I was recently in New York to attend Benjamin Moore's unveiling of their color for 2017. Not only was I intrigued to find out what their color choice was I was also very excited at the venue for the evening event. It was held at the New York Public Library which has been in renovation for the past four or five years. So for me, a win-win on both accounts. The evening did not disappoint and before I even entered the great Library Hall I spent a good 15 minutes wandering around looking at the beautiful Beaux Arts building. (more on the background of this building in next Friday's blog). Onto the event and a wonderful prelude to the launch was an inspiring slideshow of what inspired this choice of the color of the year which is a smoky eggplant purple called "Shadow" No. 2117-30. I met with one of the many researchers and designers who spent the year traveling the world looking for inspiration and digging into "the collective unconscious" to see where the Zeitgeist was and what color would be a good reflection of this. Their thinking on this color was that the world was looking for a deeper color to surround themselves with, perhaps time to reflect. Given the recent election and year of unexpected political shifting, I for one wouldn't mind cocooning in a room that was painted this color. In fact, check out my client's home office done in this color.

The New York Public Library Entrance

Designers from Benjamin Moore talk about some of the imagery that helped them to arrive at the colour of the year.

My client's home office in the colour of the year - a deep rich environment for creativity at the workplace.

A nook from my bedroom in "Shadow".

I am very honoured to be selected as an "A List" Interior Designer by Canadian House & Home magazine. I have had a long association with the magazine and this recent honour has lead me down memory lane to look at some of the my many projects published over the years: my early days as a gesso artist, all my homes and a huge variety of client projects. See below:

My living room featuring a mirrored fireplace and vintage prototype chairs.

30 years. What a milestone!

My kitchen was inspired by 1930's luxury ocean liners. Everything in it's place and a place for everything. It's the smallest kitchen I have owned but the most efficient.

Details, details and me in the background working at the dining table.

A lovely vintage inspired project from 2013.

Back to 2005 but this room still holds it's own. This client has moved recently and we are bringing along all these timeless furnishings.

I love the architectural elements that I added into this client's master bedroom. It makes the sitting room at the forefront cozy and contains the bed for a timeless and classic look.

Wow - my first house from almost 20 years ago . . . but I still love this and would move back in a heartbeat. Note the muslim fabric which I was credited with putting into interiors when the truth was also that I was young and starting out and it fit my budget!

The foyer in my current house - nice to look back as this was published 5 years ago and since this I have put real peacock feathers to the walls for a magical effect.

A lovely project for a young hip couple who were open to transforming their 1980's builder home into a custom contemporary pad.

This classic library is still one of my favourites. A historic Edwardian home in the middle of Toronto, my goal was to restore this room to what I imagined it looked like when it was built at the turn of the century. I designed the hand carved oak mantle, the custom book cases and restored the damaged stained glass to showcase my client's huge library and many collectibles.

Waterworks plumbing fixtures is truly one of my favourite manufactures for their high quality and terribly stylish take on everything bathroom and kitchen. I am therefore thrilled to be included in owner Barbara Sallick's new book “The Perfect Bath”. My project (included on Page 245 top right) is from my home - see photos below.

My house was built in the 1930’s and my design concept was inspired by that rich era and in particular the home of Coco Chanel who lived at the Paris Ritz. I imagined that this is what her ensuite would be like in her apartment. My ensuite features a chic combination of materials: black marble and glass, hand finished cherry wood combined with warm smokey brown tortoise shell coloured paint to create drama and warmth. On a personal note, my grandmother’s first cousin was legendary Harpers Bazaar fashion editor Carmel Snow. I have included a picture of Carmel and Coco at Chanel’s apartment in the Ritz along with timeless shots of Chanel's apartment.

Glamorous black glass vanity with deco inspired brass hardware.

The drapery fabric really makes this room - I have always loved the chic combination of brown and black stripes and drapes in a bathroom always add softness since all the other materials are necessarily hard surfaces.

Harper's Bazaar fashion editor Carmel Snow (my grandmother and Carmel's mothers were sisters) and Coco Chanel at her apartment in the Ritz from Life Magazine. To the right, a copy of the one many beautiful Bazaar magazine covers.

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Chanel's living room - so warm and layered.

Books and books . . .

Oh I do wish I could have sat down at this table to have dinner with Carmel and Coco.

Nothing more to say . . . stunning simple fireplace.

Another cozy, chic place to write a few thank you notes.

Flooring is a key element in any design renovation. I particularly like designing custom tiles because I know that my clients will have unique floors that they will not see anywhere else. Check out some of the custom floors I have designed for projects along with a few examples from my recent trip to Miami.

I designed this custom floor for my client's Edwardian home. This pattern was used in the kitchen and pantry and features red and black marble in a chevron pattern.

More custom marble floors for the Edwardian home featuring a multitude of colours.

I found this exquisite floor at Ann Sacks in New York. The mosaic morrocan border and middle pattern beautifully sets off the vintage vanity.

More floors from South Beach Miami. This one from the iconic Raleigh Hotel where Esther Williams was photographed doing her water ballet in the 1930's.

Lovely floors from South Beach Miami's newest hotel on the waterfront. The Faena House - a tile lover's paradise!

As you can tell from the images below, I always photograph the bedside tables in my projects. For me, this is always an interesting shot because I put a lot of thought into the right bedside table for the function required and the atmosphere that I am creating. In a way it is like the essential jewellery piece on an outfit because the bed is always going to be more dominant but the bedside can skew the look whichever way you want to go from Traditional to Contemporary.

This exquisite burl-oak bedside table is a unique 1930's original from the Art Deco period. It is emblematic of this rich era of design because it has both traditional elements like the legs contrasting with modernist elements like the simple tiered drawers and door.

This simple square mirrored bedside was the perfect solution for this very small guest suite because the reflection makes the space feel larger with no sacrifice of style. I love the black outline as well.

An out-of-the box solution for another client's guest bedroom. Just like the above photo, guest rooms don't require the storage that a bedroom used daily so it is an opportunity to combine this lovely oriental stool with the soft upholstered headboard.

This exotic bedroom features another bedside from the deco period - I especially like the fine leg detail and the beautiful wood.

Colour of the Year

Canadian A-List Designer by House & Home Magazine!

Published in Waterworks Book!

Floor Floor Floor

Bedroom Romance