Sarah Walker The Curated House, Author at The Curated House

Project Lake House | Introductions

When your favourite client of all time calls and says she’s just purchased a new Lake House and would like your help with a bit of decorating, the qualifying questions to get to “yes” are few and far between. Add to that a beautiful post-and-beam structure as the starting point, and you can understand why it’s not too much of a burden.

One of the first rooms we will be addressing is the kitchen. I’ve recommended that the clients paint out the wood cabinets to provide some relief and contrast to the wood ceilings, log walls and post-and-beam structure of the cottage. It’s always a tough one for people to consider as we’re all a bit precious about wood, aren’t we? I understand that, but I really do think this seemingly courageous move will help to define the kitchen area and break up the visual monotony of all that wood.

That said, there are other changes we will be making to transform the space either way. We will be installing a rustic splitface slate grey backsplash to tie in with the granite countertops and the floors; the cabinetry hardware will be replaced with something with greater contrast; the super-high raised breakfast bar {it’s almost chin height when you stand in front of it} will be coming down; and the lighting will definitely be addressed as well.

The previous owners had a serious love for all things green, but green is not my client’s favourite colour. Gratefully, the floors and granite counters in the kitchen are a more neutral palette, and in almost all of the rooms of this beautiful property we can remove the green accents without great effort and take things in a much more modern direction, befitting of my very sophisticated clients.

{All “before” cottage images via Royal LePage}

I actually love all of the grey and sandy tones in the natural slate floors, so we will be using that as our jumping off point for the colour palette for the soft furnishings, starting with a custom rug.

In fact, we’ve already got our strikes back! Strikes are samples that are made up before finalizing the order for a custom rug. Allan has taken very good care of us as usual. We fell in love with a more contemporary feeling Ikat pattern and customized the palette on site at the Lake House using wool and silk poms to reference the colours in the floor. We chose to have two strikes made up – one a combination of wool and silk, and the second 100% pure bamboo silk.

You can definitely see the dark and the light side of the bamboo silk rug more clearly than with the wool and silk in this case. The image above shows the light side of the bamboo silk, and the image below shows the dark side.

Here are the initial fabrics we are working with…

…which led us to the obvious winner: the 100% bamboo silk. The client and I both prefer the lighter side of the rug, so it will be installed such that it is what you see when facing the focal point of the stone fireplace. We love the airbrushed, softened effect of the striation the weavers used on the silk piece. It is still modern but bridges the masculine and the feminine very well. I can’t WAIT to see it in place!

In the meantime, the furniture is on order, including some custom designed pieces that will suit the rustic and organic vibe of this cottage while elevating it with more of a modern aesthetic. I’m so looking forward to updating you on our progress in the weeks to come!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|October 24th, 2013|0 Comments

High Point Market Highlights | CR Laine

The welcome upon walking into the CR Laine showroom at High Point Market is not only a warm one, it is a dramatic and engaging mix of definitive style, bold colour and incredible comfort. Knowing that CR Laine was the first furniture manufacturer to achieve Sustainable By Design registration back in 2008, they were on the top of my list of showrooms to visit . Friends, they did not disappoint. Just look at the stunning style statement made in the sofa and chair featured in the first striking vignette.

CR Laine‘s commitment to style, comfort and colour shone brightly with each furniture grouping I encountered. I wish I had a teleporter to take you there so you could sit in these pieces yourself. Each one passes the “tushie test” with flying colours. Pitch {the slope of the seat and back}, seating {cushion construction} and arm heights are all perfectly proportioned, creating a beautiful marriage between form and function. There’s also a healthy dose of sexy thrown in for good measure. Just look at these Mongolian fur-backed occasional chairs! {bites palm} To die for.

I loved CR Laine‘s fearless creativity with upholstery, showcased on pieces like this classic linen daybed, made modern and sophisticated with the introduction of a powder blue racing stripe through the middle of the piece.

