The Colour of 2011 -

The PANTONE Colour for 2011 is Honeysuckle, a dynamic reddish pink combination which is being seen in all aspects of life - fashion and home furnishings, art, cosmetics and just about everything else.
Honeysuckle is a vital brave colour, bold in spirit and uplifting.  It sends out the message of confidence. 

'Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going' – explains Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute®.
Honeysuckle is guaranteed to produce a healthy glow when worn by both men and women. It’s a striking, eye-catching hue that works well for day and night in women’s apparel, accessories and cosmetics, and in men’s ties, shirts and sportswear. Add a lively flair to interior spaces with Honeysuckle patterned pillows, bedspreads, small appliances and tabletop accessories. Looking for an inexpensive way to perk up your home? Paint a wall in Honeysuckle for a dynamic burst of energy in the family room, kitchen or hallway.

Even if you are not a "pink" person, you will still enjoy looking at the various ways to incorporate this lively colour into our homes in a large way or just a hint.  I had a lot of fun searching and selecting some great photos that depict all the ways we will use honeysuckle in interior decor this year.....Enjoy!!

Hope you enjoyed the tour of "pink" and that it has filled your sweet cravings!

Lights, Camera, Action....CDECA Goes to the Steven & Chris Show

On Wednesday, March 9 close to 100 members of CDECA (Canadian Decorators Association of Canada) http://www.cdeca.com/  filled the CBC Studios  http://www.cbc.ca/ for a taping of the Steven & Chris Show. 
www.cbc.ca/stevenandchris.   A couple of us had met Steven & Chris at IDS 2011 in January and after saying hello and having our photos taken with them, we were invited to come to the show.  We got to chatting about CDECA and how great it would be to have an entire audience of decorators, and so the thought became a reality.  These two guys are absolutely great and just as nice as they appear on TV.  They took the time out of a busy schedule that evening to talk with us and at no point did they try to rush off.  They give you the feeling that they really do enjoy meeting fans and talking with them; which they actually do!!  How refreshing.  They have incredible sense of humours to go along with their approachable personalities.  We only had a few days in which to fill the studio audience seats and of course we did,  which goes to show that Steven & Chris, have a great following.

The show was great and we were made to feel very welcome throughout the entire event from all of the staff and most especially from Richard Fellbaum, of cbc who was our constant contact in setting up this event.  As anybody who has watched the show knows, it has a various segments and they were all very interesting and definitely entertaining.   The guests are always knowledgeable with information that we all appreciate.

Of course during the taping there were breaks, prizes given out from the show and photo opportunities for us to have our pictures taken with the guys.

At the end of the show we were given a nice gift from the Show which was donated by Wahl . 
Joining us was Linda Kafka,  Director of Marketing  & Tenant Relations from SOFA, (source of furniture and accessories, located at the International Centre) and one of CDECA's affiliates  http://www.visitsofa.com/  who also brought gift certificates from two suppliers - Buhler Furniture, http://www.buhlerfurniture.com/; and Canadel Furniture, http://www.canadel.ca/  as well as a complimentary refreshment card from SOFA to all of the decorators in attendance.  Thank you to everyone for their generosity.

We all left feeling so uplifted even with the horrible sleet  and blowing winds.  We definitely want to come back to this show for a fun time!!

Here are some of the photos taken at our visit to the show.

Here we are lined up and ready to go into the show....



Steven & Chris with Audrey

Steven & Chris with Jeannette (yours truly)

Linda Kafka from SOFA telling us about the gifts and an upcoming fundraising gala where the proceeds will benefit second base youth shelter

The whole gang - what a great group of CDECA members

We all had fun taking pictures in the studio -

The set is really nicely put together

Thanks again to everyone involved in making this such a great day!

Home Show 2011

This year at the National Home Show, held at the Direct Energy Centre, Exhibition Place, I focused on the two houses on display and the outdoor area which is a personal favourite of mine.

The first home was a 1640 sq ft bungalow built by Quality Homes and furnished by Sears.  It was a very compact 3 bedroom design and came with a complete basement.  Great for a 'starter home',  the 'empty nester' or as a getaway place.  Here are some photos of the home and the interior.....

   

The other home featured was the Glass Home, built by Concept PolygHome with interiors b Debbie Travis.  This glass home was quite innovative and a nod to the future of "green" construction.  Concept PolygHome combines confort and energy savings in their designs and materials.  The concept offers a system of solar thermal sensors wich are integrated within the structure.  It also stores its energy within the building.  PolygHome is eqipped with a special mechanism allowing for recovery of rainwater for recycling of water for sanitary purposes. 



                                                       

                                                      

Another interesting building was "The Ryobi Mancave" built by Summerwood Products with the interior by Ramsin Khachi

The inside of this structure was every man's dream.