Hamilton potters Guild Spring Sale

It's that time of year - the annual spring pottery sale which is being held in the Dundas LIons Memorial Community Centre, 10 Market St. S., Dundas, ON.

Friday, May 2nd - 3 pm - 10 pm

Saturday, May 3rd - 10 am - 8 pm

Sunday, May 4th - 12 noon - 4 pm

Free Parking, Free Admission and the most gorgeous work by local artisans.

Check out the web www.hamiltonpotters.ca

There is a wide variety of beautiful hand crafted items available from jewellery to dishware and everything in between.

Carol Rossman is the creator of this lovely bowl.

Creating incomparable interiors with Eric McClelland At SOFA

I wanted to share my thoughts on this event which I attended a month ago but have been very busy in a good way - clients, working a little on my own home and getting ready for spring.

I attend many seminars, events, showrooms and trade shows in order to keep abreast of new and great ideas in the Interior Design and Decor industry.  We can always learn something new and sometimes we just need a little refresher to bump it up a notch or get inspired.  I have met and listened to many of the local celebrity designers and come away with the knowledge that they are all very approachable and willing to share what they have experienced.

I recently met Eric McClelland at a SOFA event and found him to be an engaging speaker with much to share on the topic of "Creating Incomparable Interiors" so that you stand out, not to mention how amenable he was to chat after and pose for pictures.

I, along with everyone else in attendance came away feeling uplifted and ready to 'get creative' and do marvelous things.  If you ever see Eric's work you will understand what I mean as he has an innate way of creating amazing spaces.  Eric is co-owner of Fleur-de-lis Interior Design in Toronto.

Of course I had to have photo with Eric

Sheridan Nurseries - getting ready for the holidays

I recently attended a couple of great events at Sheridan Nurseries - A ladies night Out where myself and a colleague of mine, Deb Darlington offered complimentary design & decorating consultations to the ladies in attendance.  It was a lot of fun since I never seem to tire of coming up with solutions and creative decor ideas. Our little space below with the paint and tile samples we brought to assist people



The 2nd evening was a wonderful night to say thank you to those who frequent Sheridan Nurseries, for our support throughout the year.  We were treated to great food and beverages as well as inspiring demonstrations on creating holiday containers.  Of course there were draws and lucky winners went home with the completed urns and other gifts.  We were all given a bag with great gardening information so we can plan for summer, as well as our choice of poinsettia or floral arrangement.

Beautiful decor ideas

Some of the nice container urns

 

Above photos courtesy of my colleague Deb Darlington
Beautiful Themed Christmas Trees

Chantilly

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Gingerbread

Magnolia

Old World

North Pole

Upcoming Toronto Fall Home Show

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN..... FALL HOME SHOWS

The fall brings a sense of rejuvenation and we all gravitate back inside after spending many hours enjoying the wonderful outdoors during the spring and summer months.  We also look at what needs to be done in our homes and of course we attend Home Shows and Trade Shows to see what is new and exciting.  This year I am proud to be one of the decorators taking part in the Habitat for Humanity Upcycle Challenge at the upcoming Toronto Fall Home Show which runs from October 3rd to 6th and is being held in the Better Living Centre, at Exhibition Place .

I have always believed in re-using and re-making items even before it became common to do.  My son was always saying 'why do you bring home all this junk', why not just buy what you want like other people do'. Of course he was the person who got stuck lugging it around when I had my bi-annual 'shifting of the junk' as he referred to it.  I believe he sees what can be gained by re-cycling now and even if it wasn't something smart to do, I still enjoy re-creating things.  I have a fantastic turn of the century sofa that I found in the garbage and of course it was my son who had to bring it home.

Drop by the Habitat display.  You will be inspired!!

The Decorating Centre Annual Trade Show

It came, it was great and it offered many new product lines from suppliers at the 

Annual Decorating Centre Trade Show.

Every year the owners and staff provide Designers and Decorators with a Trade Show featuring their suppliers who in turn promote their newest and beautiful Interior Decor and Design products.  I look forward to this event every year because it is a chance to meet up with colleagues we may not have seen throughout the summer months and of course to see what is available for my clients.  In addition to the suppliers, there are also guest speakers from the industry and they are always informative and entertaining.