A similar racing stripe created serious drama and contrast on the beautifully proportioned Oliver Swivel Chair {below}. At only 26.5″ wide, this chair is perfect for a condo or any other small dwelling in which space is at a premium. Tidy on dimensions, huge on style.

As a third-generation family-run company, CR Laine has grown into a full service upholstered furniture manufacturer producing totally customizable, bench-made pieces. What does that mean? Well for starters, they are extremely committed to environmental sustainability using sustainably harvested hardwoods for all of their kiln-dried frames. They use only water-based wood adhesives that are VOC-free, and even the eight-way hand-tied coil springs are made from 50% recycled metal. Seat decks and trim pads are made from 80% regenerated fibres and they use as much soy in the content of their foam as they possibly can without there being any issues with breakdown of composition over time. They even offer a lifetime warranty on the frames of their pieces!

Seating can be customized with envelope cushions {down/feather wrapped foam core} and bench seats {one solid seat cushion on sofas} which makes this designer very, very happy. Interesting headboard profiles and Custom nailhead details {available on chairs and sofas as well as headboards} make customization a dream. Want to bring a little bit of Steve McQueen runway fashion into your home décor? Not a problem.

{Translation: CR Laine clearly understands a designer’s need to personalize each piece for their client’s unique homes and tastes. Customization is de rigeur for this amazing upholstery manufacturer.}

I loved this Mad Men-esque, mid-century throwback arm chair – an incredibly comfortable and undeniably stylish statement piece.

And speaking of comfort, I found the dream nursery chair in CR Laine‘s beautiful showroom. The Heath Swivel Glider {below} has classic, modern lines that are married with what is honestly the most comfortable sit on a glider chair I’ve ever experienced. The swivel glider mechanism is not only seamless integrated into the design of the chair, but it also functions so fluidly that I have no doubt it rocks both parent and child to sleep effortlessly.

Given the timelessness of the design, this is also a chair that would transition out of a nursery and into any living room or family room design plan effortlessly, making it a practical and satisfying long-term investment. CR Laine‘s fabric selections are also impressive, including exclusive Sunbrella textures and prints and their own Infinesse performance fabric options. Oh yes, and remember all of those amazing details I shared about CR Laine‘s sustainable and environmentally responsible construction? It all adds up to make for one very happy designing mama.

You really don’t have to give up quality construction and environmental integrity for comfort, style and design. Cue Survivor’s 1985 synth-driven hit power ballad, because friends, the search is over. I have definitely found everything I was looking for, all in one chair.

{You can thank me later for having that awesome song stuck in your head for the rest of the day.}

xo
s.

PS – Stay tuned in the weeks to come for more of my favourites from High Point Market!

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|October 23rd, 2013|0 Comments

Oh Baby! | A Project Nursery Update: Where To Start To Design A Nursery You’ll Love

It’s been awhile since I’ve given you an update on the design happenings around our house, mostly because real life has been trumping much of our progress on the design happenings around our house! That said, I have definitely been dreaming, scheming and planning not only for the completion of Project Ugly Duckling and Project Debonaire Young Sir, but also for Project Nursery. With 12 weeks of pregnancy left, the nesting instincts are kicking in hardcore, and this designing mama has a lot to get done! Noah’s room has to be finished before we can get to the nursery transformation as we have to move him out before we can move in and get the work done! Our marching orders are clear and these pregnancy hormones are saying it can’t happen fast enough!

WHERE TO START?

So, where to start you ask? I decided to begin where I advise all of my design clients to begin: with the rug. Rugs and art are really the two major influences I love to use as the jumping-off point because they offer so much direction on how the room design should evolve. Colour palette, pattern, mood – all of these can be established with a great rug and/or some great art. Beyond that, unless you have the time and budget to have a custom rug made, it is much easier to match fabrics to your rug than the other way around. Just think of the thousands of skews of fabric there are out there compared to the number of rugs you’ll find in your searches. If the tone is off just slightly, you can inevitably find a substitute fabric much more easily than you can find another rug that has everything you’re looking for.

