Becky of Libby Kirwin Real Estate sent over some photos of this fantastic penthouse condo in Newport, Rhode Island. Libby worked with an investor to transform a dilapidated neighbourhood elementary school into a 13-unit condominium building, which sold out pretty quickly and I can see why! With exposed brick and beams and lots of ceiling angles for added architectural interest, this is a dream! And those hardwood floors are gorgeous but I can’t believe the stagers covered it up with so many large rugs. Other than that I am in love. 

Melissa Rufty‘s designs are rooted in the traditional, where colours and/or patterns take centre stage with a slight modern influence and the resulting spaces are elegant, sohisticated and have plenty of charm. Looking for an excuse to paint something glossy black? Look no further. Yum!

WOW! Do I ever love THAT house! :)Which house? THAT House by Austin Maynard Architects. The site is neighboured by huge houses. We were asked to provide the family with ‘just the right amount of space’. By creating large openings and generous connections to the garden we aimed to make this modest-sized home feel abundant and broad. The result is a home that is almost half the size of its neighbours without compromising liveability. (Lets be clear, THAT House is not a small home). The owners of THAT House are keen to able to open up to the community rather than permanently hiding or fortifying themselves. We have installed upwards blinds to give the owners control over their level of privacy. The ground floor of THAT House is ostensibly open, however the arrangement of spaces allows the owners to be together, or secluded, or any level of engagement in between.

Xing wrote to us the other day wanting to share his apartment with our readers. I am happily obliging because he has a great philosophy on decorating, I love that his apartment is simple (I wish I could be more minimalist) and he adores plants as much as I do. Here is a bit of background from Xing:
When I moved to San Francisco, I was more interested in modern homes versus older homes that would potentially need updating, as my work in video games was keeping me really busy. What really drew me to this place – despite the fact that the kitchen and bath could use a modern update – were the lovely views of San Francisco (I can see the Mission, SOMA, and the downtown skyline) and windows in every room (including the closet). The price difference between this and another modern option that I liked would give me enough budget to remodel it, and the modern place didn’t have a view… That was enough to help me make my decision, and how I ended up here. 
I had planned to live in my apartment for a bit to see how best to remodel it. Then, work and life got in the way, and I never started my remodel project. Thankfully, the vintage look grow on me! In terms of my approach for decorating this place, there have always been three principals that I’ve followed:
Rule #1, buy second hand whenever possible. I love second hand furniture; it has so much more character than new furniture. I’ve bought several things on Craigslist (e.g., the Pollock chair, rug, replica Bertoia chair). From my experiences of digging through all the junk on Craigslist, I even decided to start a mobile app called Trove Market (https://www.usetrove.com) to help people buy and sell second hand furniture locally using their smart phones.  
Rule #2, keep it simple and stick to the essentials. After years of moving (before San Francisco I lived in Boston, New York, Seattle, Shanghai and Beijing), I collected quite a bit of nice antiques and furniture from flea markets and Craigslist all over! Moving to San Francisco, my company offered me a stipend to cover moving cost instead of arranging a moving company, which was hard, because I had to get rid of a lot of stuff or pay a hefty sum to move it. It was then that I decided to really reconsider how I was living, and decided to prioritize essentials that I use often: a king size bed, a 60” TV (video games!), and a big leather sofa, and eliminate things that I don’t use often: dining table, side tables, etc. This way, I can still live big in a small space!
Rule #3, put at least one plant in every room. They can really transform a space. The giant plant on top of the fridge makes the fridge feel like more like a giant plant stand in the kitchen, and creates a nice green canopy for my nook desk (which turns into a dining table for 2 in a pinch).
The place is constantly evolving, as I change things out and bring other things in (deliberately, of course). I think what I enjoy most about my place is that I can sit in my bed at night, read a book, and glance up at the beautiful view. 

I came up with a list of my top 5 favourite online furniture stores conveniently located in Ottawa and Toronto and wanted to share because you all need to know about these shops. Why? Because they are awesome and owned by awesome Canadians. And you can shop them online!

The first in the list of best online furniture stores is Furniture Maison. This is a new-to-me online store whose focus is on clean design with a simple aesthetic, including Scandinavian, mid-century modern and industrial influences. Furniture Maison develops direct partnerships with furniture designers that own their manufacturing facilities, eliminating the middleman and unnecessary mark-ups. Also, their online-only approach minimizes overhead which allows their relatively small operation to offer their products at affordable prices without compromising on quality. I know this for a fact because they sent me a sofa and it is FANTASTIC and incredibly well made. Here are some pieces they carry that I am a big fan of:

Concrete coffee table

My sofa! Part of their collection of mid-century modern furniture. The Ruby reversible sectional sofa.

