Thursday, September 6, 2012

Blogger Showhome House & Home Event

I attended the Blogger Showhome House & Home event tonight.  What a blast it was!  We got to tour the showhome, meet the people involved in creating it, and ask questions. 

The house is a modern take on a traditional Ontario farmhouse and hit all the right notes in my mind.  It is a lovely house and really should be seen in person to be fully appreciated.  Tickets are on sale now to tour the house and it is open for viewing starting on Saturday (you can find out details about ordering tickets here).  Not only is touring the house a treat for you, but all the proceeds go to the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre to help conquer cancer in our lifetime.


I don't want to give away everything about the house so I thought I would show you a few take-away ideas I saw while touring the house and my favourite room.  

1) Make your pathways from rectangular stones separated by grass.  The pathways looked like modern stepping stones.  


Even the patio was done this way.  This could totally work around most homes and would be much easier to do than laying a solid stone pathway or patio (well not having done either - I assume it would be anyway).


2)  Decorate the dining room table with a series of bowls, vases, and bottles in a unified colour palette   I've done my homework and counted the containers for you - all it takes is three white vases, seven blue glass bottles, three low blue bowls, and an assortment of eight pottery vases in a variety of patterns and shapes and sizes.  Definitely doable!


3) Add some stripes.  In the basement a variety of stripes added interest to the TV room.  There was an interesting patterned rug with red, green, and beige stripes, as well as a black-and-white patterned throw on the chair, 


and painted striped sticks in a vase in the corner.  I love this!  I'm so going to steal borrow this idea myself and paint some stripey sticks for our house.


4) Use a large wicker container as a bedside table.  The ones used in the house were a lovely mix of a modern form and traditional material.


And as for my favourite room in the house - it would have to be the study.  I loved the cheerful colours on the chair, the sofa, and the throw cushions.  And I loved the tall stack of wood on either side of the fireplace.  And I loved the round table that was so simple, yet so elegantly constructed.




There were several Toronto area bloggers that I chatted with.  I was also excited to meet many of the well known faces from the pages of the Canadian House and Home magazine.  I particularly enjoyed chatting with Lisa from the blog Wicked & Weird and Margot Austin, the Editor of Special Issues for Canadian House & Home (you can find her blog here).  

I featured Margot's kitchen awhile back on one of my WISH Wednesday posts (which you can see here) and I've obsessed over her house that was featured recently in the magazine.  It is a perfectly decorated tiny jewel of a house and it is just what I would love to have (well that and a country place).  We had fun chatting about design and the showhome and the maritimes and lots of things. 


Being a good blogger, I thought to ask Margot what her favourite parts of the house were and she wanted to give me a list of ten things.  Given that my brain can't hold that much information without pen and paper, she restricted herself to three things.  So here they are ... drum roll ...

First, she liked how the house is the perfect blend of traditional and modern.  The outside being more traditional - like a farmhouse that has had additions built onto it - yet when you step in the door you are immediately drawn to all the openness and light and modern clean lines.  As you move from room to room you are struck by the balance between the modern and traditional elements.

Second, the marble island in the kitchen (not the best photo of it, but you can see it in the background in the photo below).


Third, the AGA stove (I was rather agog at this as well as I had never seen one in real life before).


I had to agree with her on all three counts.  

It is a wonderful house - decorated thoughtfully and beautifully.  I would encourage anyone who lives in the Toronto area to buy a ticket and go and tour the house.  And for those of you who live too far to see the house, you can see more photos here.

Pin It

16 comments:

  1. Oh wow, thank you so much for sharing. What a very lovely house.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow you are super fast Grace! Love your shots and the highlights of the showhome. This year's showhome is certainly a stunner and you have captured the essence in your post with #1-4. Funny to see myself in one of your pics with me busy taking pictures in the garden :)

    It was lovely seeing you yesterday.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks so much for coming out, Grace! It was nice to meet you in person. Love the recap.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This is so interesting, Grace. I am glad you shared.

    I can not imagine keeping a yard with the patio like that, though. I love seeing what most folks are drawn too. So neat.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks so much for taking us along, especially those of us that live so far away. I would have to agree with all of the "likes" you selected to share, it really is a wonderful home!

    Kat

    ReplyDelete
  6. It was SO wonderful to chat with you Grace - it is always exciting to meet someone in person you have always admired online, and even better when you get on so well :) This is a fantastic post - complete with a photo of me I don't hate! Unheard of! :P

    ReplyDelete
  7. Of course I love the blue bottles on the table and all the pillows. In my dreams I have a manicured yard like this one. :o)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I just love the color and the stonework! Kit

    ReplyDelete
  9. Goodness, I am very jealous! It looks like a fantastic event, I wish I could have gone too.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great post. I was checking continuously this blog and I'm impressed! Very useful info specifically the remaining phase :) I deal with such information a lot. I was looking for this certain information for a very lengthy time. Thank you and good luck.

    by Hotel Deals | What Luggage

    ReplyDelete
  11. This home is fabulous and great post!

    ReplyDelete
  12. So glad to see you there Sylvia - good to see I'm not the only one that thinks your name is Grace! Lovely post and photos! My post is up too!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I have enjoyed looking at your photos from the Show House and Nova Scotia. :D I really like the house....nice mixture of contemporary and traditional. I love those pavers, too, on the patio...

    ReplyDelete
  14. Beautiful photos Grace! Thanks for sharing...I love taking peeks inside other homes. Looking at all those pretty pillows makes me want new pillows. ha! Angie xo

    ReplyDelete
  15. Grace by any other name is still ...

    Love this post, Grace, and your blog ... such wonderful photographs. You must have quite the camera ... or from what I've seen you could do great work with a Kodak point and shoot ...

    ReplyDelete
  16. Just want to say what a great blog you got here!
    I’ve been around for quite a lot of time, but finally decided to show my appreciation of your work! Thumbs up, and keep it going!
    Sell House

    ReplyDelete