interior design Archives - Page 14 of 20

How to Create a Happy Heart Home with Erica Cook

It was love at first read when I stumbled upon Erica Cook‘s lovely home in the latest issue of Rue Magazine. I say “love at first read” and not “love at first sight” on purpose. Of course I’m all about Erica’s cool, eclectic, feminine, edgy and über-chic aesthetic. But it is her “happy heart home” philosophy that had me at hello.

It’s a tough thing to balance the pursuit of visual beauty with the pursuit of inner beauty and deeper meaning, especially in an industry that is as fast-paced and demanding as interior design. When your particular brand of “balance” also includes being a mom at the end of the day, the level of intention goes up about a thousand notches. This challenge is all too familiar to me, so I was immediately drawn to Erica’s higher goals and deeper philosophy as I read the article. I just knew I had to interview her.

Erica, you’ve had a really adventurous career – from working with Sarah Richardson and navigating the world of design television to moving to Calgary and launching out on your own. What principles have guided the roles and clients you’ve taken on over the years?

Yes, I feel very blessed to have had the fantastic work experience that I’ve had. Starting out with Sarah and the team there was life changing. I’m not even sure if they’d know just how much they moulded my future and career. I’ve learned over time that Sarah had a very unique approach, she’s one of the hardest working, most down to earth and creative people I’ve ever met. I also appreciated that Sarah is extremely versatile and can do any aesthetic well. I think that was one of the biggest influences I took away and that has still applied until today.

How are your design philosophy and your life philosophy similar?

It’s undoubtedly going to sound cliche but I really don’t sweat the small stuff. Things always fall in to place and when one idea or specification doesn’t work out something better almost always comes along. I believe it’s most important to keep your focus on the things that really matter. For me that’s family, and I try to incorporate that in to my design work. Sometimes without my clients even knowing. Spaces need to be conducive to living your best life. Last but not least I try to always treat clients as I would like to be treated. That’s important.

I just love Erica’s outdoor room. I think I’d escape here daily if I had a space like this!

How has your design business changed since you started blogging?

I actually don’t find that my business has changed much since blogging. Perhaps blogging buys me some street cred, however, I was established enough in who I am that it hasn’t changed me. The one thing that’s been amazing is having a light shone on my own home internationally via other blogs and online publications. I do appreciate the community of great bloggers that are out there. It’s amazing that I can feel supported and inspired just by dropping by and visiting.

As a mom to one wonderful boy {and with a second boy on the way} I can’t help but admire you as a super-mom to FIVE incredible boys! What has been your mama-mantra over the years to keep you heart-happy, grounded and balanced?

Thank you Sarah. My boys come first. Always. When I have a project that’s starting to make home life unbalanced I pull back the reigns a little. Balance isn’t always easy but definitely worth striving for. At the same time, I’ve always felt that it’s important for my boys to witness me pursuing my dreams and accomplishing the goals I’ve set for myself.

How do you think being a strong and capable yet feminine woman has influenced your boys and their perspective on the world?

Fortunately and unfortunately my boys have been aware of my having to stand up and fight for what I believe in more than once over the years. I think they have a unique perspective similar to mine… cherish the people that matter, be polite and courteous still to the people that don’t, and never sacrifice your self respect or dignity. Having witnessed their mother be strong they seem to have the ability to decide what’s best for them and they are fearless about exploring the things they love. That intrepid spirit is perhaps the thing that makes me happiest when I catch a glimpse of it in them.

How do you know when your balance is off-kilter, and what do you do to bring it back around to a heart-happy centre?

I know my balance is thrown when I start to constantly feel that I’m forgetting something. When that nagging feeling starts to set in I know I’ve got to sit back and reassess.

What are you dreaming of for the next few years ahead? What makes you giddy with anticipation, what scares you just a little, and what fuels your dreams?

My plan is to continue to explore other ways of expressing myself, some of which I’ve done before and some things maybe I’ll discover for the first time. I’ve made jewelry in the past and am excited to return a bit of creative focus there, but I’ve also been turning some attention to picking up a paintbrush again. My grandmother was an artist and painting feels like a great way to reconnect with her, like I did so often as a child, now that she’s gone. It takes me to a happy place. I’d like to pepper my design career with some further exploration of both. I’m open to new challenges and believe they’ll come my way when I’m ready. In the words of Tina Fey “say yes and you’ll figure it out after.”

. . . . .

Thank you so much for sharing your philosophy, your home and your open heart with us, Erica. I have no doubt this year will bring you many opportunities to explore your gifts further as you continue on your design adventures with Moth Design {Making Others Truly Happy}.

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|September 11th, 2013|1 Comment

Brian Gluckstein | 2013 Princess Margaret Lottery | Oakville Showhome

Formal living and entertaining have returned to Oakville in fine fashion thanks to Brian Gluckstein and his design team. This year’s Princess Margaret Showhouse is oozing with glamour and the kind of quiet elegance and sophistication for which Gluckstein Design Planning is so famously known.

