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Make Something Mondays | Thanksgiving Table Décor | Part 1

I love the Harvest season and all it brings. The cool, crisp air seems to heighten my senses to the deepening colours and this season’s magical, temporal light. I am easily won over by the heartier flavours of all the root vegetables and roasted goodness coming from the oven, making up for the shorter days and signs of winter’s approach. For now, nature is showing off in all her splendour, inviting us to slow down and stand in awe of the beauty of this season’s transitional state.

One of our favourite things about this season is our annual Thanksgiving gathering. We love our more impromptu gatherings that happen so often with friends descending spontaneously to connect over a meal. We decide together what we should make with the ingredients we’ve got in the fridge and the making of the meal is as much of an event as the eating of it. But every once in awhile, it’s lovely to plan things out more thoughtfully, with careful attention to the details that make it feel like a celebration. It doesn’t have to be serious to be thoughtful. Just an intentional expression of gratitude through the mediums of food and friendship. Thanksgiving is a beautiful opportunity to do just that.

This year I felt like playing with mini pie pumpkins for a potentially cliché but hopefully charming addition to the table decor. Here were my weapons of choice:

Four mini pie pumpkins
A cordless drill with 3 different sizes of bits {all quite small}
A couple of spoons for scooping out the guts of my pumpkins {I saved the seeds and roasted them with sea salt, of course!}
A small paring knife to cut my openings

I chose to open the mini pie pumpkins from the bottom as I didn’t want the cut out to interfere with the patterns I was hoping to create.

Using the drill {and inspired by Moroccan tin lanterns}, I set about trying to create delicate yet simple patterns that would allow the light to come through and create interesting patterns of candlelight on the table. This was my attempt at a slightly fresh take on pumpkin carving!

PHOTO BY GABRIELLA HANSEN

What I learned was that my mini pumpkins were in fact too mini for the flame. Great idea, wrong scale! Within a few minutes, the less-than-festive odour of burning pumpkin began to fill the dining room. Yikes! In our scramble to keep them from totally combusting, I didn’t manage to get any pics to show you the charming and patterned glow they cast on the table. Plan B. Candles beside the minis instead of inside them. This is what experimentation is for, right? Now we know, 3″ to 4″ pumpkins are too small, but I stand behind the idea as one that would totally work on a slightly larger scale!

PHOTO BY GABRIELA HANSEN

PHOTO BY GABRIELA HANSEN {CAPTURED JUST BEFORE THE BURNING STARTED!}

I’m dying to see a Moroccan-tin-lantern-inspired pumpkin all lit up {and not burning}. Maybe one of my lovely friends south of the border will make these for your upcoming American Thanksgiving celebration in a couple of weeks? If you do, please take pics! I’d love to see them.

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|November 5th, 2012|0 Comments

A Timeless, Traditional Master Ensuite

As a designer, two of my favourite rooms in the house to design and decorate are kitchens and bathrooms. I think it’s because we spend so much time in them just living. They can contribute so significantly to our lives – to our freedom to relax, unwind, connect and dream. And kitchens and baths are also an amazing opportunity to explore and express a love of details.

I went through no less than twelve iterations of the floor plan for this bathroom before the owners settled on my first instinct. We were taking out a very dated bath and removing their walk-in closet {replacing it with a larger one as a part of the addition}. As such, we had a lot more space to work with than what they had been living with previously, and they wanted careful consideration to be given to each and every detail. Form could not trump function, and function could not make anything less than beautiful. I was certainly up for the challenge.

Painting by Elzbieta Krawecka via Art Interiors

The obvious centrepiece when entering the room is the creamy, wood-paneled tub floating in the centre of the space. Its interesting shape and timeless, Romanesque paneling set the tone for the entire room. The elliptical skylight above mirrors the shape of the tub and floods the space with healing and inspiring natural light. Truly a successful focal point.

