/vintage

High Point Market Highlights | Madcap Cottage

Remember that announcement I made last week about the death of the matching furniture set? Well today’s post is an expansion on that announcement if you will. Today’s announcement?

Quirky is the new cool.

Yep, it’s true. In a design world where we now value personal expression over fitting in, a little quirk, a little whimsy and a heaping dose of the unexpected is just what the design doctor ordered, and the delightful gents at Madcap Cottage are leading the charge.

Decorating with pattern and creating a bespoke, unexpected mix with unique vintage finds are two of the hallmarks of John Loecke and Jason Oliver Nixon’s design aesthetic, and the Madcap Cottage booth in the Antique & Design Center showed off their signature style with aplomb. In fact, there are 3 Design Lessons that I think we should all take note of today as we enjoy these snapshots of their booth.


DESIGN LESSON #1 : EMBRACE PATTERN AND COLOUR
Can you say “pattern on pattern?” It’s de rigeur for this daring duo, whose fearless use of florals, geometrics, tribal patterns and colour is innately charming and all kinds of throwback fresh with an au courant edge that places them squarely on my “must watch” list. Like a box of decadent French bon bons, they never seem to stop at “just one” with their use of patterns and prints.
Take for example some of the details in this vignette. Thibaut’s Bungalow wallpaper from their new Resort Collection makes for a a cheery “hello” yellow backdrop to the grouping pictured above and below, and the Michael Taylor for Baker Furniture asian sofa pictured in this vignette is available through the Madcap Cottage 1st Dibs store here. Love the pillows? Then you’ll definitely want to check out the complete Madcap Cottage pillow collection.

I also loved the faux bamboo barrel back chair {below} that sat opposite the asian sofa in this grouping, yet another example of Jason and John’s unabashed use of pattern. I mean, pink leopard with a vintage floral on a faux bamboo chair, all sitting on a vintage kilim rug? Come. On.

DESIGN LESSON #2 : EXPRESS YOUR PERSONALITY WITH VINTAGE PIECES

Seems I wasn’t the only one making a beeline for the delightfully unexpected inspiration awaiting in the charming Madcap Cottage booth. In fact, I had to pause and stop at another booth on my way just so that I wouldn’t feel as though I was stalking Tobi Fairley {pictured below perusing the Madcap collection}. I was coming straight from Tobi’s session on the business of design that she had just finished delivering, and the session was packed with valuable insights on the changing landscape of the design industry.

I love the canopy cain chair that Tobi Style Spotted. It was my favourite piece in the booth as well, and I particularly love the hot coral piping on the Tony Duquette upholstery. Delicieux.
The Madcap Cottage booth was of course brimming with all sorts of amazing vintage finds just waiting to infuse your home with that quirky and unexpected “something” you’ve been searching for.
How charming is the Vintage Carousel Light {pictured above}? It’s got enough personality in and of itself to launch the design of an entire room. If only I didn’t already have a light fixture and design direction for the nursery this would have made the perfect jumping-off point!
DESIGN LESSON #3 : GALLERY GROUPINGS ARE WHERE IT’S AT

Of all the reasons I love them, I think my fondness for the clever curators of the Madcap Cottage collection is rooted in our shared love of all things British. Scouring the globe for unique finds, these two gems spend a great deal of time on my “family island” of the UK, and it shows in the decidedly English dose of debonaire to be seen throughout their booth.

Don’t you just love the way Thibaut’s “Shore Thing” wallpaper creates a dramatic canvas for this gallery of British gents in all their finery?

More than just purveyors of vintage finds, custom furniture and a signature pillow collection, Jason Oliver Nixon and John Loecke also offer design services where you can see all three of today’s design lessons come to life. Just feast your eyes on their use of pattern, colour, vintage finds and gallery groupings in these refreshingly unique spaces:

Thank you, Jason and John, for the abundance of inspiration! It was a delight meeting you both, and I hope our paths will cross again soon.

xo
s.

By |November 6th, 2013|0 Comments

Friday Giveaway! | Custom iPhone Case

I just love it when you stumble upon something lovely, only to discover the person behind it is even lovelier! That couldn’t be truer with the maker of my new iPhone case. In search of something unique and inspiring, I perused Etsy and was delighted to stumble upon SeptemberWren‘s cases, customized with Meg’s vintage-feeling, sun-drenched photos. It was hard to choose, and the debate came down to these two.

My love of water won out {after all, I still got to have some trees too!}. Given that one of my happiest places to spend time with my sweet family is on Lake Muskoka or Lake Joe enjoying a day of light dancing off the lake framed by fragrant pines, I had to choose the second one. I was so excited to place my order and couldn’t have been more delighted when I opened the box. It is warm and charming and happy and makes me feel like a family getaway is not too far off in my future. Nothing like a little visual escapism for the everyday! Perfect.

I had to message Meg of SeptemberWren and tell her how much I loved the case, and being the incredibly generous and lovely human being that she is, Meg suggested we share her lovely cases with you lovely readers!! Here are the details:

Meg is giving away not one, but TWO iPhone cases! The case can be customized with any of her photographs and can be made as either an iPhone 4 case or an iPhone 5 case. Holla!

To be one of these two lucky winners, here’s how you can enter:

1. Pin It To Win It – pin your favourite design {either from this post or from Meg’s Etsy shop} and post a link to your pin in the comments below. Be sure to include the hashtags #SeptemberWren and #TheCuratedHouse on your pins.

2. Follow me on Twitter and ReTweet the contest out to all your friends! Just post a link to your tweet in the comments below to help us track all your amazing Twitter activity.

3. Publish this post on your Facebook page, and again, just link us to it in your comments below.

It’s really that simple! Meg will then send a customized iPhone case of your choosing to you, the two lucky winners! How generous and lovely and perfectly delightful is that?

I will announce the two winners in the comments stream of this post on Sunday night, so you’ve got all weekend to Pin, Tweet and Facebook it up!

If you are looking for a thoughtful and personalized gift for a friend, I highly recommend considering one of SeptemberWren‘s cases. Christmas is coming. Why not get some of your shopping done early? Go fall in love with Meg’s photos and see if you can choose just one…I dare you!

xo
s.

By |October 26th, 2012|9 Comments

Oh Canadiana! | Kitsch + Quirk at The Drake General Store

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving to all of my friends north of the border! In celebration of our home and native land, I thought I’d share a wonderful Toronto gem of a store, brimming with Canadiana kitsch and collectibles. Friends, meet The Drake Hotel’s General Store {1144 Queen St. W.}.

These Mountie napkins are inspiring a Canadiana themed party in my future. Yup. Just so I can use these napkins.
A totem tea cup set! Definitely not your typical gift to bring to family abroad. So fun!
With camp blankets from Pendleton and raw wool blankest from Canada’s last original east coast woollen mill MacAusland’s, Drake General Store has cozy covered.
I love their RCAF collection of travel cases and duffel bags. Vintage charm meets high-quality, casual style. 

Visitors to Toronto and locals looking for heart-warming Canadiana kitsch, don’t miss out on Drake General Store! They’ve got four locations throughout the city well worth checking out!

xo
s.

By |October 8th, 2012|0 Comments