So, with my mission firmly in hand, I headed off to see Allan at Kaarma, my favourite rug supplier. {He’s currently working on a new website which I will definitely share with you when it’s done!} I’ve worked with Allan for many years sourcing rugs for clients, so he knows me well and takes incredibly good care of me. {Read: Allan treats me like GOLD.} There is so much to be said for nurturing great relationships, no matter what business you are in. Taking the time to really know the people you do business with – to hear their stories and to share some of your own – makes the whole process so much richer and more meaningful. That’s definitely the kind of relationship I’ve built with Allan over the years and I’m very grateful to know him.

So, when I sat down with Allan to discuss options, I started by showing him a few pieces I had seen that caught my eye:

I knew I wanted something in the grey tones with an organic feeling to it, but perhaps not as pattern specific as the Ikat rug above and not as cream as the first one. {Baby boys, after all, have a tendency to pee rather creatively during diaper changes and a cream rug will likely not be so forgiving of such adventures!} I also loved the feeling of old-meets-new in designs like this…

…but I felt this might be a bit heavy. Simple, classic, organic and not too fussy. That’s what I was after.

THE WINNER

Naturally, Allan had just the thing and I fell instantly in love when he showed me the winner. So did Noah who was with me at the time and immediately said “I love that one, Mom.” The kid’s got great taste. I somehow think his current dream of becoming an architect might just fit him like a glove. But I digress. The winner, you ask? This beauty right here:

This silk rug is absolutely stunning in person. The “airbrush” or subtle striation through the rug creates a softness and warmth, and the perfectly imperfect trellis pattern is reminiscent of an old Moroccan Ben Ourain rug. Even better, it works brilliantly with the lovely and slightly whimsical Thom Filicia for Kravet linen fabric I’d be hoping to use for the drapery.

These photos were taken at the end of the day and I haven’t tweaked them at all, so the rug looks darker than it is in person. It is a very soft, dove grey with a slightly blue-ish undertone, and the organic pattern is a soft greyish-cream, perfect to compliment the cream base and grey watercolour birds of the Thom Filicia for Kravet linen for the drapery. The rug also has a dark and a light side {as with any high quality wool or silk rug} and I will place it so that you see the light side when you enter the room.

Folks, we’re off! Starting point established. Scratch that – super exciting, classic yet modern, last-a-million-years-and-still-look-gorgeous starting point established. Can I just say I am beyond thrilled?? Like giddy! I am going to love spending time in this room.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Up next? The search for the perfect chair. I feel a bit like Goldilocks with this one. I need something that’s not too hard, not too soft, just the right style and {most importantly} just the right price. This mama has approximately two dimes to rub together on this project! I’m headed to High Point Market for a quick weekend of inspiration overload, so perhaps I’ll spy something there? One can only hope!

In the meantime, Graham will be painting the freshly panelled hallway and perhaps even sanding and staining Noah’s floors while I’m gone. {Let’s just say the quotes I’ve received thus far have been nuts-o for one small room – poor Graham!} Can I just tell you how incredible my man is? Loving, makes us breakfast every morning, coaches Noah’s hockey team, works with fierce determination and integrity in his incredibly busy day job AND renovates our home on weekends like a superhero. I should give this guy another baby or something. Like seriously. He’s the best.

THIS WEEKEND

I’m headed to High Point super early tomorrow morning, so I won’t be sharing anything for Foodie Friday with you, but I have no doubt I’ll have inspiration a-plenty to share when I get back! My main reason for going is to attend some amazing industry seminars on the business of design, including the ELEVATE sessions put on by my dear friend Lisa Ferguson and her Decor Mentor team. This woman is seriously amazing, and such an advocate for elevating others. I love the way she is positively influencing and transforming our industry. She inspires me beyond words, and I am so excited to learn and grow!

Wishing you an inspired and restorative weekend, friends!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|October 17th, 2013|0 Comments