My goal with this master ensuite was to interpret my clients’ traditional taste with a refined restraint that would be simply timeless. For that to be accomplished, symmetry became the absolute rule, starting with “his and hers” custom, bow-front mahogany vanities on either side of the tub.

My clients wanted ample storage so that the space could remain uncluttered while entirely functional. Even the bow front drawers on the face-frame vanities offer storage, eeking every square inch of possible function out of their lovely, curvaceous forms. We chose to leave the mahogany unstained in all its natural glory, with just a clear-coat finish to protect the wood. The warmth of the mahogany works so beautifully with the Crema Marfil tile work, speaking beautifully to its golden veins and timeless character.

What you don’t see in these shots are the perfectly balanced water closet and walk-in shower {picture them over the right and left shoulders of the photographer as you enter the room and face the tub}. The privacy offered and the elegant and refined balance to the floor plan work beautifully together to marry form and function.

As I’m sure you know by now, I am quite addicted to the texture and patterns made possible when working with tile. This bathroom was a delightful opportunity to work with the timelessness of Crema Marfil and create elegant and timeless designs. Even the baseboards around the room are carved from Crema Marfil! Decadent, elegant, gorgeous.

I have already confessed to you my addiction to all things herringbone, so the design for the inside of this tile carpet was an honest marriage of intuition and addiction. I love the way that this tile carpet runs under the tub, anchoring it like a piece of furniture in the room. I also love the way the warm brown mosaic border draws the eye straight into the room and towards the beautiful focal point of the tub and the gorgeous art hanging above it. Overall, the floor is an elegant exercise in scale, pattern and warmth.

Because I know you’re the kind that love details, I had to share the ceiling of the master bedroom with you today as well. I designed this together with architect Kevin Crozier, and I think the end result of this collaboration is rather stunning. From the window design to the deep coffers in the ceiling to the skylight to the elegant focal point of the Fortuny silk chandelier, I love the view looking up in this master retreat!

Wishing you a Wednesday filled with details to delight!

xo
s.

All photographs by Amy Montgomery

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|October 31st, 2012|0 Comments

Bright Ideas + Beautiful Bulbs | Lee Broom

Perhaps it’s my British roots showing, but I have a soft spot for cut crystal. I don’t actually have much of it in my house, but the sight of it brings back memories of traditional trifle pudding, spirits decanting on the sideboard and candies carefully placed out on the coffee table at Christmas.

In stumbling upon Lee Broom‘s latest offering, I think I’ve found a way to invite those old memories back home to live again {and with fewer caloric consequences, I might add!}. A brilliant mix of delicate, decorative craftsmanship and industrially simplicity, the application for these Crystal Bulbs is seemingly endless.

A row of these hung over a kitchen island or peninsula would be simple yet stunning, offering a subtle yet glamorous rhythm to the heart of the home. Suspend clusters of 3 on either side of the mirror in a bathroom for a touch of glamour, or try this look above your nightstands in the bedroom for a fresh and elegant alternative to table lamps.

Individually hand-blown and hand-cut with a classic crystal pattern, these bulbs are impeccably crafted by Cumbria Crystal in the north of England. The finishing touch is the Lee Broom crested logo etched into each one. The bulbs can be purchased individually or packaged with the socket set.

It all began with the huge success of Lee’s Decanterlight range {see below}, a thoughtful repurposing of all but outdated crystal decanters. Not satisfied to rest on his laurels, Lee pursued the possibilities of this design idea even further. The resulting Crystal Bulb is truly a stroke of genius, transforming the everyday lightbulb into an ornamental light fitting of truly elegant status.

From upcycling and repurposing the vintage to reinventing the ordinary, it’s no wonder Lee Broom is one of the UK’s top product and interior designers. I hope today’s bright and beautiful idea has you thinking about the ordinary objects you know and love and all the potential they might hold. Thanks for the inspiration, Lee!

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|October 30th, 2012|1 Comment