This year Bryan Baeumler, known from his presence on "HGTV's House of Bryan and Leave it to Bryan", as well as being a great Contractor, was one of the speakers.  He spoke about his business and his program "Baeumler Approved" which includes the trades he has worked with and formed relationships which allows him to feel comfortable recommending them to those who are visiting his website and looking for a trades person. This fall he opened his program to include Interior Decorators and Designers which is great and I am proud to say I am one of the first few Decorators to join this group.


Our other speaker was Sharon Grech from Benjamin Moore and known as a regular design expert on "CityLine".  She spoke about Colour and Design and some of the Key Influences and Emerging Colour effects.  I will elaborate in a future post.

 If that was not enough we also had a wonderful lunch and during it, we were shown the newest fabrics from JF Fabrics (also known as Joanne Fabrics) which introduced the new Studio J Fabrics Line and really offered inspiration for future projects. I love fabric!

What a great day, checking out the suppliers, listening to great speakers, enjoying a lovely lunch and then to top it all off there were tons of great door prizes given out.

Below are just a very few of the suppliers that attended the Trade Show

 

GTA West Chapter Fall Event

A group of decorators from the GTA West Chapter met at Q Design in Mississauga for a presentation by Sun Glow Window Coverings, one of our affiliate members.  We were welcomed with a lovely breakfast and Marilyn and her daughter Lindsay of Q Design gave us information on the work they provide to Decorators and Designers, creating lovely bedding, slipcovers, draperies cushions, light upholstery, and so on.  

Following was a presentation by the representative from Sun Glow who provided us with information on all of the newest offerings available to us.  Sun Glow is very eco minded and are constantly sourcing & developing products that have environmentally friendly properties as well as superior quality and functionality.  Although Sun Glow's specialty is Roller Shades, they also offer Panel Track, Roman Shades, Fixed Shades, etc, etc.  The products can be manually operated or automated.

We saw many of the different fabric lines including those that offer not only UV protection but privacy.  Of course being in this field, we all loved the option of adding a little bling and Glamour.  Sun Glow offers trim with the Swarovski Crystal as well as pendants used as pulls.

Along with the warm and hot weather this July, came some visits to CDECA Affiliates in Vaughan.  A group of decorators from the GTA West Chapter as well as from the Toronto Chapter made the trek to Vaughan and it was well worth the trip.  Our first stop was at Zilli Home which was an amazing showroom.  We were offered refreshments along with some information about Zilli and then Anna Staggopoulos gave us a tour of the several floors within the showroom.  I have to say it was difficult pulling the ladies away from this location.  Great deals, Great product lines and they look after our interests.  What could be better!  Here are just a few of the many photos I took that day.

Second on our list was a visit to the Prima Lighting showroom which rivals Elte in the lighting department and has some product lines exclusive to them.  All I can say is "Gorgeous"  We were given time to browse and then had a tour of the showroom by Sam Folino and he shared information on some of the different aspects of lighting, including the new types of bulbs and where they should be used.  The final stop was a concealed room which Prima is in the final process of readying for designers and decorators to use when they bring clients.  It will offer total privacy, WiFi, fabric samples, computer, AND refreshments.  How better to show a client your ideas.  Prima is also delving into furniture lines as well.  It is definitely a place to go.  For those who like to shop on line, Prima has the sister company 'Click Lighting'.  Check both out.

Of course we had to have a little nibble so off we went to Grazie Ristorante on Jane.  Absolutely fantastic Italian food and wonderful service.  Thanks to all who took care of us.

     

Last, but not least on our day was Orro Mosaic.  All I can say is Wow!  Michael Shikan gave us time to view the products and I can say I have never seen so many different, unique and fabulous mosaics available.  We were like kids in a candy store checking them out and then the best part was we got to select any samples we would like and they will be available to us in an easy to carry container for when we visit clients.  
Of course bringing clients to this showroom will really blow their mind.

All in all it was a great day and we are so lucky as a group of decorators to have such supportive and wonderful Affiliates.  Thanks to all