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It’s fresh and fun, light and bright and liveable. Love this home by Seattle-based Heidi Caillier Design. The mix of old and new, textures and patterns. The mid century chairs in their unexpected pink patterned fabric, the green accents, the soft grey in the striped rug are so much fun against the crisp white of the living room.

Thanks to Lorena for sending us this link to quite a spectacular home currently for sale in Toronto. For those that don’t know alot about real estate in this city…it is very pricey (maybe not New York prices but they are among the highest in Canada, beat only by Vancouver). This 3 bedroom, 4 bathroom, 20ft wide row house (you only get the middle – this home is actually 3 units) has views of a big, ugly apartment building at the front AND at the back, and is almost 4 million. WHOA. But the architecture and attention to detail throughout are fabulous and the homeowners have quite a unique art collection. And I am swooning over the flooring throughout most of the home. AND the fact that there’s a fireplace in the foyer. 

Some goodies have arrived lately in my mailbox that I wanted to share with you all, so here we go. First up are some gorgeous trivets from Canadian designer, artist and printmaker Lorraine Tuson. Her patterns are sooooo fun, and this one is my favourite. It’s called Fingerprint Flower as it started off with her own fingerprint! She currently carries lumbar cushions, coasters, table runner, pouches and a few others, all made from 100% wool felt. While I plan to use my trivets just for decoration they have a cork backing so they don’t slip and are water repellant and can be easily spot cleaned. She is selling her products at one of my favourite shops in Toronto, Green Light District Design, if you want to go check them out in person. We spoke about some new projects she’s working on and I’m super stoked to see how they turn out! 

This first book I received is total eye candy and a perfect coffee table book you’re going to want to flip through a couple dozen times. Out East: Houses and Gardens of the Hamptons is published by The Vendome Press, is written by Jennifer Ash Rudick with photos by Tria Giovan.

Out East captures the enduring appeal of shingled houses, modernist oceanfront designs, artists’ compounds, and Montauk surf shacks. Jennifer Ash Rudick, a long-time Southampton resident, leads an insider’s tour of more than 25 houses, cottages, and pool houses. Tria Giovan, a Sag Harbor–based photographer, captures extraordinary gardens, verandas, lakeside pavilions, farmhouses, and converted barns. This book is fabulous because it features such a wide variety of decor styles: from super traditional, to country, to mid-century modern and Scandinavian. This book has only been out since July 4th so go get yourselves a copy – trust me you will love it!

The next book is a fun, instructional book titled Miniature Bonsai: The Complete Guide to Super-Mini Bonsai published by Tuttle Publishing and written by Terutoshi Iwai.

This is a great book for anyone like me who is fairly clueless on gardening/plants as it provides complete details on how to successfully create mini bonsai planters. They are so adorable!!! Miniature Bonsai reveals the Japanese art of super-mini bonsai gardening. As rewarding as full-scale bonsai cultivation is, mini bonsai is affordable, easy to learn and kind to your busy schedule. It’s a complete gardening experience—a plant raised from seed or cutting, carefully potted, grown and maintained over time—a world of green in a pot no bigger than a demitasse or a thimble. From mixing the right growing medium to choosing the perfect pot to displaying your mini bonsai, this Japanese gardening book gives you basic techniques and valuable tips to help you grow miniature flowering trees, pines, maples, oak, juniper and other varieties of tiny trees and potted plants that are readily available and last for years.

You may remember the thatched cottage kitchen by Fawn Interior Design Studio that I swooned over a few months ago. (In case you don’t you can find it here.) I thought you might like to see more of this lovely old home. Robert and Tamsin Allen have now worked their magic on the reception rooms. The sitting room is like a private members’ club, dark and comfy, stylish and relaxing. The living room is more like a cinema room, darker and den-like while the dining room is lighter, the perfect spot for afternoon homework or gathering with family and friends to share a meal.

There are several styles of interiors that I am drawn to, and this 300 year old restored coachman’s cottage in Germany owned by designer Jeanette Walther embodies my favourite. Rustic, timeworn, weathered, textured, rough. Shades of brown and black and grey and earth, barnboard, elements from nature, chalky walls, peeling paint. Picture perfect. Photos by Ivar Janssen for MilK Decoration and Architectural Digest Gemany.