Not your granny’s rattan! The Aloha chair

The Louvre TV cabinet. For all your stylin’ media component needs.

I need a room to fit this in. Seriously in love with the simplicity of this loveseat. The Leo 2 seater sofa. A great course for Scandinavian furniture online – check out more of their Scandinavian furniture best sellers.

Another Scandinavian-vibing piece is the walnut media unit.

Next up is The Modern Shop, always a favourite for modern furniture online, and in-store! Located in downtown Ottawa and a quick 15 minute walk from my office, this has been a local favourite of mine since Michael Shaikin opened it in 2010. I have visited Michael’s shop on many occasions and I am pretty sure I have never once left empty-handed. If I’m not in there to pick up a to-die-for light fixture I have ordered (last one was the FLOS IC S1 pendant for my foyer – SO GOOD!) then I’m grabbing all sorts of little odds and ends like Hay Denmark plant pots, a brass Flax Wall air plant holder by Aliec Tacheny and Kin Tealight Holders by Claesson Koivisto Rune for Skultuna. The Modern Shop carries just about all of my favourite brands of furniture and lighting such as Ingo Maurer, Ferm Living, Gubi, Menu, Moooi, Normann Copenhagen and Tom Dixon. Here are some photo examples:

 Greta Grossman Grasshopper floor lamp by Gubi. I bought the pendant version for my kitchen – it is so classy and timeless.

The Recycled Tube Light by Toronto-based Castor

Marcel Wanders for Moooi carpets. I ordered one of these the other day (still can’t believe it) and am impatiently awaiting its arrival. !!!!!!!!

Outdoor furniture designed by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for HAY

Brass Etch pendant by Tom Dixon

Another on my favourite online furniture store list is a newcomer to the land of online shops. Green Light District is owned by a really sweet couple, Deborah and David, and I got to know them when their shop started out here in Ottawa but they have since packed up the shop and opened it in the funky Toronto neighbourhood of Roncesvalles. Their shop is really special because all of their pieces are original designs, made to order for them by designer owned companies using natural materials only, with a significant hand-made component, craftsmanship and a commitment to eco and social consciousness. Deal breaker right there. It was only a few months ago that they decided to take their wares online so now you can shop virtually if you’re located in Canada or the United States. I have lots of incredible goodies from this store – including a ton of their Wonki Ware dishes from South Africa (my absolute favourite dishes of all time – I will never ever part with these), some vases, a wax lantern and of course, my Magnet lounge chair. So happy you can now buy furniture online from GLD!

A photo I took in my previous home of my Magnet lounge chair. I was able to chose the leather and cord colour so I went with all black. HOT! And as I always say, it’s like sitting on a could.

Saddle leather and solid iron chair

Leather Acapulco chair

Outdoor Acapulco chairs

I really wanted this linen wall hanging but it ended up being too big (I was going to use it as a curtain in my bedroom). Wondering how I can make it work…

Next on the list is Alteriors, another shop here in Ottawa. Jacob and Monika own this gem filled with some of the top modern furniture brands out there. Every time I walk into their store I want to pass out or cry because I adore everything they have in their showroom and I wish I had an endless pocketbook. They carry Ligne Roset (oh YESSSS! and every time I go in I drool over the Togo sofa), Knoll (one day I must acquire a Bertoia chair), Bensen, Cattelan Italia, Herman Miller and more. Here are a few photos of some of my favourite items they stock that I would LURVE to own…

Togo! Togo! Togo! Togo!

Ligne Roset Ottoman Sofa

Ligne Roset Ploum Sofa by the incredibly talented Bouroullec brothers. This one is up there with the Togo.

Florence Knoll round table

Herman Miller Eames molded plywood lounge chair

Last but absolutely not least is Black Rooster Decor. I discovered this shop on Instagram and have been following them religiously ever since. Their shop is located in Toronto and I have not had the opportunity to visit it yet but instead I drool uncontrollably over their online shop all the time. They carry a wide range of styles, from mid-century modern to art deco to European antiques. And to note: they ship worldwide and have warehouses in the States to make it easy peasy to shop. WOOT! Everything they carry makes my heart skip a beat, from the furniture and lighting to the huge selection of accessories. It was hard to narrow down a few favourites but here goes…

The Gwyneth cabinet. AH MAH GAWD!

The super hot Laguna sofa

This is beyond cool – a polycarbonate Wingback chair

The Jonny chandelier. A drama queen for your staircase.

The Modela chair. This is what you buy for your husband when you already spent a fortune on other items and you need something to distract him with. Plus you will love it too and probably fight him for it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This post is in partnership with Furniture Maison. All opinions are my own.