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A Chair Resurrection for Easter
Dear styleNorth, "A couple of years ago you posted about a reader selling Milo Baughman chairs on Craiglist. Well, I was fortunate enough to be the lucky buyer! They sat in storage or the corner of my place -- I rent a 680 sq ft. loft -- until a couple of months back when I finally had them reupholstered. I've attached a couple of pictures so you can see how they turned out. I still don't really have room for them, but I like them so much I am just living with an excess of mid-century modern chairs (rough, I know)."
Full post and comments...So Nice to See You Again
Saturday, December 22, 2012 by Chris
The gorgeous, white, chinoiserie cabinet, above, featured on the January 2013 cover of Canada's Style at Home wasn't always white and didn't always belong to Bijou and Boheme blogger Christine Dovey. As the Style at Home article notes, the cabinet was a Craigslist find, which is double plus true. I found it on Craigslist in its original coral pink, below, which worked very well indeed and did not feel especially feminine in the brick red spare room belonging to my former partner and I. But after a move downtown we didn't have space for the piece and so back to Craigslist it went and that's where Christine found it.
Full post and comments...Architectural Digest: Clash of the Titans
Saturday, August 25, 2012 by Chris
I've been nursing the September 2012 issue of Architectural Digest, allowing myself to savour just one feature at a time from what may be the most astonishing collection of designer star power ever assembled in a single issue. Michael S. Smith's New York penthouse wins the cover slot and while he's one of my all-time fave designers, this is not my favourite feature in the "book". Smith's detour into French traditional with a tszuj of global modern is lavish and lovely but look at the company he's keeping: Jamie Drake, Steven Gambrel, Darryl Carter and Lee Ledbetter. Miles Redd must have been holding back in anticipation of his new monograph, The Big Book of Chic, coming this fall from Assouline. What on earth is Margaret Russell going to do for an encore?
Full post and comments...Real Style on a Real Budget
Sunday, December 25, 2011 by Chris
Today's post is a Christmas present to myself, the big reveal after a one-month makeover of a home in Oakville, Ontario. My client, Nikola, is a 28-year-old bachelor with a three-bedroom, detached home in a newish development. The location screams suburbs but Nikola wanted a space that was "modern and trendy, incorporating 'unique' vintage pieces and original art," according to the brief I distilled from our initial meeting. The client's wishlist included a revamp of the living room, dining room and master bedroom, if possible, on a budget of $5,000, which would include my 30 per cent decorating fee.
Full post and comments...Begged, Borrowed and Staged
Wednesday, October 26, 2011 by Chris
When home stager Dennis Battler showed me photos of his most recent project, a small semi in Toronto's Riverside neighbourhood, I was instantly struck by how much personality he had injected into the spaces. His blend of vintage furnishings from different eras mixed with industrial and rustic pieces revealed a very definite point of view that runs counter to everything you see on TV staging shows where the mantra is always, "neutralize, depersonalize and de-clutter." The house had been neglected and fallen into disrepair but Dennis and the real estate agent rallied friends and neighbours who pitched in to strip and clean the property. Furniture was then borrowed or purchased for as little as possible on Craigslist — the set of dining chairs were sourced for just $50 — and thrift stores. Dennis blended the wall colour himself from paint store mis-tints.
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Thursday, March 28, 2013 by Chris
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