This weekend offers Toronto house junkies an opportunity to experience one of the city’s most precious jewels, the quaint, cottage-y neighbourhoods on Algonquin and Ward’s Islands. Dubbed the Toronto Island House and History Tour, the June 13 event has been organized by Grannies in Spirit, a group supporting the Stephen Lewis Foundation’s Grandmothers to Grandmothers campaign, a project that has so far raised more than $7 million for African grandmothers and the children in their care. Last Sunday, I was lucky enough to enjoy a preview of three island homes with one of the tour organizers, Paulette Pelletier-Kelly.
Full post and comments...Friday, September 25, 2009
Interior designers were out en masse yesterday for the start of IIDEX/NeoCon Canada, the country's largest trade-only expo of residential and commercial products and materials. This year's show is IIDEX's 25th installment but instead of looking back, the marketing focus is on "the next 25" with a strong emphasis on sustainability and "green" building technologies.
Full post and comments...Friday, July 31, 2009
There aren't too many things I enjoy more than a leisurely mooch through a well-stocked salvage shop and Timeless Materials in Waterloo, Ontario, is exceptionally well-stocked. Housed in a tidy barn that sprawls over four floors, Timeless Materials trades in everything and anything that can be salvaged from old properties ranging from beams, boards and corbels to bathroom and lighting fixtures, trims and moldings, railings, spindles and newel posts, ceiling tiles, weather vanes, you name it.
Full post and comments...Saturday, June 27, 2009
I can't vouch for the durability of these washable viscose rugs from Belgium ($29 - $139) but they sure look terrific. In fact, Moss, a well-established garden store on Toronto's Danforth Avenue, has one of the most impressive selections of indoor/outdoor and washable rugs I've ever come across. And their prices are very competitive.
Full post and comments...Friday, June 26, 2009
I tried Nature Clean because it's a chlorine-free, all natural, non-toxic cleaner so I reckoned it wouldn't damage the porcelain. Until now I've been skeptical about these earth-friendly cleaners thinking they couldn't possibly do as good a job as the big commercial cleaners. Wrong. Of course, when I saw what happened to the Blanc de Chines I went straight up to the bathroom give Nature Clean a workout on its home turf . . .
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Tuesday, June 8, 2010
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