Displaying posts from January, 2011

It’s a Turkish delight. Fashion designer now interior designer Asli Tunca takes traditional and ramps it up. Great architectural bones help but what she puts in those rooms is just delicious. I want that red bed soooooo bad it hurts. The gentleman’s bathroom is a tailored treat and don’t get me started on the shell grotto shower. OTT is just so wrong that it is just so right.

The following email was sent to us from Jewel Weeks: I am a psychology grad-turned-interior designer (sort of) in Toronto who got this amazing opportunity last year to design someone’s loft carte blanche… a young bachelor with no possessions for his new loft aside from a mattress! The client’s basic requirements were that he wanted something fun and laid back with a retro-chic feeling- and no purple. Then he let me go to town with a blank slate in total faith. He was the most amazing client ever and let me work by intuition. Most of the stuff you see is all from craigslist or vintage shops with a few Ikea and Home Depot items thrown in. It’s not 100% to what kind of standard I’d like to achieve, but I was pretty happy with it for a first project- mostly because my client was so happy with the result. I love the finished product…superb hip retro vibe, fun colours, and HELLO, it was featured in the Sept 2010 issue of Style at Home magazine (with help from the beautiful photography of Aristea Rizakos). I think you’ve got something here Jewel!! (Check out her website in the future for more of her projects).

The flood waters have receded and things are grindingly returning to normal for a lot of us here. The flood survivors face a mammoth clean up job. I feel very petty complaining about the 4 and a half hour return journey I now face each day to get to work (flood damaged train lines). First mud and now a thick dried crust cover everything and the devastation is heartbreaking. I want to run away to this pristine white dream of a boutique hotel in Belgium. A girl’s shopping break? Yes please. And no mud in sight! Sleep in the City via the ever fabulous Studio Anndacht.

If you’d like to send us photos to include in next week’s “pets on furniture” post, please ensure your photos follow our basic rules: First, the pet must be on a piece of furniture. And said piece of furniture must be clearly visible in the photo, so it takes center stage rather than your pet. (Think of it more of a photo of a great piece of furniture that you want to show off…and your pet happens to be sitting on it). And second, the photo must be of decent quality. If it’s dark or fuzzy (from a camera phone) then it may not make the cut. Thanks! (Photos, your name, location and a brief description can be sent to desiretoinspirekim[@]hotmail[.]com and PLEASE don’t send me closeups of your pet!)

I have attached a cracker of my VERY over weight cat Horangi (he is on a diet of VERy expensive low cal food but it is impossible to break through his terrible deeply ingrained laziness!) on the coffee table my flatmate whipped up and a large poster by Debbie Carlos.
– Julia (Wanaka, New Zealand)

I’ve attached a couple photos of my girls. The first is of Heidi. She’s a humane society rescue who loves to stretch out on my antique table to watch the geese on the water and catch some rays. The second is Bailey, who is also a rescue. One of her favourite spots is my director’s chair. Usually she’s curled up in a ball sawing logs.
– Wendy

I bought this chair at a yard sale for $25!  It is huge, the leather is soft and worn, and it sucks you right in.  It has become the coveted seat in our living room, especially by my new kitten Mae who sleeps there most of the day.
– Hilary (Philadelphia PA)

This is Lucy. She is half beagle, half bull dog and has a talent for finding nice furniture to take naps on…nonchalantly, of course. The chair she is sitting/laying on was an antique find ($25) that I recently completely reupholstered and had restuffed with a bright, fuschia velvet complete with a high gloss black finish. Perfect for long nails…oy! In other words, she should not be up here.
– Johanna

This is Calvin our 6 year old domestic short hair. I was taking “before” pictures of 2 book shelves I am refinishing, and Calvin jumped right up there to pose. The second picture is Calvin exploring the innards of the dresser we picked up free on the side of the road.
– Mallory (Enid, Oklahoma)

This is Keeva my 6 month old female golden retriever. I call her Keeva the Decorating Diva because whenever I am moving things around my house she is right there beside me watching everything I do. Once she jumped up on a table and knocked over the object I had just put there – guess she thought it didn’t look right!
– Ali (Bradford, Ontario)

this is our cat Panini.. she sleeps in the strangest places 🙂
– Steve & Stephanie

These are actually my mom’s babies, Shiner (mini dapple dachshund), Spike (dachshund-brother of Jasper), Jasper (dachshund-brother of Spike) and front and center, as usual, Sparkle (French Bulldog…and the ONLY girl mind you). Obviously, it’s nap time on the couch!
– Kirsten

If you’d like to send us photos to include in next week’s “pets on furniture” post, please ensure your photos follow our basic rules: First, the pet must be on a piece of furniture. And said piece of furniture must be clearly visible in the photo, so it takes center stage rather than your pet. (Think of it more of a photo of a great piece of furniture that you want to show off…and your pet happens to be sitting on it). And second, the photo must be of decent quality. If it’s dark or fuzzy (from a camera phone) then it may not make the cut. Thanks! (Photos, your name, location and a brief description can be sent to desiretoinspirekim[@]hotmail[.]com and PLEASE don’t send me closeups of your pet!)

I finally got round to photographing our whippet Albert on the Bertoia chair that I bought my husband for Christmas a couple of years ago.  It’s never really been my husband’s chair though, Albert staked his claim to it from day one.
– Helen

Thought I’d share these photos of my 2-year old tabby cat, Yoni. In the first one he’s on my Habitat sofa with a Primrose & Plum lambswool throw blanket, and the second is a vintage Danish chair we’ve re-upholstered and re-varnished, with a Roddy & Ginger cushion.
– Katie (London, UK)

I snapped this quick picture of Boomer wrapped in our bedroom curtain. The light coming through the window made for such a pretty glow.
– Kristi

I snapped these while visiting my parents in New Hampshire. Their dogs, Pete and Gracey, call the shots and Pete MUST be wrapped in a blanket before everyone leaves the house. Sometimes, my mother even pops a blanket in the dryer before she gives it to him, so it’ll be warm and toasty. Not sure they cared this well for my brother and I!!
– Jessica L.

this is simon, and he thinks i bought this sofa for him.
– Jessica B.

Here is Amelie taking a nap on the couch.
– Cintia (Brazil)

I couldn’t help myself-I just HAD to send an email chocked full of MY babies! I may be biased, but I’m pretty sure my pets are the most amazing animals ever:). Mini my six-year-old mini rat terrier, Baxter my sweet gray, 7 year-old boy cat and Finn our new addition “mixed” puppy age somewhere-between 6-7 months-old, really complete my family.
1) Christmas rolls around, we have our first Christmas Tree as a married couple (and growing family…hello pets! My husband, Mini and I moved into our home and started our remodel May of 2010. By August we had Baxter and by October we had Finn!) and Mini LOVES it!
2) Miss Mini on a stack of blankets on our huge, comfy couch. Miss Mini…uh, I mean…The Princess and The Pea.
3) In the middle of our home remodel, we adopted a stray dog…all the way from Colorado! We live in Washington State-getting a dog here was an interesting feat. Here Mini still isn’t sure about Finn-our new addition. However, they snuggle on the couch as the remodel progresses…who needs throw pillows when you have pups this cute??
4) BAXTER! Feisty as usual and lounging, oh-so-casually, on our couch!
– Kirsten