Not one to forgo function for form, Gluckstein’s beautiful spaces also feature endless storage – as seen in the kitchen {above} and the massive walk-in master closet {not pictured} along with a thoughtful understanding of the kind of dream lifestyle being sold with these tickets.

With no shortage of formal spaces, this home also features a perfect balance of upscale comfort with rooms in which one can in fact imagine putting up one’s feet. The media room {not pictured} probably seats 12 at minimum for in-home movie screenings that would rival Hollywood’s. But to my eye, this house is above all an entertainer’s dream par excellence.

If this sneak peek has whetted your appetite, be sure to make time to visit this stunning 7,500 square foot custom home in person at 1522 Devon Road in Oakville. The home will be open for free viewings starting this Saturday, September 7th, from 12-5pm. It will continue to be open for public viewings weekdays from 1-8pm and on weekends from 12-5pm.

Curious about where the proceeds from this lottery are put to work?

Here are some insights from the Princess Margaret website:

Dr. Fei-Fei Liu is the new Head of the Radiation Medicine Program for Princess Margaret Cancer Centre—one of the largest and most innovative radiation programs in the world. In this area of cancer therapy, precision is critical, as radiation has the potential to impact all of the treated area, including the cancer and the surrounding healthy tissue. The medical physics team at The Princess Margaret, in collaboration with radiation oncologists and therapists, has increased the precision for all types of radiation therapy; in some cases targeting tumour tissue in high risk areas such as the brain to within one millimetre.

“As we strive to set a new gold standard for patient care with Personalized Cancer Medicine, The Princess Margaret is pioneering a new area called adaptive radiation therapy where a patient’s treatment plan is adapted depending on how they are responding in each treatment session. This requires sophisticated hardware and software systems, along with the expertise to image and track patient progress in a highly efficient way. The Princess Margaret is one of the few places in the world where these new procedures are being developed and tested.”

Thanks to your support of the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre lotteries, we are making radiation therapy more personalized, and therefore more effective and less toxic for cancer patients around the world. Personalized Cancer Medicine includes all of our efforts to detect cancer earlier, diagnose cancer more precisely, target cancer without damaging healthy tissue, and supporting patients and their families throughout the emotional cancer journey.

If you or anyone you know has suffered through cancer treatments, you’ll know that these medical innovations really do change lives. I love it when great design and a great cause come together! Maybe I’ll see you there when I pop in for my in-person tour! Looking forward to getting up close and personal with all those delicious Brian Gluckstein Design details!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|September 5th, 2013|2 Comments

Update 6 | Project Ugly Duckling

We are slowly moving closer to the finish line and I am sooooo excited! Graham finally got some time {between his endless flights all over North America} to work on the trim this weekend. There are a few pieces that still have to be nailed into place {like the baseboard below} but things are definitely coming along.

Up next? Wood filler, priming and painting. In the meantime, I couldn’t resist showing you the progress. I’m particularly excited about the hallway. I know. Who gets excited about a hallway? But that gorgeous tile that my gorgeous hubby installed is going to look all the more swishy once the paneling is done. Next to my love for herringbone, my love for paneling is pretty hard to top. It’s such a quick way to add sophistication and a sense of substance to your home. And if you can do it yourself it isn’t nearly as pricey as it looks in the end.

The door at the end of the hallway is an exit door and so it’s taller than the bedroom and bathroom doorways. We decided to line up the panels with the tops of the interior doors as that is consistent with the rest of the house. I’m still deciding if I’ll do a frieze moulding at the top between the crown and the panels for extra dose of dimension and gorgeousness. I just don’t want to draw attention to the differing door heights in this particular space.

I just have to take a moment for a flashback. Remember the wallpaper that used to adorn these walls?

Well we’ve come a long way, baby, haven’t we? There also used to be a random closet that opened into this hallway right next to the bedroom door. We have flipped it into the bedroom for much better use of the space and I’m looking forward to showing you the solution there. It will be smart and sophisticated and not at all 1960’s.

While I’m at it, I will share one more of my favourite trim secrets. For anyone renovating an older house, you will no doubt want to update your baseboards from the original 3 inch “plain and skimpies” to something more substantial {like the 7 1/4″ baseboards we’ve chosen here}.

Along with that, though, you’ll have to address your casings. In our case {sorry, bad pun} our casings were exactly the same as the baseboards – flat and simple with zero profile or interest. But rather than ripping them out, I chose a really great backband to add to them instead. Not only does this save big bucks, loads of time and a lot of waste from being sent to the dump, but it takes a very Plain Jane casing from this:

To this:

{backband added to the left}

This is currently happening in the bathroom and hallway around all the windows and doors as we speak and I love it! Can’t wait to fill, prime and paint these babies!

That’s it for now. The vanity is actually sitting in the garage waiting for us to catch up and get everything painted and the wallpaper installed so that the vanity can finally nestle into it’s newfound home. The pieces are all here! Now it’s just about carving out the time to put them together. Fingers crossed Graham doesn’t have too many more work trips over the next couple of weeks!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|September 3rd, 2013|0 Comments