and it is based on the theme of home improvement and home renovation.

Hgtv Dream House: Dream view

In HGTV dream house, each season will show a person, family or a couple trying to build a new home or how they complete the renovation of their existing home. In the past seasons, this TV show has produced thirteen episodes of thirty minutes.

Hgtv Dream House: Bedroom

However, in the recent seasons, HGTV dream house have featured only eight 30 minutes episodes. Dream house is presented in semi-documentary style where the camera crews acts as observers and Jose Marrero, the unseen host providing only the voice over the comments.

Hgtv Dream House: Dream House

In each season of HGTV dream house, many aspects of renovating or building a house are covered and it helps the viewers to have a better idea of home improvement and home renovation techniques. Various aspects, such as laying foundation, tackling restraining terrain, weather delays, getting permits, making finishing touch, arguments among homeowners and contractors and budgetary issues are all included in the show.

Hgtv Dream House: Decorate your room

In the initial nine seasons of dream house, the episodes are mainly focused on the basic requirements of building a house. First episode starts with the financing and choosing the builders comes in the second episode. The following episodes will focus on the challenges that come in the way of completing the project.

Hgtv Dream House: Backyard

Why HGTV dream house is so popular is because it highlights all the aspects and problems that arise when an individual tries to build a new home or make some renovation. In other words, dream house helps viewers to get all the knowledge for dealing with various difficulties that they may face when they build their home.

CASA DE PLAYA

Estos videos muestran los detalles de decoración de una preciosa casa de playa tanto la fachada como los interiores. La casa es de color blanco pero se usaron toques de piedra, madera, vidrio y el color turquesa en varios accesorios, todo esto presentado por el arquitecto Renzo Cordano en el programa Línea y punto.